Upload a video from your machine
From an AI tool that can read your files, such as Claude Code or Codex, it uploads the MP4 or MOV straight to the draft.
YouTube MCP Server: plan uploads and Shorts from your AI
Your AI drafts the title and description, uploads the video from your machine, and puts the upload on your calendar.
Using Cursor or another MCP client? Add this server address and sign in
https://app.distinctful.com/api/mcpWorks with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, and any MCP client.
What you can do with the YouTube MCP server
Ask in plain words. Your AI works from your own strategy, calendar, and results in Distinctful.
Titles people search for
It drafts titles that lead with the words people search, and a description whose first lines say what the viewer gets.
Plan the upload week
Put the video and the posts that point to it on one calendar, so the launch goes out on every channel together.
See which videos landed
It reads views and engagement on the YouTube videos Distinctful published and compares each with your usual.
Learn from YouTube outliers
It browses Discover for videos and Shorts in your niche that beat their creator’s usual, and drafts your own angle.
Write from your strategy
It reads your positioning and pillars first, so every video idea ties back to what you sell.
Prompts to try
Copy one into Claude or ChatGPT once you are connected.
- “Upload ./episode-12.mp4 to a YouTube draft and write a title and description from my notes.”
- “Plan next week’s video and three posts that point to it on LinkedIn, X, and Threads.”
- “Which of my YouTube videos this quarter beat my usual?”
- “Find YouTube outliers about home workouts in Discover and pitch me three video ideas.”
- “Draft five Shorts ideas from my last long video.”
- “What is scheduled on YouTube this month?”
Setup
Connect YouTube to ChatGPT, Claude, and Cursor
One connection, about two minutes. It covers YouTube and every other channel you connect in Distinctful.
- 1Add Distinctful to your AI tool: a connector in Claude, the Distinctful app in ChatGPT, or the server address in Cursor and other MCP clients.
- 2Sign in to Distinctful and approve access. There is no API key to paste.
- 3Connect your social accounts in Distinctful Settings if you have not already.
- 4Ask your AI something like: “Upload ./episode-12.mp4 to a YouTube draft and write a title and description from my notes.”
YouTube MCP server questions
Do I need an API key?
No. Your tool signs in to Distinctful through OAuth, so you approve access on a Distinctful screen and never paste a key.
Does it publish Shorts?
YouTube decides whether a video is a Short from its length and shape. Distinctful uploads the video and YouTube treats it as a Short when it fits.
What does it need before a video goes out?
YouTube asks for a title, visibility, and audience answers. Review those and the thumbnail on the draft in Distinctful before it publishes.
Will the AI post to YouTube without asking me?
It schedules or publishes only when you ask, on the accounts you name, and most AI tools confirm before they run an action that changes data. Ask it to plan the post instead and the draft waits on your calendar for you to schedule.
Can it reply to YouTube comments or send messages?
No. Distinctful plans, schedules, and publishes your own posts and reads how they performed. It does not reply to comments, send messages, or read private profiles.
Which plan do I need?
Connecting an AI tool through MCP is included on the Grow plan and higher.
MCP servers for other platforms
The same connection covers every channel you connect.
Run YouTube from your AI
Start a free trial, connect your channels, and add Distinctful to the AI tool you already use.