No transcripts? No problem. AI watches directly and generates notes in any language. Used by 7,000+ learners worldwide.
Bilibili has incredible educational content—but taking notes is nearly impossible. Most videos don't have transcripts. The content is in Chinese. You're constantly pausing to type, losing your place, and by the end you have scattered notes that don't capture the visual explanations or code on screen.
What if language and transcripts didn't matter? Imagine watching a Chinese programming tutorial and getting organized English notes automatically. Code examples captured as screenshots. Timestamps for every concept. Your own annotations added in real-time. This is now possible with AI that watches the video directly—no transcript needed.
This guide shows you how. You'll learn proven methods for Bilibili note-taking, compare tools, and discover the AI-enhanced approach that works without transcripts and across languages. Whether you're learning programming, studying for exams, or exploring educational content—you can start building your knowledge library from Bilibili today.
Bilibili has become one of the world's largest repositories of educational content. Over 1 million educational videos covering programming, science, language learning, design, and more. Much of this content is unavailable anywhere else—unique tutorials, university lectures, and expert explanations you can't find on YouTube.
But here's the challenge: most Bilibili videos have no transcripts. The content is in Chinese, and traditional note-taking tools that rely on transcripts simply don't work. You're left pausing constantly, trying to understand and type simultaneously, missing visual content like code and diagrams. The result? Incomplete notes that don't capture the real value.
The Unique Value of Bilibili Content:
The right note-taking approach unlocks this value. With AI that watches the video directly (not relying on transcripts), you can capture everything—visual content, code, spoken explanations—and get notes in your preferred language. This turns Bilibili into a powerful learning resource regardless of language barriers.
Bilibili presents specific challenges that generic note-taking doesn't solve.
The challenge: Unlike YouTube, most Bilibili videos don't have transcripts. Traditional transcript-based note-taking tools are useless here.
The solution: AI that watches the video directly, analyzing visual and audio content to generate notes without needing transcripts.
The challenge: Content is in Chinese (Mandarin). Even if you understand spoken Chinese, you may want notes in your native language for easier reference.
The solution: Cross-language AI that understands Chinese input and generates notes in English or any of 15+ supported languages.
The challenge: Bilibili tutorials often show code, diagrams, and visual explanations on screen. Text notes miss this crucial visual context.
The solution: Screenshot capture with timestamps, so you have exact visual references linked back to the explanation moment.
The challenge: Bilibili content is often organized in long series (10-100+ videos). You need notes that connect across episodes and build coherent understanding.
The solution: Series-aware organization with cross-linking between episodes, building a knowledge graph of the complete topic.
Generic note-taking fails because it relies on transcripts that don't exist. You need AI that watches the video directly—understanding visual content, spoken Chinese, and on-screen text to generate comprehensive notes in your language.
Each method has its place. Choose based on your Chinese level, content type, and goals.
How it works: Pause frequently, use translation tools for terms you don't understand, type notes manually. The traditional approach for language learners.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Chinese learners who want language practice, very short videos
How it works: Screenshot everything important—code, diagrams, key slides. Add minimal text annotations. Visual-first approach.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Programming tutorials, visual content, when you don't need text explanations
How it works: AI watches the video directly—no transcript needed. It understands spoken Chinese, visual content, and on-screen text, then generates structured notes in your preferred language. This is where HoverNotes excels.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: All Bilibili content, especially when you don't speak Chinese or need notes in another language
How it works: Use Bilibili's unique danmaku (bullet comments) as crowd-sourced notes. Viewers often highlight key moments, correct errors, and add context.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Popular videos with active communities, supplementing other methods
How it works: Convert key concepts into flashcards (Anki format) for spaced repetition learning. Focus on memorization over comprehensive notes.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Language learning, technical terminology, exam prep
| Method | Speed | No Chinese Needed | Visual Capture |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manual + Translation | ⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐ |
| Screenshot-Heavy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| AI Vision-Based ⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Danmaku Mining | ⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐ | ⭐⭐ |
| Flashcard Extraction | ⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐ |
We tested the most common approaches. Here's what we found.
| Tool/Approach | No Transcript | Cross-Language | Visual Capture | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manual typing | ✅ | ⚠️ Slow | ❌ | Too slow, miss visuals |
| Transcript-based AI | ❌ | N/A | ❌ | Doesn't work on Bilibili |
| Screenshot tools | ✅ | N/A | ✅ | No context, not searchable |
| Translation extensions | ⚠️ | ⚠️ Manual | ❌ | Word-by-word, no structure |
| HoverNotes | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | Best for Bilibili |
| Other AI tools | ❌ Need transcript | ⚠️ | ❌ | Don't work on Bilibili |
Vision-Based AI
Watches video directly—no transcript needed
Cross-Language Support
Chinese → English (or 15+ other languages)
Visual Content Capture
Screenshots code, diagrams with timestamps
Local-First Storage
Everything saves to YOUR computer in Markdown
Real results from Bilibili learners:
A system that organizes content across series and topics.
Organize by topic, not by uploader. This way, your notes from multiple creators on the same topic are unified.
Recommended structure:
📁 Bilibili Learning/
📁 Programming/
📁 Python-Basics/
- series-01-intro.md
- series-02-variables.md
- series-03-loops.md
📁 Web-Development/
📁 Machine-Learning/
📁 Language-Learning/
📁 Japanese-JLPT/
📁 English-Pronunciation/
📁 Creative/
📁 Video-Editing/
📁 Digital-Art/
📁 _Topic-Index.md (MOC)Connect videos in series and across topics. Bilibili content often references other videos—your notes should too.
Linking strategies:
Screenshots are essential for Bilibili. Much of the value is in code, diagrams, and visual explanations.
Visual capture tips:
Notes without application are just files. Build review into your learning workflow.
Bilibili review system:
Why Bilibili is one of the best free learning resources available
Without Good Notes:
With AI-Powered Notes:
The bottom line: Bilibili is free, but your time isn't. Good notes transform free content into a valuable, permanent knowledge base that rivals expensive courses.
Everything you need to know about Bilibili note-taking
Use AI-powered tools like HoverNotes that watch the video directly instead of relying on transcripts. The AI analyzes visual content, audio, and on-screen text to generate structured notes. This works for any Bilibili video regardless of whether transcripts are available.
Yes. Tools like HoverNotes can understand Chinese content and generate notes in English or any of 15+ supported languages. This is perfect for learning from Chinese tutorials while building notes in your preferred language.
The AI-enhanced hybrid approach works best for Bilibili. Since most Bilibili videos lack transcripts, AI that watches the video directly is essential. Tools like HoverNotes capture timestamps, code examples, and visual content automatically while you add your own annotations.
Yes. HoverNotes can screenshot code examples, capture syntax directly from the video, and generate notes with proper code formatting. This is especially valuable for Bilibili's extensive programming tutorial content where code is shown on screen.
Create folders by topic or series, with individual notes for each video. Use tags for concepts and link related videos together. Since Bilibili content is often in series format, organizing by topic (not uploader) helps build a coherent knowledge base.
Yes. HoverNotes works on all Bilibili content including live streams. You can take AI-powered notes in real-time during live educational streams, and the notes save automatically to your Obsidian vault.
Complete guide to taking notes on Bilibili videos with HoverNotes
Complete guide to taking notes on YouTube videos
Connect your notes to Obsidian vault and build a knowledge graph
Guides for YouTube, Udemy, Coursera, and more
No transcripts? No Chinese? No problem.
AI watches the video directly and generates notes in your language. Stop missing out on Bilibili's incredible free content. Start building your knowledge library today. 7,000+ learners already have.