Getting Started with Kortex for NotebookLM

Key Takeaways

• Knowledge workers spend an average of 1.8 hours a day searching for information they already have (McKinsey, 2022). NotebookLM cuts that time down — but it still traps your research inside with no export or organization tools.
• Kortex is a browser extension that adds export, import, automation, and organization directly inside NotebookLM. No separate app, no data leaving your browser.
• Setup takes under 2 minutes: install on Chrome, sign in with Google, and your first export is one click away.

What is NotebookLM missing?

Google’s NotebookLM reached over 17 million monthly active users by late 2025, according to Academic Jobs. That growth makes sense. Feed it PDFs, docs, YouTube videos — and it gives you grounded, citation-backed answers that only draw from what you’ve uploaded. No hallucinations about sources it hasn’t seen. Just focused, accurate analysis.

The problem is what happens the moment you need to act on your research.

• You can’t export your sources. The PDFs and notes you uploaded? Locked in.
• Your chat history disappears. Every conversation is gone when you close the tab.
• No prompt library. You retype the same research prompts over and over.
• No organization layer. 50 notebooks, no tags, no folders, no search across all of them.
• No automation. Every step is manual, every time.

Google built NotebookLM as a research assistant, not a knowledge operating system. That distinction matters more as your notebook count grows. Kortex was built to close that gap — without replacing NotebookLM.

What is Kortex?

Kortex is a browser extension that transforms NotebookLM into a full knowledge operating system. It works on Chrome, Edge, Brave, and all Chromium-based browsers, adding export, import, automation, and organization features directly inside the NotebookLM interface.

Nothing leaves your browser. No separate app, no account migration, no data sync to a third-party server. You install it, sign in once, and the new features appear inside NotebookLM automatically.

What can Kortex do?

Universal Export: unlock your data

The most requested feature in NotebookLM history — and the one that drives most people to install Kortex. By default, nothing you put into NotebookLM can come back out. Kortex changes that completely.

You can export:

• Sources — individual files or entire notebooks as PDF, Markdown, plain text, or ZIP
• Chat conversations — your full AI dialogue with citations intact, as Markdown, PDF, or JSON
• Artifacts — the Briefing Docs, Study Guides, and FAQs that NotebookLM generates

What this unlocks in practice: researchers can pull their annotated source sets into Obsidian or Notion. Students can export their study sessions as structured notes. Teams can share NotebookLM output without granting access to the notebook itself.

Universal Import: bring content from anywhere

Copy-pasting into NotebookLM is slow. Kortex makes sourcing instant from wherever you’re working.

• Highlight and Snipe — right-click any text on any webpage to send it directly to a specific notebook
• Social media — import threads from Twitter/X, Reddit, and LinkedIn in one click
• Chat history — import conversations from ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Perplexity
• Google Docs — bulk sync entire folders or individual docs

Automation Suite: set it and forget it

This is where Kortex separates itself from every other NotebookLM tool. Instead of repeating manual steps each session, you define rules once and they run automatically. Think of it as “If This Then That” for your research workflow.

For a deep look at the most powerful automation combinations, see our guide to 10 Kortex automation workflows that save hours every week.

Audio Studio: turn your notes into a podcast

NotebookLM’s Audio Overview feature generates a podcast-style conversation between two AI hosts who discuss your sources. It’s genuinely useful for absorbing complex material on a commute or walk. Kortex takes this further with an actual listening infrastructure:

• Personal RSS feed — subscribe to your Audio Overviews in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Pocket Casts
• Built-in player — speed control from 1x to 3x, progress tracking, background play across tabs
• Auto-sync — new overviews appear in your feed automatically via the Podcast Pipeline automation

Knowledge Organization

The average heavy NotebookLM user reaches 50+ notebooks within a few months. At that point, the default flat list becomes unnavigable. Kortex adds a full organization layer:

• Collections — group notebooks into folders
• Color-coded tags — apply labels like #research, #urgent, #client
• Smart Search — real-time search across all notebook titles, tags, and sources
• Prompt Library — save, organize, and insert your best prompts with one click
• Source Views — create custom filters, like “show only PDFs added this week”

For a complete system for managing a large workspace, see our guide on how to organize 50+ NotebookLM notebooks.

What does Kortex cost?

Kortex is free to start — no credit card required. The Basic tier covers casual users comfortably. Power users and researchers typically move to Pro or Lifetime.

Pro and Lifetime unlock Google Docs Sync, source deletion, and all automation features. See full pricing →

How do you get started with Kortex?

Step 1 — Install

Add Kortex to Chrome (also works on Edge and Brave). The extension installs in under a minute and activates automatically on notebooklm.google.com. You won’t need to change any settings.

Step 2 — Sign in

Click the Kortex icon in your browser toolbar and sign in with your Google account. This activates your free Basic tier and syncs your settings across devices.

Step 3 — Export your first notebook

Open any NotebookLM notebook. New buttons appear in the source panel header. Click Download All to export everything as a ZIP — or select individual sources and choose PDF, Markdown, or plain text.

That’s it. Most users have their first export done within 3 minutes of installing.

What’s on the Kortex roadmap?

Kortex ships new features regularly. See what’s planned, vote on features, and follow progress on the public roadmap.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Kortex work on Safari or Firefox? Not yet. Kortex currently supports Chrome, Edge, Brave, and all Chromium-based browsers. Firefox support is on the roadmap.

Does Kortex send my data to a third-party server? No. Kortex operates entirely inside your browser. Your NotebookLM data doesn’t pass through Kortex servers. The extension reads and writes to the NotebookLM interface directly.

What happens to my exports if I cancel my subscription? Your existing exports are yours. Canceling a paid plan moves you back to the Basic tier (5 exports and 5 imports per day), but you keep everything you’ve already exported.

Can I use Kortex’s Prompt Library to save the research prompts I use most? Yes. The Prompt Library lets you save any prompt, organize prompts by category, and insert them directly inside NotebookLM with one click. For a set of prompts worth saving, see our guide on 17 NotebookLM prompts for deep research.

Is Kortex affiliated with Google? No. Kortex is an independent browser extension. It’s not made by, endorsed by, or affiliated with Google. It works by adding a UI layer on top of the NotebookLM web app.

For step-by-step setup help, visit the Kortex documentation. For anything else, the Kortex support page has you covered.