Just discovered a nice little workflow optimization.
I’ve been using Peter Steinberger’s open-source “summarize” tool (github.com/steipete/summarize) alongside Claude Code.
What it does: Point it at any URL, YouTube video, podcast, or PDF → get a clean summary. CLI or Chrome sidebar.
Why I like it:
- Summarized a 90-minute podcast in 9 seconds
- Uses free models via OpenRouter (costs nothing)
- Runs locally - no data sent anywhere except the LLM call
- Chrome side panel means one-click summaries while browsing
The insight: AI tools work best as a system, not a single solution. Use cheap/free tools for extraction and summarization. Save the expensive tokens for work that needs context, judgment, and action.
Small tools, loosely joined.