youtube-content
Fetch YouTube video transcripts and transform them into structured content (chapters, summaries, threads, blog posts). Use when the user shares a YouTube URL or video link, asks to summarize a video, requests a transcript, or wants to extract and reformat content from any YouTube video.
Best use case
youtube-content is best used when you need a repeatable AI agent workflow instead of a one-off prompt.
Fetch YouTube video transcripts and transform them into structured content (chapters, summaries, threads, blog posts). Use when the user shares a YouTube URL or video link, asks to summarize a video, requests a transcript, or wants to extract and reformat content from any YouTube video.
Teams using youtube-content should expect a more consistent output, faster repeated execution, less prompt rewriting.
When to use this skill
- You want a reusable workflow that can be run more than once with consistent structure.
When not to use this skill
- You only need a quick one-off answer and do not need a reusable workflow.
- You cannot install or maintain the underlying files, dependencies, or repository context.
Installation
Claude Code / Cursor / Codex
Manual Installation
- Download SKILL.md from GitHub
- Place it in
.claude/skills/youtube-content/SKILL.mdinside your project - Restart your AI agent — it will auto-discover the skill
How youtube-content Compares
| Feature / Agent | youtube-content | Standard Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Platform Support | Not specified | Limited / Varies |
| Context Awareness | High | Baseline |
| Installation Complexity | Unknown | N/A |
Frequently Asked Questions
What does this skill do?
Fetch YouTube video transcripts and transform them into structured content (chapters, summaries, threads, blog posts). Use when the user shares a YouTube URL or video link, asks to summarize a video, requests a transcript, or wants to extract and reformat content from any YouTube video.
Where can I find the source code?
You can find the source code on GitHub using the link provided at the top of the page.
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SKILL.md Source
# YouTube Content Tool Extract transcripts from YouTube videos and convert them into useful formats. ## Setup ```bash pip install youtube-transcript-api ``` ## Helper Script `SKILL_DIR` is the directory containing this SKILL.md file. The script accepts any standard YouTube URL format, short links (youtu.be), shorts, embeds, live links, or a raw 11-character video ID. ```bash # JSON output with metadata python3 SKILL_DIR/scripts/fetch_transcript.py "https://youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID" # Plain text (good for piping into further processing) python3 SKILL_DIR/scripts/fetch_transcript.py "URL" --text-only # With timestamps python3 SKILL_DIR/scripts/fetch_transcript.py "URL" --timestamps # Specific language with fallback chain python3 SKILL_DIR/scripts/fetch_transcript.py "URL" --language tr,en ``` ## Output Formats After fetching the transcript, format it based on what the user asks for: - **Chapters**: Group by topic shifts, output timestamped chapter list - **Summary**: Concise 5-10 sentence overview of the entire video - **Chapter summaries**: Chapters with a short paragraph summary for each - **Thread**: Twitter/X thread format — numbered posts, each under 280 chars - **Blog post**: Full article with title, sections, and key takeaways - **Quotes**: Notable quotes with timestamps ### Example — Chapters Output ``` 00:00 Introduction — host opens with the problem statement 03:45 Background — prior work and why existing solutions fall short 12:20 Core method — walkthrough of the proposed approach 24:10 Results — benchmark comparisons and key takeaways 31:55 Q&A — audience questions on scalability and next steps ``` ## Workflow 1. **Fetch** the transcript using the helper script with `--text-only --timestamps`. 2. **Validate**: confirm the output is non-empty and in the expected language. If empty, retry without `--language` to get any available transcript. If still empty, tell the user the video likely has transcripts disabled. 3. **Chunk if needed**: if the transcript exceeds ~50K characters, split into overlapping chunks (~40K with 2K overlap) and summarize each chunk before merging. 4. **Transform** into the requested output format. If the user did not specify a format, default to a summary. 5. **Verify**: re-read the transformed output to check for coherence, correct timestamps, and completeness before presenting. ## Error Handling - **Transcript disabled**: tell the user; suggest they check if subtitles are available on the video page. - **Private/unavailable video**: relay the error and ask the user to verify the URL. - **No matching language**: retry without `--language` to fetch any available transcript, then note the actual language to the user. - **Dependency missing**: run `pip install youtube-transcript-api` and retry.
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