YouTube Uploader

Upload videos to YouTube via the YouTube Data API v3 with OAuth 2.0.

ALWAYS use youtube_upload_safe.sh — NEVER call _youtube_upload_internal.py directly. The internal script will reject execution without the env gate.

Quick Start

SLACK_CHANNEL_ID="C0ADZGUJS4A" \
SLACK_THREAD_TS="1234567890.123456" \
  ~/.openclaw/skills/youtube-uploader/scripts/youtube_upload_safe.sh \
  --file "/Users/novarussell/.openclaw/media/my-video.mp4" \
  --title "My Video Title" \
  --description "Video description here" \
  --privacy private

Parameters

Shorts Auto-Detection

The script automatically detects YouTube Shorts:

• Video is vertical (height > width)
• Duration is 60 seconds or less

When detected, #Shorts is appended to the title if not already present.

Examples

Upload as private (default, safest)

SLACK_CHANNEL_ID="$CH" SLACK_THREAD_TS="$TS" \
  youtube_upload_safe.sh -f "/path/to/video.mp4" -t "My Video" -p private

Upload with thumbnail and playlist

SLACK_CHANNEL_ID="$CH" SLACK_THREAD_TS="$TS" \
  youtube_upload_safe.sh \
  -f "/path/to/video.mp4" \
  -t "Product Showcase" \
  -d "Our latest collection" \
  --tags "brand,product,showcase" \
  --thumbnail "/path/to/thumb.jpg" \
  --playlist-id "PLxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx" \
  -p unlisted

Schedule for future publish

SLACK_CHANNEL_ID="$CH" SLACK_THREAD_TS="$TS" \
  youtube_upload_safe.sh \
  -f "/path/to/video.mp4" \
  -t "Scheduled Video" \
  -p private \
  --publish-at "2026-03-15T10:00:00-08:00"

Upload without AI content flag

SLACK_CHANNEL_ID="$CH" SLACK_THREAD_TS="$TS" \
  youtube_upload_safe.sh -f "/path/to/video.mp4" -t "Non-AI Video" --no-synthetic-flag

AI Content Declaration

By default, containsSyntheticMedia: true is set on all uploads (most openCLAW videos are AI-generated). Use --no-synthetic-flag to skip this for non-AI content.

Credential Setup

1. Create a Google Cloud Project with YouTube Data API v3 enabled
2. Create OAuth 2.0 Desktop credentials -> get client ID + secret
3. Fill YOUTUBE_CLIENT_ID and YOUTUBE_CLIENT_SECRET in .env
4. Run the auth helper: uv run ~/.openclaw/skills/youtube-uploader/scripts/youtube_auth_setup.py
5. Complete the browser consent flow with the YouTube channel owner
6. The script will print the refresh token and channel ID

Quota

YouTube Data API default quota: 10,000 units/day. Each videos.insert costs 100 units, thumbnails.set ~50 units, playlistItems.insert ~50 units. A full upload with thumbnail + playlist = ~200 units (~50 uploads/day). Request quota increase via Google Cloud Console if needed.

Category IDs (Common)

Critical Rules

1. ALWAYS use youtube_upload_safe.sh — never the internal script
2. ALWAYS set SLACK_CHANNEL_ID and SLACK_THREAD_TS
3. ALWAYS upload as private first unless the user explicitly requests public/unlisted
4. NEVER hardcode credentials — they live in .env
5. Video file path MUST be absolute
6. On failure: STOP. No hacks, no workarounds.