Your Companion can answer you with a voice – and so that it also understands your spoken messages, the company Groq turns them into text at lightning speed (Whisper speech recognition). For that it needs a free Groq key. This page creates it in 3 steps.
An email address (or a Google/GitHub account)About 5 minutesFree
Before we start: two terms, nothing more
API key
A password for programs. Whoever has it may use speech recognition in your account's name. At Groq it starts with gsk_.
Whisper
The speech recognition model that turns your voice messages into text. At Groq it runs especially fast – so your Companion never has to wait long.
Speaking and understanding are two different things.The voice your Companion answers with comes from ElevenLabs (separate page). So that it understands your spoken messages, it additionally needs this Groq key – and that is exactly what this page is about.
1
Create a Groq account
In your browser: console.groq.com
Open the address console.groq.com in your browser.
Sign in – with Google, GitHub, or your email address.
The account is free, and no credit card is needed.
Three paths, one goal: Google, GitHub, or email – all lead to the free account.
No new password needed?If you choose “Continue with Google” or “Continue with GitHub”, you sign in with your existing account – Groq then automatically creates an account for you.
2
Create the API key
In the Console, in the menu on the left: API Keys
Click “API Keys” in the menu on the left.
Click the “Create API Key” button.
Enter a name, e.g. VEYA, and click “Submit”.
A name is enough – you don't have to pick any permissions here.
Can't find the button?You can also open the keys page directly: console.groq.com/keys – the “Create API Key” button is waiting there.
3
Copy the key immediately
In the window that appears right after “Submit”
Your key is now displayed – it starts with gsk_. It is shown in full only this one time!
Click the copy icon next to the key.
Paste it straight into a safe place: a password manager or a text file kept only on your computer. Only then close the window.
The most important moment: copy first, then close.
Closed it too soon?No drama: delete the old key in the API Keys list and create a new one. Showing it again is not possible, for security reasons.
Done!
Your Groq key is ready. Hand it to the program that sets up your Companion – from now on, your Companion also understands your voice messages.
And what does all this cost?
Free – the free tier is comfortably enough.The account, the API key, and the speech recognition cost nothing on Groq's free tier – the daily allowance is generous, and no credit card is requested. For everyday voice messages, that is comfortably enough.
There are volume limits per day.The free tier allows a certain amount of speech recognition per day. In everyday use with a few dozen voice messages, you practically never reach these limits.
Don't mix up two cost pots.Groq only turns speech into text. Speaking (ElevenLabs) and thinking (DeepSeek/OpenRouter) run through their own accounts – there are separate pages for those.
Important: how to handle the key
The key is like a house key.Whoever has it can use speech recognition at your account's expense. Please don't put it on the public internet, don't post it in forums, don't pass it on to strangers. If it falls into the wrong hands: delete it in the API Keys list and create a new one – the old one is instantly worthless.
Common stumbling blocks
My key doesn't work
Usually a copying slip: a character is missing or a space came along. Delete the old key, create a new one, and take it over with the copy icon.
I lost my key
Showing it again is not possible. Delete the old key in the API Keys list, create a new one, and this time copy it immediately.
Do I need a paid account?
No. For everyday voice messages, Groq's free tier is comfortably enough – you would only need a paid account if you wanted to go far beyond the daily allowance.