Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 4 hours ago

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I automate the entire process of turning YouTube videos into podcast episodes using Laravel, yt-dlp, and the Transistor.fm API. From fetching videos to extracting audio and publishing drafts, we automate it all. Whether you're a Laravel dev or just love seeing behind-the-scenes automation, you're in for a fun and practical walkthrough.

Host unlimited podcasts at: https://transistor.fm

Follow me:
Twitter: twitter.com/aarondfrancis
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/aarondfrancis
Website: aaronfrancis.com - find articles, podcasts, courses, and more.

Chapters:
00:00 - Automating tasks I don’t want to do
01:08 - The Database School podcast setup
01:49 - Tech stack for this automation
03:18 - Starting with a Laravel command
03:45 - Fetching videos from the YouTube API
06:00 - Getting podcast episodes from Transistor
07:16 - Comparing YouTube videos to existing episodes
08:48 - Preparing new videos for publishing
10:45 - Downloading audio
13:35 - Storing audio and avoiding re-downloads
15:03 - Authorizing file uploads to Transistor
16:48 - Uploading the audio file
18:19 - Creating the episode draft on Transistor
20:00 - Confirming the episode was created
21:21 - Wrapping it all in automation
22:18 - Final test and wrap-up