I think including the word "OpenAI" in the post name is somewhat a misnomer that implies an encrapification not really happening to the FFMPEG project.
Yes, it is true OpenAI originally developed the Whisper model, and I hate OpenAI; however:
- Whisper is actually open source, unlike most OpenAI crap.
- FFmpeg isn't even directly using the OpenAI version, written in Python - they're using a port to C++ called Whisper.cpp
- We've been able to use speech recognition for decades, so unlike other AI models, I don't think a speech recognition model that does it better is problem.
- You don't even necessarily have to compile FFmpeg with Whisper support.
I get the dislike of AI, but the idea of association with OpenAI is overblown and not really reflective of reality. Now I can get not wanting to use open source projects whose developers don't reflect your principles; however, I think this ethical issue is more indirect than may initially appear and is not a strong reason to quit using what is still the most effective media conversion tool.