# Auto-chapters from your transcript

> Every recording auto-generates chapter markers from the transcript. Transition phrases like 'now let's talk about…' become seekable chapter points in the player.

Last updated 2026-05-21 · Source: https://prolaud.com/help/recording-chapters

## How chapters are generated

When a recording's WebVTT transcript is available, we scan cues for transition markers — phrases like 'now let's talk about', 'moving on to', 'next up', 'finally'. Each match becomes a candidate chapter at the cue's start time. We dedupe candidates within 90 seconds of each other so you never get a chapter cluster.

## Output

- 5–12 chapters per recording (capped to keep the player chip rail readable).
- Minimum 90s spacing between chapters.
- Chip rail rendered below the video — click any chip to seek.
- Stored in the same recording metadata as the WebVTT URL; no extra processing step.

## When chapters don't show up

If there's no transcript, or the transcript has no recognized transition phrases, the chapter chip rail is hidden — we don't show empty UI. Add a transcript (or let the auto-transcription service finish) and reload the player to pick them up.

> **Note:** The chapter parser is heuristic, not semantic. If your lecturing style doesn't include explicit transitions, expect fewer chapters — that's the system being honest rather than inventing fake structure.

## Related

- [How the recordings index works](https://prolaud.com/help/recordings-index)
- [The recording player dialog](https://prolaud.com/help/recording-player-dialog)
- [Class chat persists to the recording](https://prolaud.com/help/class-chat-transcript)