How to integrate YouTube Transcript MCP with Claude Agent SDK

This guide walks you through connecting YouTube Transcript to the Claude Agent SDK using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working YouTube Transcript agent that can fetch video transcripts, fetch transcripts in batches, list stored transcripts, and check transcript languages through natural language commands. This guide will help you understand how to give your Claude Agent SDK agent real control over a YouTube Transcript account through Composio's YouTube Transcript MCP server. Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

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Api Key

YouTube Transcript is a REST API for retrieving, storing, and reading YouTube video captions and transcript metadata. Use it to turn YouTube videos, playlists, and channels into searchable transcript data.

9 Tools

Introduction

This guide walks you through connecting YouTube Transcript to the Claude Agent SDK using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working YouTube Transcript agent that can fetch video transcripts, fetch transcripts in batches, list stored transcripts, and check transcript languages through natural language commands.

This guide will help you understand how to give your Claude Agent SDK agent real control over a YouTube Transcript account through Composio's YouTube Transcript MCP server.

Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

Also integrate YouTube Transcript with

OpenAI Agents SDKClaude CodeClaude CoworkCodexOpenClawHermesCLIGoogle ADKLangChainVercel AI SDKMastra AILlamaIndexCrewAI

TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:
  • Get and set up your Claude/Anthropic and Composio API keys
  • Install the necessary dependencies
  • Initialize Composio and create a Tool Router session for YouTube Transcript
  • Configure an AI agent that can use YouTube Transcript as a tool
  • Run a live chat session where you can ask the agent to perform YouTube Transcript operations

What is Claude Agent SDK?

The Claude Agent SDK is Anthropic's official framework for building AI agents powered by Claude. It provides a streamlined interface for creating agents with MCP tool support and conversation management.

Key features include:

  • Native MCP Support: Built-in support for Model Context Protocol servers
  • Permission Modes: Control tool execution permissions
  • Streaming Responses: Real-time response streaming for interactive applications
  • Context Manager: Clean async context management for sessions

What is the YouTube Transcript MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The YouTube Transcript MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your YouTube Transcript account. It provides structured and secure access to video captions, stored transcripts, processing statuses, available languages, and playlist or channel video details, so your agent can retrieve captions, monitor transcription work, search saved transcripts, inspect language options, and find videos from playlists or channels on your behalf.

  • Single video transcription: Have your agent fetch captions for a YouTube video and save the resulting transcript to your account.
  • Batch caption retrieval: Direct your agent to retrieve and store captions for a group of up to 10 YouTube videos.
  • Transcription status checks: Let the agent check whether individual or batch transcription work is processing, complete, failed, or waiting for speech recognition confirmation.
  • Stored transcript access: Instruct your agent to list, search, and read transcripts already saved in your account without starting new transcription work.
  • Language and video discovery: Have your agent review stored and translation languages for a transcript, or find video details from a YouTube playlist or channel.

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Composio SDK?

Composio's Composio SDK helps agents find the right tools for a task at runtime. You can plug in multiple toolkits (like Gmail, HubSpot, and GitHub), and the agent will identify the relevant app and action to complete multi-step workflows. This can reduce token usage and improve the reliability of tool calls. Read more here: Getting started with Composio SDK

The tool router generates a secure MCP URL that your agents can access to perform actions.

How the Composio SDK works

The Composio SDK follows a three-phase workflow:

  1. Discovery: Searches for tools matching your task and returns relevant toolkits with their details.
  2. Authentication: Checks for active connections. If missing, creates an auth config and returns a connection URL via Auth Link.
  3. Execution: Executes the action using the authenticated connection.

Step-by-step Guide

Step by step09 STEPS
1

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
  • Composio API Key and Claude/Anthropic API Key
  • Primary know-how of Claude Agents SDK
  • A YouTube Transcript account
  • Some knowledge of Python
2

Getting API Keys for Claude/Anthropic and Composio

Claude/Anthropic API Key
  • Go to the Anthropic Console and create an API key. You'll need credits to use the models.
  • Keep the API key safe.
Composio API Key
  • Log in to the Composio dashboard.
  • Navigate to your API settings and generate a new API key.
  • Store this key securely as you'll need it for authentication.
3

Install dependencies

npm install @anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk @composio/core dotenv

Install the Composio SDK and the Claude Agents SDK.

What's happening:

  • @composio/core provides Composio integration for Anthropic
  • @anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk is the core agent framework
  • dotenv/config loads environment variables
4

Set up environment variables

bash
COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_composio_api_key_here
USER_ID=your_user_id_here
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your_anthropic_api_key_here

Create a .env file in your project root.

What's happening:

  • COMPOSIO_API_KEY authenticates with Composio
  • USER_ID identifies the user for session management
  • ANTHROPIC_API_KEY authenticates with Anthropic/Claude
5

Import dependencies

import 'dotenv/config';
import readline from 'node:readline';
import { Composio } from '@composio/core';
import { query, type Options } from "@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk";

dotenv.config();
What's happening:
  • We're importing all necessary libraries including the Claude Agent SDK and Composio
  • The dotenv.config() function loads environment variables from your .env file
  • This setup prepares the foundation for connecting Claude with YouTube Transcript functionality
6

Create a Composio instance and Tool Router session

async function chat() {
  const { COMPOSIO_API_KEY, USER_ID } = process.env;
  if (!COMPOSIO_API_KEY || !USER_ID) {
    throw new Error('COMPOSIO_API_KEY and USER_ID required in .env');
  }

  const composio = new Composio({ apiKey: COMPOSIO_API_KEY });

  // Create Tool Router session for YouTube Transcript
  const session = await composio.create(USER_ID, {
    toolkits: ['youtube_transcript'],
  });
  const mcpUrl = session?.mcp.url;
What's happening:
  • The function checks for the required COMPOSIO_API_KEY environment variable
  • We're creating a Composio instance using our API key
  • The create method creates a Tool Router session for YouTube Transcript
  • The returned url is the MCP server URL that your agent will use
7

Configure Claude Agent with MCP

const options: Options = {
  permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions',
  mcpServers: {
    composio: {
      type: 'http',
      url: mcpUrl,
      headers: { 'x-api-key': COMPOSIO_API_KEY }
    }
  },
  systemPrompt: 'You are a helpful assistant with access to YouTube Transcript tools via Composio.',
  maxTurns: 10,
};
What's happening:
  • We're configuring the Claude Agent options with the MCP server URL
  • permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions' allows the agent to execute operations without asking for permission each time
  • The system prompt instructs the agent that it has access to YouTube Transcript
  • maxTurns: 10 limits the conversation length to prevent excessive API usage
8

Create client and start chat loop

const rl = readline.createInterface({
    input: process.stdin,
    output: process.stdout,
    prompt: 'You: '
  });

  console.log('\nChat started. Type "exit" to quit.\n');

  let isProcessing = false;

  async function ask(prompt: string) {
    isProcessing = true;
    rl.pause();

    process.stdout.write('Claude is thinking...');
    const stream = query({ prompt, options });

    let firstChunk = true;
    for await (const msg of stream) {
      const content = (msg as any).message?.content || (msg as any).content;
      if (Array.isArray(content)) {
        for (const block of content) {
          if (block.type === 'text' && block.text) {
            if (firstChunk) {
              process.stdout.write('\r\x1b[K');
              process.stdout.write('Claude: ');
              firstChunk = false;
            }
            process.stdout.write(block.text);
          }
        }
      }
    }
    process.stdout.write('\n\n');

    isProcessing = false;
    rl.resume();
    rl.prompt();
  }

  rl.on('line', async (line) => {
    if (isProcessing) return;

    const input = line.trim();
    if (input === 'exit') {
      rl.close();
      process.exit(0);
    }
    if (input) await ask(input);
    else rl.prompt();
  });

  await ask('What can you help me with?');
}
What's happening:
  • The readline interface is created to handle user input and output
  • The query function is used to send the user's input to the agent
  • The chat loop continues until the user types 'exit' or 'quit'
9

Run the application

try {
  await chat();
} catch (error) {
  console.error(error);
  process.exit(1);
}
What's happening:
  • The chat function is the entry point for the application
  • The try-catch block is used to handle any errors that occur

Complete Code

Here's the complete code to get you started with YouTube Transcript and Claude Agent SDK:

import 'dotenv/config';
import readline from 'node:readline';
import { Composio } from '@composio/core';
import { query, type Options } from "@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk";

async function chat() {
  const { COMPOSIO_API_KEY, USER_ID } = process.env;
  if (!COMPOSIO_API_KEY || !USER_ID) {
    throw new Error('COMPOSIO_API_KEY and USER_ID required in .env');
  }

  const composio = new Composio({ apiKey: COMPOSIO_API_KEY });
  const session = await composio.create(USER_ID, {
    toolkits: ['youtube_transcript']
  });
  const mcp_url = session?.mcp.url;

  const options: Options = {
    permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions',
    mcpServers: {
      composio: {
        type: 'http',
        url: mcp_url,
        headers: { 'x-api-key': COMPOSIO_API_KEY }
      }
    },
    systemPrompt: 'You are a helpful assistant with access to YouTube Transcript tools via Composio.',
    maxTurns: 10,
  };

  const rl = readline.createInterface({
    input: process.stdin,
    output: process.stdout,
    prompt: 'You: '
  });

  console.log('\nChat started. Type "exit" to quit.\n');

  let isProcessing = false;

  async function ask(prompt: string) {
    isProcessing = true;
    rl.pause();

    process.stdout.write('Claude is thinking...');
    const stream = query({ prompt, options });

    let firstChunk = true;
    for await (const msg of stream) {
      const content = (msg as any).message?.content || (msg as any).content;
      if (Array.isArray(content)) {
        for (const block of content) {
          if (block.type === 'text' && block.text) {
            if (firstChunk) {
              process.stdout.write('\r\x1b[K');
              process.stdout.write('Claude: ');
              firstChunk = false;
            }
            process.stdout.write(block.text);
          }
        }
      }
    }
    process.stdout.write('\n\n');

    isProcessing = false;
    rl.resume();
    rl.prompt();
  }

  rl.on('line', async (line) => {
    if (isProcessing) return;

    const input = line.trim();
    if (input === 'exit') {
      rl.close();
      process.exit(0);
    }
    if (input) await ask(input);
    else rl.prompt();
  });

  await ask('What can you help me with?');
}

try {
  await chat();
} catch (error) {
  console.error(error);
  process.exit(1);
}

Conclusion

You've successfully built a Claude Agent SDK agent that can interact with YouTube Transcript through Composio's Tool Router.

Key features:

  • Native MCP support through Claude's agent framework
  • Streaming responses for real-time interaction
  • Permission bypass for smooth automated workflows
You can extend this by adding more toolkits, implementing custom business logic, or building a web interface around the agent.
TOOLS

Supported Tools

Every YouTube Transcript action and event your agent gets out of the box.

Get Stored Transcript

Read a transcript already stored in the connected account without submitting new transcription work or consuming retrieval credits.

Get Video Transcript

Fetch captions for one YouTube video and store the resulting transcript in the connected account.

Get Video Transcript Job Status

Read one transcript job's current processing, completed, failed, or requires-ASR-confirmation state without creating work or waiting.

Get Video Transcripts Batch

Fetch and store captions for 1-10 YouTube videos.

Get Video Transcripts Batch Status

Read the current state and available per-video results for a transcript batch without creating work or waiting.

List Stored Transcripts

List and search transcripts already stored in the connected account, one bounded page at a time.

List Transcript Languages

List stored languages and YouTube translation target languages for one owned video transcript.

Resolve Channel Videos

Requires Basic or higher.

Resolve Playlist Videos

Requires Basic or higher.

FRAMEWORKS

How to build YouTube Transcript MCP Agent with another framework

OpenAI Agents SDK logo

OpenAI Agents SDK

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with OpenAI Agents SDK

Claude Code logo

Claude Code

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Claude Code

Claude Cowork logo

Claude Cowork

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Claude Cowork

Codex logo

Codex

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Codex

OpenClaw logo

OpenClaw

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with OpenClaw

Hermes logo

Hermes

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Hermes

CLI logo

CLI

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with CLI

Google ADK logo

Google ADK

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Google ADK

LangChain logo

LangChain

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with LangChain

Vercel AI SDK logo

Vercel AI SDK

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Vercel AI SDK

Mastra AI logo

Mastra AI

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with Mastra AI

LlamaIndex logo

LlamaIndex

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with LlamaIndex

CrewAI logo

CrewAI

Use YouTube Transcript MCP with CrewAI

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

With a standalone YouTube Transcript MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of YouTube Transcript tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from YouTube Transcript and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Yes, you can. Claude Agent SDK fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right YouTube Transcript tools.

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which YouTube Transcript scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your YouTube Transcript data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

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