NotebookLM CLI (nlm)

Manage Google NotebookLM notebooks, sources, notes, chat, and generated content (audio/video overviews, slide decks, apps, reports) via the nlm command-line tool.

Requires: nlm on PATH (nix-managed, built from upstream tmc/nlm). Install/update via cd ~/nix && nix run .#build-switch.

Check: command -v nlm || echo "MISSING: nlm CLI not installed"

IRON LAW: gate on nlm source list before believing an empty chat answer. With expired auth the two chat paths fail differently and NEITHER says "auth": nlm chat <id> "…" prints nothing and exits 0, and nlm generate-chat <id> "…" prints empty response from API; check 'nlm sources …' for source state. Only the non-chat commands surface exit-class=auth (exit 3). So an agent that runs only a chat command reads an auth failure as "the notebook has nothing on this topic" — measured 2026-08-23, and the likely cause of a 366-line Bluebook reference being written from style guides while its author believed the notebook had been consulted. Run nlm source list <id> and require exit 0 first; an empty chat answer is evidence of nothing until you have.

Command structure: the CLI uses subcommand groups — nlm <group> <action> (e.g. nlm notebook list, nlm source add, nlm audio create). The older flat aliases (nlm list, nlm add, nlm audio-create, …) were removed in upstream's parser migration. When unsure of exact syntax, run nlm --help or nlm <group> --help — it's authoritative. The references/*.md files predate the migration and may be stale.