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How to get YouTube transcripts into your AI agent

By Alan Lui · Published · Last updated

Connect your agent to apifare and ask it to run the Youtube Transcript Scraper from the catalog: give it a video URL and a language, and the transcript comes back to your agent. It's ready to run on your apifare key, so you don't need a YouTube account or API key of your own.

Copy this line to your agent once apifare is connected:

Use apifare to run the "Youtube Transcript Scraper" tool with {"videoUrl": "<YouTube video URL>", "targetLanguage": "en"} and summarize the transcript in five bullet points.

Why transcripts, not the video?

Your agent can't watch a video, but it can read one. A transcript turns a talk, tutorial or interview into text it can summarize, quote, compare and search. Video and channel lists let it find the right videos first.

What does the transcript tool take?

Two fields, both required by its published input schema: videoUrl (the video's URL) and targetLanguage (for example "en"). The full list is on the tool's page.

To find videos first, the YouTube Scraper takes searchQueries, maxResults and direct startUrls, with an option for transcripts and subtitles.

Which YouTube tools are on the key?

Transcripts, video search, whole channels, comments and Shorts: the table below maps each job to its tool. The YouTube API guide lists the tools most used.

How is a run priced?

A catalog run reserves a small amount up front, then settles to the run's true cost, never above a fixed ceiling; failed runs are refunded. Each tool's page shows the numbers, and the listed number is what your balance is debited.

Do I need a YouTube account or API key?

No. Ready-to-run catalog tools run on apifare's own supply credential, so your apifare key is all your agent needs. Use the data within YouTube's terms and applicable law; see our terms.

For agents: the exact calls

  1. Find it: search_apis in apifare-mcp, or GET https://apifare.com/v1/search?q=Youtube%20Transcript%20Scraper with Authorization: Bearer $APIFARE_TOKEN. Take the result named "Youtube Transcript Scraper": it carries a proxy_route and the tool's input_schema.
  2. Run it: proxy_call with that proxy_route and {"videoUrl": "…", "targetLanguage": "en"} (apifare-mcp over stdio), or POST the proxy_route over HTTP with that JSON as the body and the same header.
  3. On HTTP 402 the balance is empty: relay the body's human_readable line to your human, wait for the top-up, then retry the same call. Every other error and its fix: the error catalog.

For humans: set it up

  1. Connect your agent. Paste set up https://apifare.com/SKILL.md into it: it gets a key ($5 of calls free), writes its own config and makes a first call. Or get a key at /start and follow your client's setup guide.
  2. Ask. Get the transcript of this YouTube video: <url>, or Find recent YouTube videos about <topic> and list their titles and channels.

Which tool for which job

JobToolRuns on
The transcript of one videoYoutube Transcript Scraperready to run
Find videos by search term, with optional subtitlesYouTube Scraperready to run
The videos on a channelFast YouTube Channel Scraperready to run
The comments on a videoYouTube Comments Scraperready to run
The Shorts on a channelYouTube Shorts Scraperready to run

"Ready to run" means your apifare key is all it needs; "your key" means you vault your own provider key once. Catalog tools come from the apifare tool index. More: every video tool in the catalog.

When this is the wrong tool

FAQ

Do I need a YouTube API key?

No. Ready-to-run catalog tools run on apifare’s own supply credential; your apifare key is all you need.

How is a run priced?

A run reserves a small amount, then settles to the run’s true cost, never above a fixed ceiling. Each tool’s page shows the numbers, and failed runs are refunded.

Can it get transcripts for a whole channel?

List the channel’s videos with the channel tool, then run the transcript tool on each one. Per-agent caps keep a long list within the budget you set.

Which agents can run catalog tools?

Agents using apifare-mcp over stdio run them with proxy_call; any agent can POST the tool’s proxy_route over HTTP. See the setup guides.

Can I use the transcripts in my product?

Use the data within YouTube’s terms and applicable law; see our terms.

Give this to your agent

set up https://apifare.com/SKILL.md — and it takes it from there: key, config, first call. $5 of calls free.

No agent open right now? ① Get a key — $5 of calls free, then ② give it to your agent (setup guides).

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