# ElevenLabs Scribe v3 Is Live: Three API Changes That Matter

> Source: <https://byteiota.com/elevenlabs-scribe-v3-workflows-sfx-deprecation/>
> Published: 2026-11-14 19:10:15+00:00

ElevenLabs held its Summit NYC at Lincoln Center last week and dropped 13 product announcements. For most developers, the number is a distraction. What matters is narrower: Scribe v3 is live in the API, agent workflows can now be version-controlled in code, and one deprecated model has a hard removal date that will break integrations silently if you don’t act.

## Scribe v3: Ship It This Week

The headline release is Scribe v3, ElevenLabs’ new speech-to-text model available immediately via the existing Speech-to-Text API. It delivers 27% fewer word errors than Scribe v2 across 102 languages on the FLEURS benchmark, reaching 1.9% AA-WER — joint top of the [Artificial Analysis STT leaderboard](https://artificialanalysis.ai/speech-to-text/non-streaming) alongside AssemblyAI. Switching costs nothing beyond a one-line change to your `model_id`:

```
curl -X POST https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/speech-to-text \
  -H "xi-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -F "model_id=scribe_v3" \
  -F "file=@audio.mp3" \
  -F "language_code=en"
```

The real-time variant, `scribe_v3_live`, adds speaker labeling mid-conversation, turn prediction, and a keyterm library supporting up to 10,000 domain-specific terms. It’s priced at $0.22/hr and is now the default transcription layer inside ElevenAgents — meaning any voice agent already on the platform gets the accuracy upgrade automatically. For mixed-language audio, use `secondary_language_codes`. For sensitive pipelines, set `enable_logging: false` for zero-retention mode.

## Workflows as Code: Version-Control Your Agent Logic

The less-hyped but more significant shift is Workflows as Code, available in Python and JavaScript SDKs from v2.77.0. You can now build, version, and deploy agent conversation flows entirely in code — conditional routing, tool call triggers, multi-agent handoffs, all serializable to JSON for storage in your repository:

```
triage.when(
    Expr.variable("tier").eq("gold")
).transfer("vip", Destination.agent("agent_vip"))

# Serialize for version control
json_str = wf.to_json_string()
```

Workflows created in code remain editable in the visual editor — no lock-in. For teams already running CI/CD on AI pipelines, this closes a real gap. ElevenLabs also added 24 new tools to its [Hosted MCP Server](https://elevenlabs.io/docs/eleven-agents/customization/agent-workflows-as-code) for agent inspection: analytics, configuration, alerts, and test invocation.

## The Urgent One: SFX v2 Is Removed March 1, 2027

The item most likely to generate a 3 AM incident: `eleven_text_to_sound_v2` is deprecated and will be removed on March 1, 2027. If your code passes `model_id: "eleven_text_to_sound_v2"` explicitly, change it to `"eleven_text_to_sound_v3"` before that date. If you don’t specify a `model_id`, the platform auto-migrates and you’re clear.

The risk is code that locked the model ID months ago and hasn’t been touched since. GitHub issues are already appearing across open-source projects. Run a codebase search, check the [November 2 changelog](https://elevenlabs.io/docs/changelog/2026/11/2), and migrate now rather than under pressure in February. SFX v3 handles multi-part prompts and vocal or musical sounds more accurately anyway — there’s real upside beyond avoiding breakage.

## ElevenAI the App: Useful Preview, Not an API (Yet)

The Summit’s marquee announcement was ElevenAI, a team app combining meeting transcription, cross-meeting search, dictation, and ElevenAgent-driven follow-up actions. It runs on Scribe v3 internally, supports 90+ languages, and targets the Otter.ai and Fireflies market. It’s in free early access — sign up at elevenlabs.io, don’t look for an app download. There’s no developer API surface yet. When it opens one, the combination of real-time transcription and agent-driven actions will matter. For now, it’s a useful preview of platform direction.

## What to Do Now

- Update any `model_id` calls to`scribe_v3` for immediate accuracy gains
- Upgrade to Python or JS SDK v2.77.0+ to access Workflows as Code
- Search your codebase for `eleven_text_to_sound_v2` and migrate to v3
- Check the [Scribe v3 API reference](https://elevenlabs.io/docs/api-reference/speech-to-text/convert) for the full parameter list

ElevenLabs shipped 550+ partners, announced 15 MW of NVIDIA Vera Rubin compute, and previewed enterprise custom model fine-tuning. The Workflows as Code release and the ElevenAgents Unity SDK for spatial audio signal where the company is heading: infrastructure, not just an API. The free tier still runs up to [the Creator plan at $22/month](https://elevenlabs.io/pricing) for most self-serve builders.
