video2podcast
by @ryandeathridge
Convert bookmarked videos from YouTube, X (Twitter), and other sites into a podcast RSS feed hosted on Cloudflare R2. Use when the user says things like "add...
clawhub install video2podcastπ About This Skill
name: video2podcast description: Convert bookmarked videos from YouTube, X (Twitter), and other sites into a podcast RSS feed hosted on Cloudflare R2. Use when the user says things like "add this to my podcast feed", "add this video to my podcast", "sync my podcast feed", "put this YouTube video in my podcast", or "subscribe to this playlist as a podcast". Manages a persistent episode list and hosts audio files + feed.xml on Cloudflare R2. metadata: { "openclaw": { "requires": { "bins": ["ffmpeg"], "pip": ["yt-dlp", "boto3"], }, "env": [ { "key": "VIDPOD_R2_ACCESS_KEY", "description": "Cloudflare R2 API token access key", "required": true, "sensitive": true, }, { "key": "VIDPOD_R2_SECRET", "description": "Cloudflare R2 API token secret", "required": true, "sensitive": true, }, { "key": "VIDPOD_R2_ENDPOINT", "description": "R2 endpoint URL (https://
video-podcast
Turn any video URL into a podcast episode. Publishes a valid RSS feed to Cloudflare R2 that can be subscribed to in Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, and any podcast app.
Supports YouTube, X (Twitter), and the ~1,000 other sites that yt-dlp supports.
First-time Setup
1. Install dependencies
# Python packages
pip3 install yt-dlp boto3ffmpeg (required for audio conversion)
brew install ffmpeg # macOS
sudo apt install ffmpeg # Linux
2. Create a Cloudflare R2 bucket
1. Sign up at cloudflare.com (free tier is sufficient)
2. Go to R2 Object Storage β Create bucket
3. Name it anything β e.g. podcast-feed
4. Enable Public access on the bucket (R2 β bucket β Settings β Public Access β Enable)
5. Note the r2.dev public URL shown (e.g. https://pub-abc123.r2.dev)
3. Create an R2 API token
1. R2 β Manage R2 API Tokens β Create token 2. Set permissions: Object Read & Write on your bucket 3. Note the Access Key ID and Secret Access Key 4. Note your Account ID from the dashboard top-right
4. Configure the skill
Run the interactive setup:
python3 /path/to/skills/video-podcast/scripts/video_podcast.py setup
Or add these to ~/.openclaw/.env manually:
VIDPOD_R2_ACCESS_KEY=your_access_key_id
VIDPOD_R2_SECRET=your_secret_access_key
VIDPOD_R2_ENDPOINT=https://.r2.cloudflarestorage.com
VIDPOD_R2_BUCKET=podcast-feed
VIDPOD_PUBLIC_BASE=https://pub-.r2.devOptional
VIDPOD_FEED_TITLE=My Video Podcast
VIDPOD_FEED_AUTHOR=Your Name
5. Add a cover image (optional but recommended)
Podcast apps display a 1400Γ1400px JPEG as artwork. Upload one to your bucket:
# Using AWS CLI (if installed)
aws s3 cp cover.jpg s3://podcast-feed/cover.jpg \
--endpoint-url https://.r2.cloudflarestorage.com \
--content-type image/jpegOr via the Cloudflare R2 dashboard β drag and drop cover.jpg into the bucket
The image must be named cover.jpg in the root of your bucket.
Usage
Add a single video
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=..."
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://x.com/user/status/123456789"
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://vimeo.com/..."
Sync a YouTube playlist
Add all videos from a playlist that aren't already in the feed:
python3 video_podcast.py sync-youtube PLxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The playlist ID is the part after list= in the YouTube URL.
List episodes
python3 video_podcast.py list
Get the RSS feed URL
python3 video_podcast.py feed
Remove an episode
python3 video_podcast.py remove "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=..."
How It Works
1. yt-dlp fetches the best available audio stream from the source URL β no browser automation, no screen capture.
2. ffmpeg converts the audio to MP3 (VBR ~130kbps).
3. The MP3 is uploaded to your Cloudflare R2 bucket with a 7-day public cache header.
4. feed.xml is rebuilt and uploaded with no-cache headers so podcast apps always see the latest version.
5. Your podcast app polls the feed URL periodically and downloads new episodes automatically.
Storage & State
| Location | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ~/.openclaw/video-podcast-state.json | Episode list + processed URL GUIDs (deduplication) |
| R2 | Audio files (public, 7-day cache) |
| R2 feed.xml | Podcast RSS feed (public, no-cache) |
| R2 cover.jpg | Podcast artwork (optional) |
Supported Sources
Any URL that yt-dlp supports, including:
Troubleshooting
ffmpeg not found
brew install ffmpeg # macOS
sudo apt install ffmpeg # Linux
SSL errors with R2
Make sure you're using Python 3.10+ with OpenSSL 3.x. On macOS the system Python (/usr/bin/python3) uses LibreSSL which may not work. Install Python via Homebrew:
brew install python@3.13
Age-restricted YouTube videos yt-dlp needs your browser cookies:
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://youtube.com/watch?v=..."
Then run add again β yt-dlp caches the cookies.X/Twitter videos fail Public tweets work without auth. Private accounts require cookies:
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://x.com/user/status/..."
Episode not appearing in podcast app
Most podcast apps cache the feed for 1β24 hours. Force a refresh in the app, or check the feed directly: python3 video_podcast.py feed
OpenClaw Agent Usage
When used via the OpenClaw agent, trigger phrases include:
The agent will run the appropriate subcommand and report back the result.
π‘ Examples
Add a single video
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=..."
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://x.com/user/status/123456789"
python3 video_podcast.py add "https://vimeo.com/..."
Sync a YouTube playlist
Add all videos from a playlist that aren't already in the feed:
python3 video_podcast.py sync-youtube PLxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The playlist ID is the part after list= in the YouTube URL.
List episodes
python3 video_podcast.py list
Get the RSS feed URL
python3 video_podcast.py feed
Remove an episode
python3 video_podcast.py remove "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=..."
π Tips & Best Practices
ffmpeg not found
brew install ffmpeg # macOS
sudo apt install ffmpeg # Linux
SSL errors with R2
Make sure you're using Python 3.10+ with OpenSSL 3.x. On macOS the system Python (/usr/bin/python3) uses LibreSSL which may not work. Install Python via Homebrew:
brew install python@3.13
Age-restricted YouTube videos yt-dlp needs your browser cookies:
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://youtube.com/watch?v=..."
Then run add again β yt-dlp caches the cookies.X/Twitter videos fail Public tweets work without auth. Private accounts require cookies:
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://x.com/user/status/..."
Episode not appearing in podcast app
Most podcast apps cache the feed for 1β24 hours. Force a refresh in the app, or check the feed directly: python3 video_podcast.py feed