Skip to main content

What it does

The YouTube skill lets sideBar download videos and audio from YouTube and, optionally, transcribe them into text. You can save a video as an MP4, pull just the audio as an MP3, or go straight to a transcript without keeping the audio at all. Transcripts are saved to your Files and available to sideBar in any future conversation.

Actions

ActionDescription
Download videoDownloads a YouTube video as an MP4 file and saves it to your Files
Download audioDownloads the audio from a YouTube video as an MP3 file and saves it to your Files
Transcribe YouTubeDownloads the audio from a YouTube video, transcribes it, and saves the transcript to your Files. The audio file is deleted automatically once transcription is complete

When sideBar uses it

When you share a YouTube URL and ask sideBar to download or transcribe it. Common triggers:
  • “Download this YouTube video”
  • “Save the audio from this video as an MP3”
  • “Transcribe this YouTube video”
  • “Get me a transcript of this talk”

Requirements

  • Tier: Store (install from the Skills Store)
  • API key: An OpenAI API key is required for transcription. Downloading video or audio only does not require any API key.

How to install

  1. Open the Skills Store and find YouTube.
  2. Tap Install. If you want transcription, enter your OpenAI API key when prompted. You can skip this and add it later if you only need downloads.
  3. The skill is ready immediately.

What you get

  • Videos are saved as MP4 files in a Videos folder in your Files.
  • Audio is saved as MP3 files (192 kbps) in the same Videos folder.
  • Transcripts are saved as markdown files alongside the video, including the video title, URL, and a timestamp. The audio is deleted automatically after transcription unless you ask sideBar to keep it.
Playlist URLs are also supported — sideBar will download each video in the playlist in sequence.

Examples

“Download this YouTube video: [URL]”
“Save just the audio from this talk as an MP3.”
“Transcribe this video and summarise the key points.”
“Download this playlist.”