Synapse — YouTube-to-transcript+summary

Local-first, full‑stack app that converts YouTube videos into transcripts and smart summaries using self‑hosted models optimized for Apple Silicon.

Overview

This monorepo contains:

• backend/: FastAPI service for video processing, transcription (Whisper), and summarization (DistilBART)
• study-synapse/: React + TypeScript + Vite frontend (port 8080)

Helpful docs:

• PROJECT_ARCHITECTURE.md
• LOCAL_MODEL_GUIDE.md
• FIXED_PORTS.md

Requirements

• Python 3.11
• Node.js 20.x and npm
• ffmpeg installed on your system (e.g., brew install ffmpeg on macOS)

Quick Start

Backend (FastAPI)

1. Install dependencies and activate venv

   cd backend
   python3 -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate
   pip install -r requirements.txt

2. Configure environment (optional)
   • Create backend/.env if you want to override defaults (see LOCAL_MODEL_GUIDE.md)
3. Run the server (uses backend/run_server.sh)

   ./run_server.sh

4. Access
   • API: http://localhost:8000
   • Docs: http://localhost:8000/docs
   • Health: http://localhost:8000/api/health

Key backend files:

• backend/app/main.py — FastAPI app and CORS
• backend/app/api/video_processing.py — Processing endpoints
• backend/app/models/model_manager.py — Whisper + DistilBART
• backend/app/services/youtube_service.py — YouTube download/extract
• backend/app/database/database.py — SQLite models and ops

Frontend (Vite + React + TS)

1. Install dependencies

   cd study-synapse
   npm i

2. Configure environment (Supabase + API URL) Create study-synapse/.env:

   VITE_SUPABASE_URL=your_supabase_url
   VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY=your_supabase_anon_key
   VITE_API_BASE_URL=http://localhost:8000/api

3. Start the dev server

   npm run dev

4. Access the app
   • Frontend: http://localhost:8080/

See study-synapse/src/services/api.ts for the API base URL usage.

Ports

• Frontend: http://localhost:8080/
• Backend: http://localhost:8000/
• Backend API: http://localhost:8000/api/

Details in FIXED_PORTS.md.

Testing

Backend tests:

cd backend
source venv/bin/activate
pytest

Frontend lint:

cd study-synapse
npm run lint

Repository Structure

.
├── backend/
│   ├── app/
│   ├── models/
│   ├── temp/
│   ├── requirements.txt
│   ├── run_server.sh
│   └── venv/
├── study-synapse/
│   ├── src/
│   ├── public/
│   ├── package.json
│   └── vite.config.ts
├── PROJECT_ARCHITECTURE.md
├── LOCAL_MODEL_GUIDE.md
└── FIXED_PORTS.md

License

MIT