---
name: youtube
description: Search YouTube videos, retrieve video metadata, and extract full transcripts/subtitles with timestamps for instant AI summarization, recipes, or research.
---

# 📺 YouTube Integration (Search & Transcripts)

Full YouTube search and transcript extraction engine for OpenClaw:

1. 🔍 **`youtube_search(query, max_results=5, video_duration="any")`**:
   - Searches YouTube via YouTube Data API v3.
   - Returns title, channel, video ID, formatted duration, view count, published date, and direct link.
   - Durations: `any`, `short` (< 4 min), `medium` (4-20 min), `long` (> 20 min).

2. 📜 **`youtube_get_transcript(video_url_or_id, languages=["de", "en"], include_timestamps=True)`**:
   - **Unlimited & 100% Free**: Powered by `youtube-transcript-api` (zero GCP quota consumption).
   - Fetches formatted subtitles and speech transcripts with `[MM:SS]` timestamps.
   - Automatically prioritizes German (`de`) and English (`en`), including auto-generated subtitles.
   - Perfect for:
     - Summarizing interviews, podcasts, tech talks, and keynotes.
     - Extracting cooking steps and recipes from YouTube food videos for `koch`.
     - Extracting command-line instructions, code, or homelab setup guides for `itguy`.

3. ℹ️ **`youtube_video_details(video_url_or_id)`**:
   - Fetches full description, tags, view count, like count, and publication details.

---

## 🧭 Prompt Routing & Best Practices

- **When the user pastes a YouTube URL** (e.g. *"Was wird in diesem Video erklärt? https://youtu.be/..."* or *"Fass mir das Video kurz zusammen"*):
  - Do NOT waste a turn searching. Directly call `youtube_get_transcript` with the URL!
  - Provide a concise executive summary with key takeaways, timestamps for notable moments, and actionable conclusions.
- **For Koch / Recipes**:
  - When the user asks for a recipe from a video, pull the transcript via `youtube_get_transcript`, extract the ingredients and steps, and offer to add missing items to the Bring! shopping list.
- **For Research / Recherche**:
  - Search relevant videos via `youtube_search` to find relevant lectures, documentaries, or news reports, then extract the transcript of the top hit for deep grounded analysis.