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Transcribe publicly shared interviews or recordings while keeping the transcript linked to the original Drive file record.
Google Drive transcription API for shared media
Send a publicly downloadable Google Drive audio or video file directly to the Fast Transcriber job API. For private Drive assets, keep Google authorization in your own integration and move the bytes through the secure file-upload workflow.
Use it from your product backend or connect a compatible AI agent over MCP.
- Bearer authentication
- Asynchronous jobs
- Structured JSON
Queue a publicly shared Drive file
curl --include --request POST https://fast-transcriber.com/api/v1/transcriptions \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $FAST_TRANSCRIBER_API_TOKEN" \
--header "Content-Type: application/json" \
--data '{
"source_url": "https://drive.google.com/file/d/FILE_ID/view?usp=sharing",
"speaker_diarization": false
}'202 Accepted · Location: /api/v1/transcriptions/{id}
Connect shared Drive files to transcription
A Drive share URL can be used as source_url when it identifies one audio or video file that anyone with the link can download without Google authentication. The worker resolves the link asynchronously and produces the same result shape as other sources.
Do not expose a private organizational file just to use a public URL. If your product already has authorized access to the user's Drive, download the permitted file on their behalf and send it through the Fast Transcriber upload flow instead.
With Fast Transcriber
- One asynchronous job lifecycle across supported sources
- Source resolution and media retrieval handled server-side
- One transcript response with text and timestamped segments
- A direct-upload fallback for authorized private media
Building every source yourself
- Separate URL and access handling for every source
- Queue, retry, polling, and failure-state infrastructure
- Source-specific results that need normalization
- Ongoing maintenance as external sources change
One API family
One source workflow. One predictable job model.
Use the same status lifecycle and transcript fields across supported public URLs and account-owned uploads.
What this endpoint accepts
Supported inputs
- One Google Drive audio file shared publicly
- One Google Drive video file shared publicly
- Links downloadable without Google authentication
- Public links that remain valid during processing
Access and input boundaries
- The link must resolve to a supported audio or video file, not a folder or ordinary document.
- Fast Transcriber does not receive or reuse your Google login session.
- Workspace and organization restrictions can block an apparently shared file.
- Use authorized download plus direct upload for private or restricted Drive media.
Queue once, then follow the job
Transcription runs outside the original HTTP request. Save the returned job identity and poll its status instead of submitting duplicate work.
- 01
Send one Google Drive media URL
POST source_url to /api/v1/transcriptions with a bearer API key. Create one job for each media item.
- 02
Save the job location
A valid request returns 202 Accepted. Persist the Location header and job ID instead of repeating the POST.
- 03
Poll to a final state
GET the job URL with bounded backoff until status is completed or failed, then stop polling.
Built for production transcription workflows
Media intake
Accept an intentionally public Drive URL from a user without proxying the original download through a synchronous request.
Authorized private workflows
Combine your own Google authorization with Fast Transcriber's upload API when files must remain restricted.
Send a real API request
Authenticate from your backend, create the job, and store the returned Location header for status retrieval.
Queue a publicly shared Drive file
curl --include --request POST https://fast-transcriber.com/api/v1/transcriptions \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $FAST_TRANSCRIBER_API_TOKEN" \
--header "Content-Type: application/json" \
--data '{
"source_url": "https://drive.google.com/file/d/FILE_ID/view?usp=sharing",
"speaker_diarization": false
}'202 Accepted · Location: /api/v1/transcriptions/{id}
Implement the complete request flow
Authentication, source rules, request fields, and status handling are covered in the technical guide.
One predictable transcript response
A completed Drive job exposes the same job status, full text, duration, and timestamped segments as every other source. The original hosting location does not change your result model.
- status
- Use completed and failed as terminal states.
- text
- The complete transcript becomes available on completion.
- segments[]
- Each segment includes start, end, and text values.
- duration_seconds
- The detected duration of the processed recording.
application/json
{
"data": {
"id": "95c3fdd8-...",
"filename": "source-media.mp4",
"status": "completed",
"created_at": "2026-08-24T16:30:00.000Z",
"duration_seconds": 1842,
"text": "Completed transcript text...",
"segments": [
{ "start": 0, "end": 4.2, "text": "Welcome." }
]
}
}200 OK · completed transcript
Google Drive API FAQ
- Can Fast Transcriber open my private Google Drive?
- No. source_url does not use your Google session. Download a permitted private file through your own authorized integration and use direct upload.
- Will a Google Drive folder link work?
- No. The request must identify one publicly downloadable audio or video file, not a folder or document collection.
- Does Drive produce a different response format?
- No. Completed jobs use the same JSON text, segments, duration, and status fields as other sources.
- What if a shared link expires or becomes restricted?
- The queued job can fail if the worker cannot retrieve the media. Keep the link accessible until the source has been fetched.
Related endpoints
API overviewUse the same job model elsewhere
Ready to build?
Add Google Drive transcription to your product.
Create a key, then follow the source guide to queue your first job.