VoxCPM: Open-Source Segmentation-Free Text-to-Speech by OpenBMB

Text-to-speech (TTS) technology has advanced rapidly in recent years, but many systems still rely on complex text preprocessing such as word segmentation. VoxCPM, an open-source TTS system developed by the OpenBMB team, takes a different approach by enabling segmentation-free text-to-speech.

In this guide, we’ll explore what VoxCPM is, why it matters, how to install it, and how you can use it to build modern speech applications.

What Is VoxCPM?

VoxCPM is an open-source neural text-to-speech system created by the OpenBMB team. It is designed to directly convert raw text into natural-sounding speech without requiring traditional word segmentation or complex linguistic preprocessing.

This design makes VoxCPM particularly effective for Chinese and multilingual scenarios, where word boundaries are often ambiguous and can negatively affect speech quality in conventional TTS pipelines.

Why VoxCPM Is Different from Traditional TTS Systems

Most classic TTS systems follow a pipeline like:

1. Text normalization
2. Word segmentation
3. Phoneme conversion
4. Acoustic modeling
5. Vocoder synthesis

VoxCPM simplifies this process by leveraging large-scale neural models that learn text-to-speech mapping directly. This reduces engineering complexity and improves robustness across different writing styles.

Key Features of VoxCPM

• Segmentation-Free Input: No need for word tokenization.
• High-Quality Speech: Natural prosody and clear pronunciation.
• Optimized for Chinese: Strong performance on Chinese text.
• Multilingual Potential: Extendable to other languages.
• Open Source: Free for research and commercial use.
• Developer-Friendly: Easy to integrate into applications.

Typical Use Cases

• AI voice assistants and chatbots
• Audiobook and podcast generation
• Accessibility tools for visually impaired users
• Online education and language learning apps
• Customer service automation

System Requirements

• Python 3.8 or later
• Linux or macOS (Windows via WSL)
• CUDA-compatible GPU (recommended)
• 8GB RAM minimum, 16GB+ recommended

How to Install VoxCPM

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/OpenBMB/VoxCPM.git
cd VoxCPM
    

2. Create a Virtual Environment

conda create -n voxcpm python=3.9
conda activate voxcpm
    

3. Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt
    

4. Download Pretrained Models

Download the official pretrained checkpoints from the OpenBMB release page and place them in the checkpoints/ directory.

How to Use VoxCPM

Basic Command-Line Example

python inference.py \
  --text "VoxCPM makes text to speech easier and more natural." \
  --output demo.wav
    

Using VoxCPM in Python

from voxcpm import TTS

tts = TTS(model_path="checkpoints/voxcpm")
tts.speak("Hello, this is VoxCPM, an open-source TTS system.")
    

Deploying VoxCPM as an API

You can deploy VoxCPM using frameworks like FastAPI or Flask to provide real-time text-to-speech services for web and mobile applications.

Best Practices for Production Use

• Use GPU acceleration for real-time synthesis.
• Cache frequently generated audio files.
• Monitor memory usage in large-scale deployments.
• Normalize punctuation and numbers in input text.
• Keep your model checkpoints updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is VoxCPM free to use?

Yes. VoxCPM is an open-source project released by the OpenBMB team and can be used freely according to its license terms.

Does VoxCPM support Chinese text?

Absolutely. VoxCPM is designed to handle Chinese text without word segmentation, making it especially effective for Chinese TTS applications.

Can VoxCPM run on CPU?

Yes, but CPU inference is slower. A GPU is strongly recommended for real-time or high-volume speech synthesis.

Conclusion

VoxCPM represents a new generation of text-to-speech systems that simplify the traditional TTS pipeline while delivering high-quality speech output. Developed by the OpenBMB team and released as open source, VoxCPM is an excellent choice for developers, researchers, and companies building modern voice solutions.

If you are looking for a segmentation-free, developer-friendly, and scalable TTS solution, VoxCPM is definitely worth exploring.