A YouTube channel updates digest that tells you what is worth watching
Subscriptions pile up and the YouTube feed mixes them with everything else. With this prompt, your todo.is agent checks the channels you list, finds the new uploads, and sends you a digest with a short summary of each video, its length and the timestamps worth jumping to, so you decide in seconds what to watch.
The prompt
- Every [SCHEDULE], check these YouTube channels for new videos since the last digest: [CHANNELS]. For each new video, send me: the title, channel, length, upload date, a 3-line summary of what it covers, the 2 or 3 most useful moments with timestamps if the description or chapters show them, and the link. Use the description, chapters and the transcript when YouTube shows one; tell me if you could only use the description. Mark each video as "watch", "skim" or "skip" for someone interested in [MY INTERESTS]. Skip Shorts and livestream replays longer than [MAX LENGTH]. Send the digest to [WHERE TO SEND IT].
What to change
- [SCHEDULE]: E.g. "day at 19:00" or "Saturday at 9:00 for the whole week".
- [CHANNELS]: Channel names or links, e.g. "Practical Woodwork Lab, Cooking with Ama, a channel link".
- [MY INTERESTS]: What you watch for, e.g. "beginner woodworking with hand tools, no power tools".
- [MAX LENGTH]: E.g. "2 hours", or "no limit".
- [WHERE TO SEND IT]: Email, WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack or Discord.
Example result
- YouTube digest · Saturday
- 6 new videos from 9 channels. Example with fictional channels.
- 1. "Sharpening chisels without a jig" · Practical Woodwork Lab · 18 min · WATCH
- Shows a freehand method on two whetstones, how to check the bevel and when to stop.
- • 3:40 holding the chisel at a steady angle
- • 11:15 removing the burr
- (link)
- 2. "Building a step stool from one board" · Practical Woodwork Lab · 34 min · WATCH
- A full beginner project with hand tools only. Lists every cut at the start.
- • 2:10 cut list and wood choice
- • 21:00 fitting the joints
- (link)
- 3. "Workshop tour 2026" · Grain & Glue · 22 min · SKIM
- Mostly a tour of power tools. The hand tool wall at 15:30 is the useful part.
- (link)
- 4. "Fixing a wobbly table" · Grain & Glue · 9 min · SKIM
- Quick fixes for loose legs. Summary from the description only, no transcript shown.
- (link)
- 5. "Best finishes for cutting boards" · Home Joinery Notes · 14 min · SKIM
- Compares oil, wax and a blend. The answer: food-safe oil, reapplied monthly.
- (link)
- 6. "Live Q&A replay" · Home Joinery Notes · 1 h 55 min · SKIP
- Long Q&A with no chapters, mostly about power tools.
- This week in one line
- Watch 1 and 2 (52 minutes). The rest you can skim or skip.
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt, paste in your channels and say what you watch them for.
- Paste it into todo.is on the Today screen or send it to your agent on WhatsApp or Telegram.
- Your agent checks the channels on schedule and sends the digest with summaries and links.
- Reply "summarize video 2 in detail" or "drop channel 3" to fine-tune it.
Tips for a better result
- Say what you watch the channels for. "Watch, skim, skip" only works if the agent knows your goal.
- Weekly digests on the weekend work well for hobby channels; daily is better for news or market channels.
- Ask for a "notes" version of the best video each week, with the steps as a checklist PDF.
- Add channels you dropped because they post too much. A digest makes busy channels easy to follow again.
YouTube channel updates digest: FAQ
- Does it watch the whole video? It works from the title, description, chapters and the transcript when YouTube shows one, and tells you when it only had the description.
- Do I need to connect my YouTube account? No. Just list the channels. It reads public channel pages and does not subscribe, like or comment for you.
- Can it summarize a single long video right now? Yes. Send your agent the link and ask for a summary with timestamps; the digest just does the same thing on a schedule.
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