Linux setup

Download the package for your distribution from the download page.

Debian, Ubuntu (.deb)

sudo apt install ./Ambient_0.9.8_amd64.deb

Fedora, RHEL, openSUSE (.rpm)

sudo dnf install ./Ambient-0.9.8-1.x86_64.rpm

Any distribution (AppImage)

chmod +x Ambient_0.9.8_amd64.AppImage
./Ambient_0.9.8_amd64.AppImage

Wayland doesn’t let apps register global keyboard shortcuts the way X11 does, so Ambient’s built-in shortcut may not fire. Instead, bind a shortcut in your desktop environment to the command line flag:

ambient --toggle-transcription

The first press starts recording, the second stops it and pastes the text. This works because the command signals the already-running instance of Ambient.

• GNOME: Settings → Keyboard → View and Customize Shortcuts → Custom Shortcuts → add the command above.
• KDE Plasma: System Settings → Shortcuts → Add New → Command or Script.
• Sway / Hyprland: add a bindsym / bind line that runs the command.

Other flags you can bind:

ambient --toggle-post-process   # record with AI post-processing
ambient --cancel                # cancel the current recording

To type into other apps, Ambient uses a helper tool. Install the one that fits your session:

• wtype — Wayland on wlroots compositors (Sway, Hyprland). Not supported by GNOME or KDE.
• ydotool — works on any Wayland compositor and on X11. Requires the ydotoold daemon running and access to /dev/uinput.
• xdotool — X11 sessions.

# Debian / Ubuntu
sudo apt install wtype ydotool xdotool

# Fedora
sudo dnf install wtype ydotool xdotool

Ambient picks the first available tool automatically: on Wayland it tries wtype (except on GNOME and KDE), then dotool, then ydotool; on X11 it tries xdotool, then ydotool.

The recording indicator is drawn with gtk-layer-shell, so it can float above other windows on Wayland compositors that support the layer-shell protocol. If the overlay misbehaves on your compositor, disable it with:

AMBIENT_NO_GTK_LAYER_SHELL=1 ambient