The latest articles on DEV Community by Mahfuz Sakib (@msakib). https://dev.to/msakib https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4088378%2F88c73cfb-65ee-4920-be77-70cbdda9812e.jpg https://dev.to/msakib en Mahfuz Sakib Fri, 21 Aug 2026 13:17:28 +0000 https://dev.to/msakib/i-built-shortmatic-an-ai-review-queue-for-turning-long-videos-into-shorts-29im https://dev.to/msakib/i-built-shortmatic-an-ai-review-queue-for-turning-long-videos-into-shorts-29im <p>I kept spending nights cutting long tutorials and podcasts into YouTube Shorts by hand. Existing tools were either too expensive, too “autopilot” (wrong clips), or both.</p> <p>So I built <strong>ShortMatic</strong> — a small web app where AI suggests moments, but <em>you</em> still approve what gets published.</p> <h2> What it does </h2> <ol> <li>Upload a long video or import from YouTube </li> <li>AI proposes clip-worthy windows </li> <li>You review / approve </li> <li>Fix captions </li> <li>Export vertical files for Shorts, TikTok, and Reels </li> </ol> <p>It’s intentionally a <strong>review queue</strong>, not a CapCut replacement and not “guaranteed viral.”</p> <h2> Why this shape </h2> <p>Most clippers optimize for speed. I wanted control:</p> <ul> <li>fewer wrong cuts published by accident </li> <li>clearer expectations (“AI finds candidates; you decide”) </li> <li>a workflow closer to how creators already work </li> </ul> <h2> Stack (high level) </h2> <ul> <li>React frontend </li> <li>Laravel API </li> <li>queue workers for transcription / clip jobs </li> <li>object storage for media </li> </ul> <p>Happy to go deeper in the comments if useful.</p> <h2> Try it </h2> <p>Live: <a href="https://shortmatic.app" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://shortmatic.app</a><br><br> Compare page (honest vs Opus Clip / CapCut): <a href="https://shortmatic.app/compare" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://shortmatic.app/compare</a></p> <h2> Feedback I want </h2> <ol> <li>Is the first-run flow obvious? </li> <li>Does the review/approve step feel valuable or like a chore? </li> <li>What would make you pay?</li> </ol> <p>Brutal feedback welcome — that’s the point of posting here.</p> ai webdev sideprojects saas