I love NotebookLM. I think it's one of the best AI tools made to date, and one of the biggest reasons I say that is because it isn't designed to take away your creative freedom. Sure, you can use it to plot novels, but it's primarily made to help you interact with information better. Even when it generates content for you, it references information you've provided it via sources or your conversation history.
Given how much it's transformed my workflow (for the better), it's the kind of tool that I now can't imagine surviving my day-to-day life without. So, of course, I started looking for more ways to use it, even in places it wasn't exactly built for.
That's when it hit me: I spent hours watching long-form YouTube videos for research, and most of that time could be better spent. So, I reduced the time I spend sitting through entire YouTube videos, and began dropping them into NotebookLM. And it's been an absolute game-changer.
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Why I started using NotebookLM for YouTube videos
The smarter way to learn from video content
YouTube is overflowing with content. And though we live in a world where short-form content is quickly taking over, I've always felt like YouTube's still stuck in the past. Unfortunately, I'm one of the many affected by the consequences of short-form content, and my attention span has definitely taken a hit.
I'll click on a 90-minute interview that I'm genuinely interested in watching, only to tune out halfway through or get distracted by something else entirely. The thing is, what I'm really seeking is often just the information and key insights buried within the video. I don't always want to listen to the small talk and lengthy analogies that make no sense. Often, I just want the core arguments and main ideas.
To be clear, I'm not talking about entertainment videos or product reviews I watch for fun. I enjoy those and always will. I'm talking about hour-long interviews, explainer videos, and educational content, especially the kind that covers topics I'm actively studying. These are videos I want to learn from, but the way they're structured just doesn't align with how I process information anymore.
I know one way I truly learn and end up absorbing information, and that's using NotebookLM. And since you can add YouTube URLs as sources for NotebookLM notebooks, it just felt like the obvious next step.
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NotebookLM makes understanding long YouTube videos effortless
Long video? Short attention span? No problem.
When you upload a URL of a YouTube video to a NotebookLM notebook, the AI tool doesn't actually watch the entire video. Instead, the video's text transcript is uploaded, and then you can interact with the information within the video using NotebookLM as you would with a typed source. For instance, say you upload lecture slides to a notebook every week and then ask the AI questions about the concepts within the slides to help you revise or prepare for exams.
Similarly, you can do the exact same thing with a YouTube video. Once the transcript is in, you can ask NotebookLM to summarize the main ideas, explain complex terms or concepts, or even point out certain arguments made by the speaker. As with any other source, NotebookLM will only reference the materials within your notebook and your conversation history in that specific notebook to answer your questions.
This means I don't need to worry about the AI hallucinating or giving me information that isn't actually in the YouTube video. In case I do have my doubts, I can always quickly vet the information myself by hovering over the citation next to each claim.
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You can even turn a boring YouTube video into an engaging Audio Overview or Mind Map
NotebookLM makes even the driest videos digestible
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I'm a podcast fan through and through, and tend to retain information much better when it's communicated in a conversational form. Of course, not all the YouTube videos I need to watch are delivered in a format that suits my learning style. Some are just plain boring, others meander without getting to the point, and many just don't match the way I absorb information best. At the same time, there are moments when I have no option but to watch the video simply because the information within it is too important to skip.
Thankfully, NotebookLM's Audio Overview feature helps here too. Since a YouTube URL is just another source for a notebook, you can convert it into an Audio Overview just as you would with lecture notes, research papers, or any other text-based source. Once I convert a lengthy video into an engaging Audio Overview, I usually listen to it during my commute or while on a walk.
Not only do I not have to force myself to sit through an hour-long video, I get the core insights in a format I know works best for me. If I have any questions about anything the hosts discuss in the YouTube video's Audio Overview, I can either hit the Interactive Mode (BETA) button and directly ask the hosts themselves, or ask via the Chat panel.
Similarly, Mind Maps is another way I learn and retain information better, especially when I'm dealing with dense topics or when I upload a YouTube video that covers multiple concepts. Thankfully, NotebookLM's Mind Maps feature works with YouTube videos too, which helps make it easy to see how different concepts connect. It's a quick way to see how everything connects without having to replay the video multiple times.
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This one change has helped me save hours of mindless watching
It's been a while since I started using NotebookLM to "watch" YouTube videos instead of sitting through them myself, and I think it's one of the best decisions I've made. While I can't ever see myself watching videos I enjoy for leisure this way, it's completely changed how I approach educational and research-heavy content. It's also helped me cut down on my YouTube addiction, which is always a nice bonus.
