---
title: Automations
description: Generate content on a schedule or from email.
---

An Automation generates new content on a repeating schedule or whenever an email reaches its private address. To publish an existing Episode later instead, see [Scheduling episodes](/publishing-and-distribution/scheduling-episodes#content-calendar), where the Content Calendar also shows upcoming runs of active scheduled Automations.

## Choose an output and a trigger

Both are fixed at creation; to change either, create a new Automation.

| Choice | Options |
|---|---|
| Output | Episode (a new Episode for one of your Podcasts), Short (vertical video) or Video (horizontal video). Voiceovers are not supported. A video Automation can switch its Format between Short and Video when you edit it. |
| Trigger | Schedule (days of the week at a set time) or Inbound Email (one run per email received), not both. |

Create Automation in a Podcast's Episode composer pre-selects Episode for that Podcast.

## Create an episode automation

1. Open Automations and click New Automation.
2. Choose Episode, then Continue. Choose Schedule or Inbound Email, then Continue.
3. Fill in the settings:
   - Title: required.
   - Podcast: where each Episode posts, and the source of its hosts and Voices. Archived Podcasts are not offered.
   - Duration: 3 to 60 minutes, default 7. Presets above your plan's Episode limit are locked.
   - Prompt: what every Episode covers. Required for Schedule; optional standing guidance for Inbound Email.
   - Run on, Time, Timezone (Schedule only): a preview lists upcoming runs.
   - Auto-Publish: on, each run publishes to your feed; off, each run saves a draft to review. On the Free plan, runs always save as drafts.
   - Include show notes: adds source links to each Episode's description. See [show notes](/podcasts-and-episodes/editing-episode-details#show-notes).
4. Click Create Automation.

## Create a video or short automation

Choose Short or Video in step 2. These fields differ:

- Host and Language: the Character who narrates and the narration language. A host with a different Dominant language shows a notice, but generation follows the language you choose.
- Video settings: duration, orientation, Brand Kit and watermark or logo, as in [video creation settings](/video-creation-settings#duration). Shorts also let you keep or remove generated background music.
- Visual style: any style from the catalog.

Video and Short Automations have no Auto-Publish. Every run creates a private result in your Videos library.

## Inbound email automations

An Inbound Email Automation gets a private address, shown under Email address. Each email sent or forwarded to it starts a run with the email as the [Source](/sources/what-are-sources).

:::warning
Anyone who can email the address can start a generation that spends your credits. Keep it private.
:::

Episode Automations write a new script with the email as research material. To keep a script word for word, use Upload Script in Studio or the [API import endpoint](/api/agents#generate-from-a-prompt-or-script).

- Connect a newsletter: subscribe with the address directly (Substack, Ghost, beehiiv and others), or set a forwarding rule in your inbox. Each new issue starts a run.
- Confirmation emails: Jellypod forwards a newsletter's subscription confirmation to your own inbox instead of making a run, without counting it toward the daily limit or using credits. Click the link there. If none arrives, check spam, then subscribe again.
- Regenerate the address: if the address leaks or gets unwanted mail, click Regenerate. The old address stops working immediately, so update every subscription and forwarding rule.
- Daily limit: 10 runs per day per Automation. Extra emails that day are ignored.

## What happens on each run

Jellypod generates in the background and emails you when an Episode draft is ready (or live, with Auto-Publish on) or a Video or Short is ready to review. Runs spend [credits](/getting-started/understanding-credits) like manual creation. If a run fails, Jellypod emails you the reason and tries again on the next run.

| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Auto-Paused | Three runs failed in a row. Review the latest failure before resuming. |
| Needs Credits | Your credits ran out. See [Out of credits](#out-of-credits). |
| Needs Attention | Saved settings became invalid or access was lost. |
| Disabled | You turned it off. |

### Out of credits

When credits run out, Automations pause with Needs Credits and show an Out of credits banner. Click Add credits to open billing.

After you add credits, the status changes to Paused and the banner offers Resume all and Dismiss, or Resume one Automation. Resuming never creates a run or replays missed ones: scheduled Automations wait for their next time, and inbound ones for the next email. Dismiss only hides the banner.

## Manage automations

The Automations page lists every Automation in your organization. Search matches an Automation's name, output, Podcast or schedule. An Automation that isn't active shows its last run error. Each menu has Edit, Run now (inbound Automations show their address instead), Disable or Enable, and delete.

A Podcast's Episode Automations also appear in an Automations section on its page. Video and Short Automations are managed only from the Automations page.

Your plan caps how many Automations you can keep; see [plan limits](/account-and-billing/plans-and-pricing#plan-limits). The cap counts active and paused Automations of every output across all Podcasts. At the cap, creating one prompts an upgrade, but editing or running existing ones is never blocked.

## Fix an automation that did not run [#automation-did-not-run]

Check these in order:

1. Status: only an active Automation runs. Look for Auto-Paused, Needs Credits, Needs Attention or Disabled; see [What happens on each run](#what-happens-on-each-run).
2. Timezone: scheduled times use the Automation's Timezone. Check it against the upcoming-runs preview.
3. Inbound email: emails past 10 in a day are ignored, and an old address stops working after Regenerate.
4. Credits: resuming after [Out of credits](#out-of-credits) does not replay missed runs.

For anything else, [contact support](/#get-help-and-support).