The short answer
To turn a video into notes with AI, add the YouTube link to Google's Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) with Add sources, then ask for structured notes; answers cite the transcript. The video must be public with captions, and only the spoken transcript is imported, so add the slides as a second source. For your own recordings, Gemini Notebook accepts audio files and paid ChatGPT plans take audio uploads. Google Meet's Take notes for me covers calls hosted by Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers.
What you need first
- The video, or a link to it. For YouTube, the video must be public and have captions, either uploaded by the creator or auto-generated.
- Your purpose. Study notes, a summary for colleagues, action items from a recorded meeting or a list of tools mentioned all need different prompts.
- A Google account for Gemini Notebook, the free tool we recommend for most videos, or a paid ChatGPT plan if you want to upload your own recordings as audio.
- Permission, if the video is a meeting recording with other people in it.
How AI turns a video into notes
Most tools do not watch the video the way you do. They read its transcript. Gemini Notebook, for example, imports only the text transcript of a YouTube video, so anything shown on screen but never said, such as a chart or a slide, will be missing unless you add it yourself. Knowing this explains most bad video notes and how to fix them.
How to turn a YouTube video into notes with Gemini Notebook
- Open Gemini Notebook (called NotebookLM until 16 July 2026) and create a new notebook.
- Select Add sources on the left and add the YouTube link. You can add several links at once, separated by a space or a new line.
- Wait for the transcript to import. Google notes that videos uploaded less than 72 hours ago may not be available yet, and videos without speech are not supported. There is no length limit unless the captions exceed 500,000 words.
- Ask for notes in the shape you need. For example: "Turn this into structured notes: main argument, key points with timestamps if available, examples, and five things I should remember." Answers are grounded in your sources and cite them, so you can click through to the passage.
- Add the slides or handout, if there are any. If the speaker shares slides as a PDF, add them as a second source so the notes include what was shown, not just what was said.
- Turn notes into study material. Gemini Notebook can create an Audio Overview in four formats (the default two-host conversation, The Brief, The Critique and The Debate) in more than 80 languages, plus quizzes, flashcards and short Video Overviews of about 60 seconds.
- Save the notes. Save the answer as a note in the notebook, or copy it into your own document.
The free Standard plan allows 100 notebooks with 50 sources each, so a whole course or conference playlist fits in one notebook. See our Gemini Notebook guide for the plans.
How to turn your own recording or a meeting into notes
- Your own recordings: Gemini Notebook accepts audio files as sources, so export the audio from a recorded webinar or interview and add it like any other source. On paid ChatGPT plans, since 6 October 2026 you can upload audio to transcribe it, summarise it and ask questions about it.
- Google Meet calls: since 29 June 2026, Take notes for me works in Meet calls hosted by Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers. It transcribes the call, saves notes with a summary and action items to a Google Doc and emails a recap. Participants are notified that notes are being taken.
- Teams and Zoom calls: a dedicated meeting assistant is usually the better tool. See best AI for meeting notes and how to transcribe a meeting with AI.
A worked example: a one-hour conference talk into a team briefing
A product manager wants her team to learn from a 55-minute conference keynote on YouTube without everyone watching it.
- She adds the YouTube link and the speaker's published slide PDF to a new notebook.
- Prompt: "Using both sources, write team notes: the three main ideas, each with the speaker's best example, any numbers quoted with the slide or moment they come from, and three ideas we could test in our product next quarter. Under 400 words."
- She checks the two statistics by clicking their citations, and spots that one came from a slide, not the talk, which is exactly why she added the PDF.
- She generates an Audio Overview in The Brief format for colleagues who prefer to listen, and shares the written notes in the team channel.
Total time: about fifteen minutes, against an hour per person to watch the talk.
Common mistakes and how to fix them
- The video will not import. Fix: check that it is public, has captions and has been up for more than 72 hours.
- Notes miss what was on screen. Only the transcript is imported. Fix: add the slides as a source, or note the key visuals yourself.
- Generic summaries. Fix: say what the notes are for and who will read them.
- Names and jargon spelled wrongly. Auto-generated captions mishear names. Fix: give the correct spellings in your prompt.
- Trusting every number. Fix: click the citation behind each figure. See how to check if AI is telling the truth.
- Recording people without telling them. Fix: tell participants, and follow your company's rules.
Which AI tool to use to turn a video into notes
| Situation | Best tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Public YouTube video or playlist | Gemini Notebook | Free, cites the transcript, turns notes into quizzes and Audio Overviews |
| Your own audio recording | Gemini Notebook or ChatGPT (paid) | Both accept audio files |
| Google Meet call | Take notes for me | Built in for Google AI Pro and Ultra hosts |
| Teams or Zoom calls every day | A meeting assistant | Joins calls and keeps a searchable archive |
Students should also read best AI for students, and YouTubers working the other way round, from notes to video, will find help in best AI for YouTube. Our prompts for meeting notes and prompts for learning work on video transcripts too.
4 prompts for turning a video into notes
Prompts to copy
Structured notes
Turn this video into structured notes for [reader]. Include: the main argument in two sentences, the key points in order with timestamps if the transcript has them, the best example for each point, any numbers quoted, and five things to remember. Correct spellings: [names and terms].
You get: Clean notes you can skim in two minutes
Action items from a recording
From this recording, list every decision, every action item with its owner and deadline, and every open question. Quote the moment each item comes from. If an owner or deadline was not stated, write "not stated".
You get: A follow-up list you can send after the meeting
Study pack
Using this lecture, create: a one-page summary, ten flashcards with a question on the front and a short answer on the back, and five quiz questions that test understanding rather than memory, with answers. Base everything only on the source.
You get: Revision material from a single lecture
Compare several talks
These sources are [number] talks on [topic]. Make a table of where the speakers agree, where they disagree and which ideas only one of them raises, citing the talk for each. End with the three ideas most relevant to [our team or goal].
You get: A synthesis across a playlist or conference