Google Transcoder API
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For Agents
Submit and monitor video transcoding jobs that convert source files into adaptive streaming formats (HLS, DASH) and downloadable outputs across multiple bitrates.
Use for: I need to transcode a video to HLS for streaming, Submit a DASH transcoding job for a marketing video, Create a job template for a standard 1080p ladder, List all transcoding jobs in a project
Not supported: Does not handle live streaming, video hosting, or content delivery - use for converting source video files into streaming and downloadable outputs only.
Transcoder API converts source video files into streaming-ready and downloadable formats including HLS, DASH, MP4, and WebM, applying multiple bitrates, codecs, and resolutions in a single job. It supports adaptive bitrate ladders, audio track muxing, sprite-sheet generation, ad insertion markers, and image overlays. Job templates encapsulate frequently used encoding settings, so production workflows submit jobs by template name plus input/output Cloud Storage URIs rather than re-specifying ladder parameters per file.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Transcoder API to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Transcoder API, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
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Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fgoogleapis.com%2Ftranscoder" | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fgoogleapis.com%2Ftranscoder" | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Transcoder API.
Submit transcoding jobs that produce HLS, DASH, MP4, and WebM output
Author and reuse job templates encoding ladder settings
Generate adaptive bitrate variants with H.264, H.265, VP9, and AV1 codecs
Mux multiple audio tracks and produce sprite sheets for scrubbing previews
Insert ad-break markers and image overlays into transcoded output
List, retrieve, and delete in-flight or completed jobs
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Transcoder API for, with concrete tasks.
★ On-Demand Streaming Pipeline
Video platforms ingest user uploads to Cloud Storage and submit a Transcoder job per upload that produces an HLS package with five renditions (240p through 1080p), AAC audio, and a sprite sheet for the scrubbing preview. Output is written to a CDN-fronted bucket. Most short-form videos finish in a few minutes; the API's job-template feature keeps the encoding ladder consistent across millions of submissions.
POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs with inputUri set to the GCS upload, outputUri to the streaming bucket, and templateId pointing at a preset HLS ladder.
Reusable Encoding Job Templates
Media engineering teams encode their standard ladder definitions once as a JobTemplate and reference it across every workflow. Updating the template propagates new codec choices (e.g. switching H.264 to AV1 for the top rendition) to every downstream job without touching individual job submissions. The template list endpoint is the source of truth for available presets.
POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobTemplates with a config defining elementaryStreams, muxStreams, manifests, and pubsubDestination.
Ad-Insertion-Ready Output for Streaming Ads
Streaming services preparing inventory for SSAI insert ad-break markers in the manifest at the encoding stage. The Transcoder API supports ad-break configuration on the job, producing manifests with EXT-X-CUE-OUT (HLS) and SCTE-35 markers (DASH) ready for downstream ad servers. This avoids a separate post-processing step and keeps marker timing precise.
Include adBreaks with startTimeOffset values in the job config when posting to /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs.
Agent-Managed Video Pipelines via Jentic
An AI agent receives a 'prepare this video for the website' task and submits a Transcoder job through Jentic, watches it via Pub/Sub or polling, and reports the manifest URI back to the requester. Jentic isolates the credential and exposes job submit, get, and list as discrete tool calls.
Through Jentic, search 'transcode video to hls', load POST /v1/projects/{project}/locations/{location}/jobs, execute it with input/output URIs, then poll until state is SUCCEEDED.
Key Endpoints
6 endpoints — transcoder api converts source video files into streaming-ready and downloadable formats including hls, dash, mp4, and webm, applying multiple bitrates, codecs, and resolutions in a single job.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
POST
/v1/{+parent}/jobs
Submit a transcoding job
GET
/v1/{+parent}/jobs
List jobs in a project and location
POST
/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates
Create a reusable job template
GET
/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates
List job templates in a project and location
POST
/v1/{+parent}/jobs
Submit a transcoding job
GET
/v1/{+parent}/jobs
List jobs in a project and location
POST
/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates
Create a reusable job template
GET
/v1/{+parent}/jobTemplates
List job templates in a project and location
Why Jentic?
What agents get from Jentic-routed access to this vendor.
Setup
Wiring the Transcoder API by hand means setting up a Google service account, granting the cloud-platform scope, building the project and location parent names, and assembling the job and job-template config yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import the Transcoder API from the API Directory, store the service-account credential once, and your agent calls it.
Permission scoping
Transcoder carries the project and location parent in the URL path (/v1/{parent}/jobs), so a rule can pin your agent to one project or location: it can create and list jobs and templates there and nothing else. You choose the operations it may call, so only the ones you allow can run.
Credential isolation
Your Transcoder service-account credential is stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected at execution time. It never enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'transcode video to hls' or 'create a transcoder job template', and Jentic returns the matching Transcoder v1 operation with its job and template config schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using Transcoder API through Jentic.
What authentication does the Transcoder API use?
OAuth 2.0 with the cloud-platform scope is required. Production workflows use service-account credentials with the transcoder.admin role on the project. Through Jentic, the service-account JSON is stored encrypted in the vault and short-lived tokens are minted per call.
Can I produce HLS and DASH from the same source with the Transcoder API?
Yes. A single job config can declare multiple manifests in the manifests block - one with type=HLS and one with type=DASH - referencing shared elementaryStreams and muxStreams. The job writes both manifest sets to the output URI in one execution rather than submitting two jobs.
What are the rate limits for the Transcoder API?
Job submission throughput is governed by per-project quota that varies by region; defaults allow tens of concurrent jobs. Long-running jobs do not block subsequent submissions - they queue. Quota increases for high-volume publishers are available through the Cloud Console.
How do I submit a transcoding job through Jentic?
Search Jentic for 'transcode video to hls', load POST /v1/{parent}/jobs, and execute it with parent=projects/PROJECT/locations/LOCATION, inputUri (GCS source), outputUri (GCS destination), and either templateId or an inline config. Jentic returns the job name; poll GET on it until state is SUCCEEDED. Get started with Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer.
Does the Transcoder API support AV1 and HEVC?
Yes. The codec field on each H264/H265/Vp9/Av1 elementary stream entry selects the encoder; AV1 and HEVC (H.265) are supported alongside H.264 and VP9. Choose AV1 for storage savings on long-form catalog content and H.264 for broadest device compatibility.
Is the Transcoder API free?
Pricing is per-input-minute by codec and resolution tier - H.264 SD is the cheapest, with progressively higher rates for HD, UHD, HEVC, and AV1 outputs. The first ten minutes per month are free. Manifest generation and storage of outputs in Cloud Storage are billed separately at standard rates.
Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Transcoder API?
Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself and set the rules, you decide which Transcoder operations your agent may call, so it might submit and list jobs but never delete them. Since every Transcoder request carries the project and location parent in the URL path (/v1/{parent}/jobs), your rules can also pin the agent to a single project or location, letting it create and list jobs and job templates there and nowhere else. Your service-account credential stays with your own instance and is injected only when an allowed call runs.
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