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Getting Started

Getting started

Install Mockingbird, run your first session, and understand what the trial covers.

Mockingbird is a desktop copilot for interviews, sales calls, and meetings. This guide walks through installing the app, launching it for the first time, and exercising the free trial.

Install

Mockingbird ships installers for macOS, Windows, and Linux. Download the installer for your platform from the Download page.

macOS

Drag Mockingbird.app from the .dmg into /Applications. Initial launch builds are ad-hoc signed but not notarized, so Gatekeeper may warn you that Apple cannot check the app. Control-click Mockingbird.app, choose Open, then confirm. If macOS still blocks the launch, clear the quarantine attribute once from a terminal:

xattr -rd com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/Mockingbird.app"

Future Developer ID signed and notarized builds will not need this step.

Windows

Run the .exe installer. If SmartScreen warns you about an unsigned executable, click "More info" then "Run anyway": signed builds do not trigger this.

Linux

Use either the .AppImage (chmod +x, then run) or the .deb (install with sudo dpkg -i).

First launch

The app boots to the Practice page with a seeded trial user. You have two things to do next.

Choose a mode

Real-time transcription drives every suggestion. Pick the path that matches your plan:

  1. Offline Mode. Quality: Medium. Runs local transcription and local AI on your device. It works without Wi-Fi after setup and keeps audio on your machine, but it requires a one-time local model download.
  2. Online Mode. Quality: Highest. Uses high-end cloud transcription and AI, requires Wi-Fi, and needs Pro or BYOK.

Either path is supported end to end. Starter uses Offline Mode by default; Pro and BYOK can use Online Mode when you want maximum quality.

Finish Offline Mode setup

If you choose Offline Mode, open Settings → Advanced → Local transcription and AI models. Download the local transcription model and install the local AI runtime when prompted. The app shows hardware caveats when a machine is below the comfortable local bar, and Online Mode remains the quality fallback.

Grant microphone permission

On macOS the first session will trigger the system mic prompt; approve it in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone. If you also want the copilot to hear the other side of the call (system-audio capture), enable Settings → General → System audio capture and grant Screen Recording permission when prompted. macOS caches TCC decisions per app, so you must restart Mockingbird after granting it.

Run a practice session

  1. Pick a mode from the mode pill at the top of the Practice page: Interview, Sales, or Meeting.
  2. Click Start session. The overlay window appears and starts streaming partials as you speak.
  3. Watch suggestions appear in the overlay. Use the action buttons to regenerate with Shorter, Simpler, or Longer tone.
  4. End the session. The Practice Loop scores your answer against the rubric and produces a grounded rewrite.

The free trial

The trial gives you 10 minutes per session and 30 minutes lifetime of real microphone time. Both limits are enforced mid-session: when you hit them, the session auto-stops with a truthful status message.

When the trial is exhausted, pick a tier on the Pricing page:

  • Starter: Offline Mode, plus the Practice Loop and drill deck, $9/mo.
  • Pro: Starter plus Online Mode with high-end cloud AI, $17/mo.
  • BYOK: Online Mode with your own provider accounts; we bill only for the thin software layer, $3/mo.

Subscriptions are billed monthly via Stripe in US dollars. There is a no-questions-asked 14-day refund window on your first paid invoice.

Next steps