macOS Setup

Complete guide for setting up Intervu on macOS.

Overview

Intervu supports macOS with AVFoundation-based audio capture. On macOS, you need:

1. FFmpeg — Required for audio capture (install via Homebrew)
2. BlackHole — Virtual audio driver for capturing system audio
3. Audio MIDI Setup — Built-in macOS tool to route audio to both speakers and BlackHole simultaneously

No Bundled FFmpeg on macOS

Unlike Windows, Intervu does not bundle FFmpeg on macOS. You must install it manually via Homebrew before the app will work.

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1. Install FFmpeg

FFmpeg is required for audio capture and device enumeration on macOS.

# Install Homebrew if you don't have it
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

# Install FFmpeg
brew install ffmpeg

# Verify installation
ffmpeg -version

FFmpeg must be in your PATH for Intervu to detect it. Homebrew installs it to /usr/local/bin/ffmpeg (Intel) or /opt/homebrew/bin/ffmpeg (Apple Silicon).

AVFoundation Support

The Homebrew FFmpeg build includes AVFoundation support, which Intervu uses for audio device enumeration and capture on macOS.

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2. Install BlackHole Audio

BlackHole is a free, open-source virtual audio driver for macOS. It allows Intervu to capture system audio (the interviewer's voice from video calls).

Download

1. Go to existential.audio
2. Download BlackHole (free)
3. Open the downloaded .pkg file
4. Follow the installation prompts

Verify Installation

1. Open System Settings → Sound
2. BlackHole should appear in both Input and Output device lists

BlackHole Alone Is Not Enough

If you only select BlackHole as your system output, you won't hear any audio. You need a multi-output device to hear system audio while Intervu captures it. See the next step.

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3. Create a Multi-Output Device

This step routes system audio to both your speakers/headphones and BlackHole simultaneously, so you can hear the interviewer while Intervu captures the audio.

1. Open Audio MIDI Setup (press Cmd + Space, type "Audio MIDI Setup")
2. Click the + button in the bottom-left corner
3. Select Create Multi-Output Device
4. Check the boxes for:
   • BlackHole 2ch (or BlackHole 16ch if installed)
   • Your speaker or headphone device (e.g., "MacBook Pro Speakers", "AirPods", etc.)
5. Rename the device to something recognizable, e.g., "Intervu Multi-Output"
6. Close Audio MIDI Setup

Set as System Output

1. Open System Settings → Sound
2. Under Output, select "Intervu Multi-Output" (or whatever you named it)

Now all system audio will play through your speakers/headphones and be captured by BlackHole.

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4. Configure Intervu

1. Open Intervu
2. Click the Settings (gear) icon
3. System Audio Device: Select BlackHole 2ch (or your BlackHole channel)
4. Microphone Device: Select your physical microphone
5. Test both audio level meters show activity

┌─────────────┐     ┌──────────────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐
│ Video Call   │────▶│ Multi-Output Device  │────▶│ BlackHole    │────▶│ Intervu     │
│ (System Out) │     │ (Audio MIDI Setup)   │────▶│ (System Audio│     │ (STT + LLM) │
└─────────────┘     └──────────────────────┘     │  Capture)    │     └─────────────┘
                              │                    └──────────────┘
                              ▼
                    ┌──────────────┐
                    │ Speakers /  │
                    │ Headphones  │
                    │ (You Hear)  │
                    └──────────────┘

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5. Remove Quarantine (First Launch)

Since Intervu is not code-signed, macOS will prevent it from opening with an error like:

"Intervu.app is damaged and can't be opened" or "App can't be opened because it is from an unidentified developer"

Why Does This Happen?

macOS applies a quarantine attribute to apps downloaded from the internet that aren't signed by an Apple Developer certificate. Removing the quarantine attribute allows the app to run normally.

Code signing will be added in a future release. For now, this workaround is required.

Fix: Remove Quarantine Attribute

Open Terminal and run:

xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Intervu.app

If you installed to a different location, adjust the path accordingly.

Alternative: Allow in System Settings

If you prefer not to use Terminal:

1. Try to open Intervu (you'll get an error)
2. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security
3. Click "Open Anyway" next to the security warning
4. Confirm by clicking "Open"

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6. Grant Microphone Permission

When you first start audio capture, macOS will ask for microphone access:

1. Click "Allow" when prompted
2. If you missed the prompt, go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone
3. Enable Intervu

Required

Intervu cannot capture microphone audio without this permission. System audio (via BlackHole) works regardless of this setting.

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Audio Routing Summary

macOS Audio Flow

Step	Setting	Device
System Sound Output	Output	Multi-Output Device
Intervu System Audio	System Audio Device	BlackHole 2ch
Intervu Microphone	Microphone Device	Your physical mic

What Happens

1. Video call audio → goes to Multi-Output Device
2. Multi-Output Device → sends to your speakers (you hear it) + BlackHole (Intervu captures it)
3. Your microphone → goes directly to Intervu
4. Intervu → transcribes both audio streams and generates answers

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Troubleshooting

For macOS-specific issues, see macOS Troubleshooting.

Common Issues

Issue	Solution
App won't open	Remove quarantine: xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Intervu.app
No audio devices listed	Install FFmpeg: brew install ffmpeg
Can't hear system audio	Create multi-output device in Audio MIDI Setup
Microphone not working	Grant permission in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone
BlackHole not appearing	Reinstall BlackHole, reboot Mac

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Next Steps

• Prerequisites — Full prerequisites overview
• Audio Devices — Audio configuration details
• macOS Troubleshooting — macOS-specific issues