Combine Keyterms Prompting with Prompts
Our Universal-3-Pro model supports natural language and keyterms prompting, allowing you to fine-tune transcription results to your specific use case. Check out this section of our docs to learn more. By default, these two parameters, prompt and keyterms_prompt, cannot be used in the same request, but this guide will show you how they can be used together in a single transcription request if desired.
We recommend using either prompt OR keyterms_prompt individually, not
both together. Combining both parameters can result in overprompting,
leading to unpredictable or degraded results, so if you do attempt to use both
together, be conscious of the length of your prompt and how many terms you are
passing.
Quickstart
Python
JavaScript
Get Started
Before you begin, make sure you have:
- An AssemblyAI account with an API key
- Python 3.7+ or Node.js 14+ installed
Understanding the Two Features
Keyterms Prompting (keyterms_prompt)
Use keyterms_prompt to provide up to 1,000 specific words or phrases (maximum 6 words per phrase) to improve transcription accuracy for those exact terms. This is ideal for:
- Names with unusual spellings (e.g., “Kelly Byrne-Donoghue”)
- Brand names and product names
- Technical terminology
- Acronyms and abbreviations
Prompting (prompt)
Use prompt to provide up to 1,500 words of general context and instructions in plain language. This helps the model:
- Apply formatting conventions
- Understand domain context
- Handle code-switching between languages
- Interpret ambiguous speech
For best results, keep prompts concise (3-5 instructions, 50-80 words). Overly long prompts can cause the model to degrade in transcription quality as it tries to process conflicting instructions.
Conclusion
While you can use both keyterms_prompt and prompt together, we recommend using the prompt parameter with your keyterms included as context. This approach provides both domain context and term accuracy in a single parameter.
For more details on each feature: