Create a Feed

Capture posts from social sources once and reuse them for podcasts, schedules, and social reposts inside AutoContent.

Before You Begin

• Add your API key in Settings; the Feeds pages stay locked until authentication succeeds.

• Decide which source type you need. Feeds support X/Twitter, Reddit, YouTube channels, RSS URLs, and X News topics.

• Keep the source identifiers handy: X username without @, subreddit without r/, YouTube channel URL or handle, RSS URL, or X News topic/search query.

Step 1: Open the Feeds Dashboard

1. In the sidebar, go to Feeds.

2. Review any existing feeds grouped by source. Each card shows the most recent refresh time and shortcuts to the original account or subreddit.

3. Click Create Feed to launch the builder at /feeds/create.

Step 2: Fill Out Feed Details

The form mirrors the publishing requirements enforced by the API:

Field	Required	Notes
Feed Name	Yes	Friendly label that appears in episode and scheduler pickers.
Feed Type	Yes	1 = X/Twitter, 2 = Reddit, 3 = YouTube channel, 4 = RSS, 5 = X News topic.
Identifier	Yes	Use internalId for X, Reddit, RSS, and X News. Use channel or url for YouTube channels.

Cards highlight the differences between source types. Use the helper text under each field if you forget the exact format.

Step 3: Create the Feed

Select Create Feed. The button locks while the API runs and the success banner reveals the new Feed ID. You will also see the feed under the relevant section back on the dashboard.

Need the raw request for automation? Toggle Show API Request to view the exact payload the UI sends:

curl -X POST "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Tech News from Elon Musk",
    "feedTypeId": 1,
    "internalId": "elonmusk"
  }'

On success the API responds with:

{
  "success": true,
  "feedId": 42,
  "message": "Feed created successfully"
}

Other feed type examples:

{
  "name": "AI Product RSS",
  "feedTypeId": 4,
  "internalId": "https://example.com/feed.xml"
}

{
  "name": "AutoContent YouTube",
  "feedTypeId": 3,
  "channel": "https://www.youtube.com/@AutoContentAPI"
}

{
  "name": "X News: AI",
  "feedTypeId": 5,
  "internalId": "artificial intelligence"
}

Step 4: Manage Feeds from the Dashboard

The Feeds page is your control center:

• View source: View Source opens the original account or subreddit in a new tab.

• Check freshness: Each card shows the last update timestamp and relative age (for example, 12m ago).

• Delete feed: Use the X button on a card to remove a feed (confirmation required). Your plan controls how many feeds/channels you can keep.

• Empty state: If you clear every feed, you will get a guided prompt to create a new one.

Step 5: Generate Podcasts from Feeds

Feeds become selectable across creation tools:

• In Podcasts -> Episodes -> New Episode, choose the Use Feeds card, pick one or more feeds, and finish the request. That selection reuses the same flow documented in Create a Podcast Episode from an X Feed.

• In the Scheduler, switch Input Mode to Feeds to automate recurring drops based on your saved sources.

• When episode generation finishes, attach it to a show via Create a Podcast Show so the RSS feed updates automatically.

For direct API calls, first fetch selectable cached items:

curl -X GET "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds/42/items" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

The response includes the feed and recent items:

{
  "feed": {
    "id": 42,
    "name": "Tech News from Elon Musk",
    "feedTypeId": 1
  },
  "items": [
    {
      "identifier": "1876982459012345678",
      "content": "New product update...",
      "resourceType": "text",
      "resourceValue": "New product update..."
    }
  ]
}

Pass selected item identifier values through feedSelections:

{
  "outputType": "audio",
  "feedSelections": [
    {
      "feedId": 42,
      "feedItemIds": ["1876982459012345678", "1876982459012345679"]
    }
  ],
  "text": "Create a concise news-style podcast from these selected feed items."
}

feedSelections replaces the older top-level feeds array. You can include up to 10 feed groups and up to 50 item IDs per feed group.

Step 6: Automate Feed Runs

Feed subscriptions watch a feed and create new content as new items arrive.

Subscribe an Existing Feed Template

Create a reusable template with /content/Create:

curl -X POST "https://api.autocontentapi.com/content/Create" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "outputType": "audio",
    "templateMode": {
      "type": "feed",
      "name": "Daily AI news digest"
    },
    "text": "Create a five-minute daily digest with the biggest developments and practical takeaways.",
    "duration": "default",
    "style": "deep dive"
  }'

The response includes template_request_id. Subscribe the feed to that template:

curl -X POST "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds/subscriptions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "feedId": 42,
    "requestId": "TEMPLATE_REQUEST_ID",
    "intervalMinutes": 1440,
    "digestMode": true
  }'

• intervalMinutes: Minimum time between automated runs. Omit it to run whenever new items are available.

• digestMode: When true, the run combines the window of new items into one generated request. When omitted or false, the automation can create one request per item.

• lastProcessedItemId: Optional item identifier to mark earlier content as already handled.

Create an Explainer Automation Inline

For explainer videos, /feeds/subscriptions can create the template for you:

curl -X POST "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds/subscriptions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "feedId": 42,
    "intervalMinutes": 720,
    "digestMode": true,
    "automation": {
      "type": "explainer",
      "instructions": "Turn each feed window into a short executive explainer with a clear takeaway.",
      "language": "English",
      "voiceId": 13,
      "titlePrompt": "Use a concise news headline",
      "thumbnailImagePrompt": "Clean editorial thumbnail with bold subject contrast"
    }
  }'

voiceId must be a numeric ID from /content/GetVoices.

List and remove subscriptions:

curl -X GET "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds/subscriptions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

curl -X DELETE "https://api.autocontentapi.com/feeds/subscriptions/SUBSCRIPTION_ID" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN"

Step 7: Reuse Feeds Elsewhere

Beyond podcasts, your saved feeds appear inside recurring X posts and other automations. Because all tools reference the same list, keeping feeds updated in the dashboard keeps every workflow in sync.

Related Endpoints

• POST /feeds – Create a new feed.

• GET /feeds – List all feeds available to the account.

• GET /feeds/{id}/items – List cached feed items for feedSelections.

• GET /feeds/subscriptions – List feed subscriptions.

• POST /feeds/subscriptions – Create a feed subscription.

• DELETE /feeds/subscriptions/{subscriptionId} – Remove a feed subscription.

• POST /feeds/delete – Remove a feed by ID.

What's Next?

• Turn a feed into audio using Create a Podcast Episode from an X Feed.

• Schedule those episodes for release with the Scheduler.

• Mix feeds with other sources when building a show via Create a Podcast Episode.