YouTube Processor

What This Does

Takes a YouTube URL, extracts the transcript, and you (Claude) summarize it. Outputs Obsidian-ready markdown. Zero friction: share a link, get actionable notes.

When to Use

• "Summarize this video: [URL]"

• "Turn this YouTube into notes"

• "What's this video about?"

• "Process this for my newsletter"

• Any YouTube URL shared for processing

Location

This skill's tools live at:

/Users/eddale/Documents/GitHub/powerhouse-lab/skills/youtube-processor/tools/

How It Works

Step 1: Python extracts the transcript (no API key needed) Step 2: You (Claude) summarize using your intelligence + context Step 3: You write the Obsidian-formatted output

This approach means you can use mission-context, newsletter-coach, and other skills during summarization.

Instructions

Which Method to Use

Environment Method

Claude Code Local Python script (Step 1a)

Claude.ai / Mac Client API via WebFetch (Step 1b)

Step 1a: Extract Transcript (Claude Code)

Run the Python tool to get the transcript:

cd /Users/eddale/Documents/GitHub/powerhouse-lab/skills/youtube-processor/tools &&
python3 get_transcript.py --url "[URL]"

For JSON output (easier to parse):

python3 get_transcript.py --url "[URL]" --json

Step 1b: Extract Transcript (Claude.ai / Mac Client)

Use the API endpoint via WebFetch:

WebFetch: https://youtube-processor-eight.vercel.app/transcript?url=[VIDEO_URL]

The API returns JSON:

{ "success": true, "video_id": "abc123", "language": "en", "transcript": "...", "char_count": 5000, "word_count": 850 }

Example prompt for WebFetch: "Extract the transcript text from the response"

Step 2: Summarize the Transcript

Once you have the transcript, summarize it based on what the user needs:

Quick Summary:

• Headline (1 sentence)

• Key points (3-5 bullets)

• Main takeaway

Detailed Analysis:

• Headline summary

• Key points with context

• Main takeaways

• Action items mentioned

• How this relates to Ed's work (if relevant)

Newsletter Mining:

• Hook ideas for an article

• Core insight/framework

• Story beats for anecdotes

• Takeaways for readers

• Newsletter angle for The Little Blue Report

Step 3: Format for Obsidian

Create markdown with this structure:

source: YouTube video_id: [ID] url: [URL] processed: [YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM] tags: [youtube, video-notes]

[Video Title or Topic]

Link: [URL] Processed: [Date]

Summary

[Your summary here]

Full Transcript

[The transcript]

Generated by youtube-processor skill

Step 4: Save (Optional)

Save to Ed's Zettelkasten:

/Users/eddale/Documents/COPYobsidian/MAGI/Zettelkasten/

Filename format: YT - [Topic] - YYYY-MM-DD.md

Error Handling

Error Meaning What to Do

"Transcripts disabled" Creator turned off captions Video can't be processed

"No transcript found" No English captions available Try a different video

"Video unavailable" Private, deleted, or age-restricted Check the URL

Examples

Example 1: Quick Summary

User says:

Summarize this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID

You do:

• Run: python3 get_transcript.py --url "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

• Read the transcript output

• Provide a summary to the user

Example 2: Save to Obsidian

User says:

Turn this video into notes and save it: [URL]

You do:

• Extract transcript with the Python tool

• Summarize the content

• Format as Obsidian markdown

• Use Write tool to save to Zettelkasten

• Confirm: "Saved to [filepath]"

Example 3: Newsletter Mining

User says:

I want to write about this video for the newsletter: [URL]

You do:

• Extract transcript

• Analyze for newsletter angles (hooks, insights, story beats)

• Present the angles

• Offer to hand off to newsletter-coach skill

Integration Points

• newsletter-coach: After extracting video insights, hand off for article development

• mission-context: Use Ed's voice and style when summarizing

• task-clarity-scanner: Action items from videos can be added to daily notes

Dependencies

The Python tool requires:

youtube-transcript-api

Install if needed:

pip3 install youtube-transcript-api

Version History

Version Date Changes

1.1 2026-01-03 Added Vercel API for Claude.ai/Mac client support

1.0 2026-01-02 Initial build with transcript extraction

Notes & Learnings

• youtube-transcript-api works without API keys

• Most videos have auto-generated English captions

• Claude doing the summarization is better than Python calling the API (can use context)

• ~3-5 second transcript extraction for typical videos