Bringing Ancestors to Life: Testing the New Video Feature in Google NotebookLM

Testing Google NotebookLM’s new AI video feature for family history and ancestor storytelling

​If you read my earlier blog post on Google NotebookLM for Genealogy, you know how impressed I was with its ability to organize research, create summaries, generate timelines, and even produce audio overviews and podcasts from uploaded research, notes, sources, and more. Well, there’s an exciting new update that takes things a step further—and it’s one genealogists are going to love.
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Google NotebookLM has recently introduced a video generation feature, and I had the chance to test it out quite a few weeks ago. The result? A surprisingly powerful and creative new way to share your research and tell your ancestors’ stories.

What’s New: Video Creation in Google NotebookLM

NotebookLM’s latest feature allows users to automatically generate videos from the materials within their notebooks. Using your uploaded content—whether that’s family history notes, ancestor profiles, research summaries, or even blog posts—the AI can now create visually engaging, narrated videos that summarize and bring your work to life.

You can upload:

• PDFs
• Notes
• Blog posts
• Research summaries
• Newspaper articles
• Family stories or historical narratives

Once your sources are uploaded, the AI processes your uploaded content and crafts a dynamic video complete with text narration, visuals, and effortless transitions. You can customize the tone and style, edit the output, or even download and refine it further in your preferred video editor.

My Test Projects

To see what it could really do, I tested the feature using two of my existing projects—both of which I had already created while exploring NotebookLM’s earlier capabilities.

1. The Life and Times of Samuel Steinman
You may recognize this one from my previous blog—Samuel Steinman, my 2nd great-grandfather, is my official AI ancestor tester! This project already contained a rich mix of uploaded materials, including:

• Ancestor Profile PDFs
• Research Summary PDFs
• Family unit documents
• Timeline and notes

NotebookLM combined all of this into a cohesive, visually appealing video titled “The Steinman Family.” It wove together the facts, timeline, and narrative tone effortlessly, that resulted in a condensed story-driven video that’s both informative and emotionally engaging. Seeing my 2nd great-grandfather’s story unfold in video format was truly fantastic—it transformed pages of research into a living, breathing family history story.

2. African American and Native American Research (Client Case)
For a second test, I used an existing client project notebook that focused on a dual-heritage case study. Instead of starting from scratch, I simply uploaded my case notes, ancestor profiles (with tons of facts, details, and sources), and a blog post on that case into the notebook.

NotebookLM used it to generate a compelling video titled “A Grandmother’s History,” highlighting key moments from the research in an accessible and visual format. The end result showed real potential for client work, offering a fresh and engaging way to share discoveries beyond the traditional written report.

Why This Feature Is a Game-Changer for Genealogists

The new video generation tool isn’t just fun to experiment with—it’s genuinely useful for a range of genealogical purposes:​
🎞️ 1. Storytelling Made Easy
Turn your ancestors’ research files, notes, and timelines into short, captivating videos. Perfect for family reunions, online sharing, or preservation projects.
🗂️ 2. Project Summaries
Quickly create visual summaries of client research or ongoing projects to share progress or updates in a professional, creative format.
🎙️ 3. Companion to Audio Overviews
Pair NotebookLM’s existing audio overview feature with the new video output to create both podcast and video versions of your work—ideal for multi-format storytelling.
🧬 4. Educational and Presentation Uses
For genealogical educators and speakers, this feature offers new ways to present case studies or historical examples in a visual and engaging way, possibly using them for video blogs.​
👩‍💻 5. Enhanced Family History Sharing
Not everyone wants to read a 20-page narrative or research report. With these videos, you can share your family stories with relatives in a format they’ll actually watch and enjoy.

Creative Possibilities for the Future

The ability to turn your compiled notes, research, and documents into a video has tremendous potential for genealogists, educators, and storytellers. You could:

• Create a YouTube series of your family’s stories
• Produce mini-documentaries on each ancestral line
• Develop AI-assisted video presentations for clients
• Combine historical maps, photos, and AI narration for immersive storytelling

With NotebookLM’s integration of text, audio, and now video, we’re seeing the beginnings of a true multimedia genealogy workspace—a place where research and storytelling finally meet.

Final Thoughts

Testing this new feature was a lot of fun. Seeing my ancestor Samuel Steinman’s story transformed into “The Steinman Family” video—and my client’s “A Grandmother’s History” brought to life—was incredibly rewarding. It’s one thing to read an ancestor’s timeline; it’s another to watch it unfold before your eyes, told in a narrative voice, backed by visuals that highlight the journey of discovery.

This new video capability opens up endless creative possibilities for genealogists, family historians, and educators alike. Whether you’re preserving stories for your family, creating educational materials, or experimenting with AI-powered storytelling, Google NotebookLM is quickly becoming one of the most innovative tools available to us.

Have you tried creating videos with NotebookLM yet? I’d love to hear how you’re using it in your own research or storytelling! 

More AI Videos

See more AI video testers and examples on my YouTube channel. 

More AI and Genealogy ​

Learn about more AI in Genealogy updates, tips, and resources, along with other family history and genealogy resources under the AI in Genealogy and  Genealogy Resources categories and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.

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