ClipCut

Free · open source · runs on your machine

Topic in.
Short video out.

ClipCut writes a script about anything you type, then cuts a 9:16 or 16:9 video out of 1–3 second YouTube moments, highlighted article screenshots, captioned memes and reaction GIFs, with word-by-word captions and a local AI voiceover.

Download for your OS View on GitHub

Linux and macOS · Windows via WSL2 · MIT license

The ClipCut app: a topic box with format, length and voice options, above a grid of recent video projects

How it works

  1. ResearchSearches the web and writes a fact sheet with sources
  2. HookDrafts opening lines; you pick one
  3. ScriptWrites the narration and strips the AI-sounding phrases
  4. Beat sheetSplits it into 1–3 second beats and picks a visual for each
  5. VisualsFinds the exact YouTube moment, screenshots articles, captions memes
  6. VoiceoverSpeaks it with Kokoro on your CPU and times every word
  7. RenderAnimates every cut with a sound effect and encodes the MP4

Review and edit each stage, or turn on Autopilot and come back to a finished final.mp4 and a credits.txt that lists every source.

Real footage first

Searches YouTube captions for the moment the words are spoken and cuts just those seconds. Stock footage is the last resort.

Free and local

The voice, search and downloads run on your machine. The only account you need is Claude Code, which writes the script.

One binary

A native Rust app with the web UI and fonts built in. Open it on your desktop, or from your phone over Wi-Fi.

Download

The quickest way: one command installs ClipCut and offers to install everything it needs.

curl -fsSL https://github.com/adeebahmad01/clipcut/releases/latest/download/install.sh | sh

Linux and macOS. The script checks the download's SHA-256 and asks before every install. Read it first.

Or download the app directly

Linuxx86_64 · glibc 2.39+Download .tar.gz Linux ARM64Raspberry Pi 5, Graviton…Download .tar.gz macOSApple silicon (M1 and later)Download .tar.gz From sourceLinux (glibc 2.38+) or Apple silicon, with Rust 1.88+Build guide WindowsInstall WSL2, then use the Linux commandWSL2 guide

Checksums, older versions and release notes are on the releases page. On macOS, run xattr -d com.apple.quarantine clipcut once after unpacking a manual download.

What you need

The installer handles these for you. If you'd rather do it by hand, here is each one.

ffmpeg Required

Cuts clips and encodes the video.

Download
espeak-ng Required

Pronunciation for the Kokoro voice.

Download
Claude Code Required

Writes the research, hooks, script and beat sheet. Run claude once to sign in.

Download
Chrome or Chromium Recommended

Article screenshots and the app window. Edge and Brave work too.

Download
Node.js Recommended

Lets yt-dlp pass YouTube's player checks. Deno works too.

Download
Python 3 Optional

Runs the unslop skill's checks.

Download
unslop skill Optional

Rewrites the script so it sounds less like AI.

Get it
Podman Optional

Runs a private SearXNG search. Docker works too. Without it, DuckDuckGo is used.

Download

Downloaded automatically on first start

Optional free API keys

More GIFs and stock footage with free keys from GIPHY, Tenor, Pexels and Pixabay. Add them in Settings → Keys. Imgflip, Wikimedia, Openverse, Iconify and YouTube need none.

Quick start

1
Install
curl -fsSL https://github.com/adeebahmad01/clipcut/releases/latest/download/install.sh | sh
2
Sign in to Claude Code once
claude
3
Start ClipCut
clipcut

Open the URL it prints. The Network URL works from your phone.

4
Type a topic and press Make

Or from the terminal: clipcut new "Why the Moon is drifting away"

A finished ClipCut project: the video player next to the seven completed pipeline stages

Docs

InstallationEvery OS, every dependency, building from source UsageThe app, the CLI, projects, music and sound effects ConfigurationEvery setting in config.toml TroubleshootingFixes for common problems ArchitectureHow the pieces fit together ContributingBuild it, test it, send a pull request

Use footage responsibly. ClipCut takes short clips from YouTube and other public sources and lists every one in credits.txt. You are responsible for how you use what it makes: check the terms of the sites you take footage from and the rules of the platform you post to.