Google is introducing a new capability to Google Drive that will enhance users’ ability to navigate through videos. Known as video transcripts, this feature is an improvement upon the company’s automatic captions functionality from the previous year. The Mountain View-based technology leader emphasized that users can now view and search transcripts within videos. This will facilitate the process of finding specific sections of a video, as clicking on a sentence will directly advance the video to that moment. Importantly, this feature is presently being made available to all Google Drive users.
Google Drive Is Getting Video Transcripts Feature
In a blog post from Workspace, the tech giant revealed the new capability. This builds off the automatic captions feature that was launched in July 2024. That feature automatically produces captions in videos upon upload (Workspace administrators can modify the setting to allow caption generation only upon request).
When the feature was launched, Google indicated that it employs speech recognition technology to transcribe the audio, provided that spoken words are present and the language in use is English. Although the company noted intentions to extend this feature to additional languages, this has not yet occurred.
Whereas the automatic captions feature enabled users to see the captions during video playback, users were unable to access the transcripts separately. This is now being incorporated with the latest update. When a video is played on Google Drive, users will have the option to open transcripts in a side panel on the right.
These transcriptions are displayed along with time stamps. Sentences are divided into distinct items on the list. The side panel also includes a search bar. Users can either scroll through the transcriptions or search for specific words to locate the precise time stamp. Clicking on the sentence will also move the video to that time stamp, making it easier for users to find what they are looking for.
To utilize the feature, users must first play a video in Google Drive. Users should confirm that the selected video includes automatic captions. This can be verified by checking for a CC button located in the bottom right corner of the video player. Once this is completed, clicking on the Settings icon at the bottom right corner will reveal a new ‘Transcript’ option. Selecting this will open the side panel.
