Notebooklm MCP CLI

NotebookLM MCP CLI

Source

• Upstream repository: https://github.com/jacob-bd/notebooklm-mcp-cli
• Local checkout: %USERPROFILE%\.notebooklm-mcp-cli\notebooklm-mcp-cli
• Installed package: notebooklm-mcp-cli
• CLI command: nlm
• MCP server command: notebooklm-mcp
• Universal stack source registry: %USERPROFILE%\.universal-ai-stack\config\source-integrations.json

Operating Model

Use the CLI first. The MCP server is available for clients that require a live tool endpoint, but it should not be started or registered by default for simple one-shot NotebookLM work.

Do not copy this upstream repository, cookies, browser profiles, generated media, or NotebookLM session state into AI roots or into this repo. The universal install uses:

• the PyPI/uv tool install for executables,
• one external source checkout for README-grounded reference,
• this one canonical skill for routing and workflow instructions,
• compact skill-router wrappers in each AI client.

Authentication

NotebookLM access depends on the user's Google account session.

Check auth before doing NotebookLM operations:

nlm login --check

If auth is missing, use the upstream login flow:

nlm login

For multiple Google accounts:

nlm login --profile work
nlm login --profile personal
nlm login profile list
nlm login switch work

Never print, paste, store, or commit browser cookies, Google OAuth state, downloaded private source files, or NotebookLM-generated private artifacts.

CLI Workflows

Use nlm --ai for the upstream's full AI-assistant command reference when exact syntax is needed.

Common commands:

nlm notebook list
nlm notebook create "Research Project"
nlm source add <notebook> --url "https://example.com/article"
nlm source add <notebook> --file "C:\path\source.pdf"
nlm notebook query <notebook> "What are the key findings?"
nlm cross query "Compare these notebooks on the main risks"
nlm studio create <notebook> audio --confirm
nlm download audio <notebook> <artifact-id>
nlm share public <notebook>
nlm doctor

Capabilities to prefer this skill for:

• notebook list/create/delete workflows,
• adding URL, text, Drive, and file sources,
• source-grounded notebook queries,
• cross-notebook research,
• batch query/create/delete operations,
• pipeline run/list workflows,
• tags and smart notebook selection,
• audio overview, video, slide, and other Studio artifacts,
• artifact download,
• public or invite sharing,
• Google Drive source sync,
• NotebookLM MCP configuration and troubleshooting.

MCP Configuration

Only configure MCP when the target AI client explicitly needs an MCP server. For universal stack work, prefer direct CLI calls or skill-router routing.

Generate a generic MCP config when needed:

nlm setup add json

Use upstream client-specific setup only after checking existing client config to avoid duplicate MCP entries:

nlm setup list
nlm setup add claude-code
nlm setup add gemini
nlm setup add cursor

If a client already has the compact universal skill-router adapter, do not install a full duplicate NotebookLM skill tree into that client. Keep the MCP server as an optional stdio command:

notebooklm-mcp

Quality Gates

Before reporting this integration healthy, verify:

nlm --version
notebooklm-mcp --help
nlm doctor
skill-router skill notebooklm-mcp-cli
skill-router preflight --json "query my NotebookLM notebook about this research"
skill-router skills validate-manifest

nlm doctor may report that Google login is missing. That is an auth state, not a failed installation, unless the user expected the account to be logged in already.