Great question, in the case of superwhisper, the app itself doesnt really have an interface- it just plops the result text into whatever text field you have focused. So the menu bar icon indicates the recording processing and complete state and gives quick access to settings.
I agree the menu bar is overcrowded, but I don't know if the app would work very well without the icon as it is the primary way that the current recording state is indicated. If you have ideas on how else I could approach this, let me know what you think.
I don't mind the menu bar approach but another way would be something that can be triggered by CLI or a launcher like Alfred. ("Typed" with the menu bar app, by the way.)
I agree the menu bar is overcrowded, but I don't know if the app would work very well without the icon as it is the primary way that the current recording state is indicated. If you have ideas on how else I could approach this, let me know what you think.