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YouTube summary with ChatGPT and Claude: how it works, and a simpler way

By the Luminar team ยท Updated

Short answer: to get a YouTube summary with ChatGPT or Claude, you give the AI the video's transcript and ask for a summary. Extensions like Glasp's "YouTube Summary with ChatGPT & Claude" copy the transcript into ChatGPT or Claude for you. Luminar is a simpler option: one Summarise button under the video gives a summary with timestamps, with no prompt or chatbot setup.

How a YouTube summary with ChatGPT works

  1. The tool gets the video's transcript from YouTube.
  2. It sends the transcript to ChatGPT with a prompt like "summarize this video".
  3. ChatGPT writes the summary in its chat window.

Pasting a link on its own often fails, because the chatbot can't watch the video. The transcript is what makes it work. More on that in can ChatGPT summarize a YouTube video.

And with Claude

It works the same way. Claude reads the transcript and writes the summary. Claude handles long transcripts well, which helps with podcasts and lectures.

Popular extensions that do this

Glasp's free extension, listed as "YouTube Summary with ChatGPT & Claude", shows the transcript next to the video and sends it to the AI model you pick, such as ChatGPT or Claude. You can edit the prompt it uses. It is a good fit if you already use those chatbots. We are not affiliated with Glasp.

A simpler way: Luminar

  • One Summarise button under every YouTube video. No prompt to write and no chatbot tab.
  • Every point shows the minute it was said, so you can jump back and check it.
  • Pick Concise, Standard or Detailed, in any of 16 languages.
  • Ask follow up questions about the summary, right next to it.
  • Works on articles, PDFs, research papers and audio too, all saved in one library.

Which one to use

  • You live in ChatGPT or Claude and like writing your own prompts? An extension that sends the transcript there fits.
  • You want the summary ready in one click, with timestamps you can check? Try Luminar. It is free to start, with 5 summaries a month.

Questions people ask

Is a YouTube summary with ChatGPT free?

Pasting a transcript into ChatGPT or Claude works on their free plans. Glasp's extension is free. Luminar has a free plan with 5 summaries a month.

Which is more accurate, ChatGPT or Claude?

Both are good at summaries. What matters more is that the full transcript is used and that you can check points against the video. That is why Luminar links every point to its minute.

Related guides

Try the YouTube summarizer

Paste a link or drop in a file. Free to start, no card needed.

See how it works