AI Lecture Assistant

A lightweight, browser‑based assistant for teaching and studying. Load a PDF of your slides, talk to the AI about any page, get quick explanations, and keep a searchable transcript. Built with React, Vite, TypeScript and Google Gemini.

What it’s good for

• Classroom lectures with an AI co‑presenter that can explain a slide on demand
• Self‑study and revision: ask questions, summarize, or clarify tricky parts
• Reading groups, paper walkthroughs, and team demos with live Q&A

Features

• PDF slide viewer with thumbnails and page navigation
• Canvas for extra AI‑side clarification (quick diagrams/notes generated or guided by the AI)
• Transcript panel for your full conversation with the AI
• Microphone capture and optional spoken responses (where supported)
• Gemini‑powered explanations, summaries, and slide‑aware Q&A
• Local session history and configurable preferences (API key, language, etc.)
• Fast Vite development setup with React + TypeScript

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Quick Start

Prerequisites: Node.js 18+

1. Install dependencies

npm install

2. Provide your Gemini API key

• Easiest: paste it in the in‑app “API Key” modal at first run, or
• Create an .env.local file in the project root:

echo "GEMINI_API_KEY=your_key_here" > .env.local

3. Run the app

npm run dev

Build and preview:

npm run build
npm run preview

Project Structure (high level)

ai-lecture-assistant/
├─ components/          # UI: slide viewer, canvas, controls, modals, toasts
├─ hooks/               # API key, Gemini Live, toast helpers
├─ pages/               # Intro, lecture, sessions
├─ services/            # audio, pdf, db, logging utilities
├─ types.ts             # shared types
├─ App.tsx              # app shell and routing
└─ vite.config.ts       # Vite configuration

Configuration

• GEMINI_API_KEY: required. Set via .env.local or the in‑app modal.
• Other preferences (like language) are available in the app’s settings UI.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome!

1. Fork the repo and create a feature branch
2. Make your change with clear, descriptive names and types
3. Ensure npm run build succeeds
4. Open a Pull Request describing the change and screenshots if UI updates

Suggested conventions:

• Keep components small and focused
• Prefer explicit, descriptive names over abbreviations
• Add comments only for non‑obvious intent or edge cases

License

Open for personal, academic, and other non‑commercial use. Commercial use is not permitted without prior written permission. See the LICENSE file for details.