Claude Routines: How to Automate AI Video Creation With Scheduled Tasks

Claude routines let Claude run a saved job on a schedule, in Anthropic's cloud, while you're away from the chat. Connect OpenArt MCP, and that job can be a set of AI videos that lands in your OpenArt library every morning.

We tested it with a one-time Claude scheduled task. The scheduled task started on its own and sent the request for 5-second Seedance 2.5 Draft to OpenArt 18 seconds after the task started, with nobody in the chat.

This guide shows two ways to automate AI video creation in Claude without code, plus an option for developers. It also covers how ChatGPT scheduled tasks compare and what to check before videos go out on their own.

Key takeaways

• Claude routines are now called scheduled tasks, and they can run in the cloud while your computer is off or your computer for local tasks.
• A Claude scheduled task can make videos with OpenArt MCP with nobody in the chat. We confirmed this in our own test.
• Scheduled runs can spend OpenArt credits without asking you, so put a cost limit in the prompt.
• For big batches, approve one test clip first, make the rest with Seedance 2.5 Draft and upgrade only the ones you keep.
• ChatGPT scheduled tasks can also call the OpenArt plugin, and our test video landed in the OpenArt library.

What Are Claude Routines? (Now Called Claude Scheduled Tasks)

Claude routines are saved prompts that Claude runs for you on a schedule, in Anthropic's cloud. Anthropic now calls them scheduled tasks, but the name Routines still shows up in some accounts, in the claude.ai/code/routines address and in the /routines command.

Each scheduled task holds a prompt, a schedule, and the connectors it can use, like OpenArt MCP or Slack. Every run starts a fresh session, does the job, and saves a record you can open later.

Where to set up a Claude scheduled task

Claude has three places to schedule work. For video jobs without code, use the Scheduled section in the Claude app.

Scheduled tasks work on the Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans. A cloud task can repeat at most once an hour, and its runs use your normal Claude plan usage.

The scheduled tasks let you put your Claude Cowork on autopilot. If you haven't used it yet, our Claude Cowork guide shows how to run a creative job with OpenArt MCP step by step.

Method 1: Set Up a Scheduled AI Video Automation Job

A scheduled job makes the same kind of video for you on a fixed day and time. You write the prompt once, and Claude runs it in the cloud, even when your laptop is closed.

1. Connect OpenArt first. Add OpenArt MCP under Customize > Connectors, and add Slack too if you want the links sent to you. A new task includes all connected connectors by default, and you can add or remove them later in the edit dialog . Our guide to connect OpenArt MCP to Claude covers the setup.
2. Create the task. In the Claude app, click Scheduled in the left sidebar, then New task. Pick Create with Claude to describe the job in a chat, or Set up manually to type it yourself.
3. Write a prompt that works without you. Name the model, the number of clips, the length, the format, a cost limit and where the results go. Nobody will be there to answer questions during the run.
4. Pick how often it runs. Choose hourly, daily, weekly or weekdays, then save.
5. Run it once by hand. Start the task on demand from the Scheduled list, then check the clip in your OpenArt project before you trust it with a schedule.

Here is a prompt you can adapt to make videos in Claude every weekday:

Every weekday at 9:07 AM: use OpenArt to make 3 product videos with Seedance 2.5 Draft.
Use the 3 newest product photos in my OpenArt project "[project name]" as the first frames.
Each video: 5 seconds, 9:16, no audio, slow camera push-in, soft studio light.
Check the total cost first. If it is more than [your limit] credits, stop and tell me.
Save the videos to the same project, then send me the 3 links in Slack with one line on each.

If you schedule the task exactly on the hour, let’s say 9:00, it can start several minutes late such as at 9:07. To avoid a delayed start, pick a time a few minutes past the hour.

Also, if you don't have product photos yet, make them first with OpenArt's AI image generator. For more prompts like this one, see how to generate product ads from Claude.

What happened when we tested it

We ran a one-time Claude scheduled task to see if OpenArt MCP works with nobody in the chat. It did.

Two things stood out. The task included every connector on the account, along with OpenArt. It also spent credits without asking anyone, because it ran with automatic approval.

Where the videos go

Every video a scheduled task makes is saved to your OpenArt library. A cloud run can't save files to your computer, so Slack is the easiest way to get the links in front of you or you can download the generated videos directly from the OpenArt platform.

OpenArt's ad team uses the same pattern for research. A Claude skill runs every morning at about 9 AM in the cloud, with the laptop and browser closed, and sends a short list of ad ideas to Slack.

Method 2: Make a Batch of Videos From One Message

A batch turns one message into many videos, with you in the chat to approve the plan. It suits weekly campaign drops and product launches, where you want to see the ideas before Claude spends credits.

OpenArt's team typed one line into Claude: "Make ten talking-head videos of this girl, using my reference video." Claude picked Seedance 2.5, showed the price of the clips before it made anything, and the 10 clips landed in one OpenArt library with a new outfit and place in each.

Use this order to keep a batch cheap and on brief:

1. Ask for the plan and the cost first. End your message with "show me the ideas and the total cost before you generate anything."
2. Approve one test clip. Check that one video looks right before Claude makes the rest.
3. Make the rest as drafts. Seedance 2.5 Draft makes a 480p video you can upgrade to 1080p within 7 days.
4. Upgrade only the keepers. Ask Claude to upgrade the videos you will post, and leave the rest as drafts.

This is a prompt from OpenArt's ad plan for a clothing brand. Its last line stops Claude before any credits are spent:

Make 10 product ads for my clothing brand, 9:16, with [AI image model name] wearing a different outfit in each.
Pick the model, write the prompts and save all 10 ads to one OpenArt project.
Show me the 10 ad ideas before you generate anything.

Make hook versions of one approved video

Once one video works, you can test different opening lines without making new videos. In our Claude Cowork test, Claude suggested three pairs of hook lines, made each chosen hook in 9:16 and 16:9 and named every file after its hook.

Our guide to scale ad creative testing with AI shows how to plan many ad variations in one week.

Those hook versions cost 0 credits, because Claude edited the existing clip with its own tools. OpenArt MCP makes the clips, and Claude handles the video editing. Our guide on how to edit videos in Claude covers that step.

Take [video file name] and make 5 hook versions.
Put a different hook line on screen for the first 2 seconds, in the same caption style.
Make each in 9:16 and 16:9 and name every file after its hook.
Show me the hook lines before you make the files.

Can You Do This With ChatGPT Scheduled Tasks?

Yes. A ChatGPT scheduled task can call the OpenArt plugin and make a video while you're away, and we confirmed it in our own test.

We typed one message with the OpenArt plugin selected: "Schedule a task for 5 minutes from now: use OpenArt to make one 5-second 9:16 video with Seedance 2.5 Draft of a white sneaker turning slowly on a cream turntable." ChatGPT set up the task, the task ran, and the finished video showed up in our OpenArt library.

However, one difference matters for automation. ChatGPT rewrote our short prompt into a longer product-ad prompt before sending it, while the Claude task used our words exactly. If the wording matters, put your prompt in quotes and add "use this prompt word for word."

ChatGPT scheduled tasks have their own limits:

• Go plans allow 3 active tasks, Plus allows 5 active tasks, Business and Edu allow 10 active tasks, and Pro and Enterprise allow 15 active tasks.
• Tasks live on the Scheduled page in the ChatGPT sidebar, where you can pause, edit or delete them.

To set up the plugin, follow our guide to connect OpenArt MCP to ChatGPT.

Method 3: Use the OpenArt CLI for Developers

If your team works in a terminal, the OpenArt CLI makes images and videos from commands and scripts. It runs on macOS, Linux and Windows, and you sign in with openart login.

Developers who use Claude Code can also schedule cloud tasks that run against a GitHub repo. Our CLI bulk generation guide walks through a batch run.

Which Claude Automation Method Fits You?

Most agencies and creators should start with Method 2 to find a prompt that works, then move that prompt into a Method 1 schedule.

Our guide to MCP vs CLI explains the difference between the two connections in more detail.

To make a video in your browser, use OpenArt's AI video generator.

What to Check Before Videos Go Out on Their Own

An automated job saves time only if its output is safe to use. Check these before you let a schedule run every day:

1. Put a cost limit in the prompt. In our test, the scheduled task ran with automatic approval and spent credits without asking. Tell Claude the most it can spend per run, and to stop and report if the cost is higher.
2. Remove the connectors the job doesn't need. Our test task got every connector on the account by default. Keep OpenArt and Slack, and remove the rest when you set up the task.
3. Keep brand rules in a Claude skill. OpenArt MCP has no Brand Kit or Characters tool. Write your fonts and caption style into a skill, and use your logo and your usual presenter as image references.
4. Keep text inside the safe zone. Reels and TikTok place buttons and captions over parts of a 9:16 video. Ask Claude to keep text and faces away from them.
5. Label AI content. Follow each platform's rules for AI-generated video before you post. Our take on AI labels explains why disclosure matters.
6. Open each run to check the result. Anthropic notes that a run marked as succeeded only means the session ended normally. Open the run to confirm the videos were actually made.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Claude routines the same as scheduled tasks?

Yes. Anthropic renamed routines to scheduled tasks, and the old name still appears in some accounts, in the claude.ai/code/routines address and in the /routines command. Both names point to the same feature.

Do Claude routines run when my computer is off?

Yes, when the task runs in the cloud. A scheduled task that needs files on your computer runs on your computer instead, so that computer has to be on.

Can Claude scheduled tasks use MCP connectors like OpenArt?

Yes. In our test, Claude scheduled a task, called OpenArt MCP, and sent a video to OpenArt 18 seconds after it started, with nobody in the chat. Connect OpenArt before you create the task, since a task only gets the connectors that are connected at that point.

How often can a Claude routine run?

A cloud scheduled task can repeat at most once an hour. You can pick hourly, daily, weekly or weekdays, or start a task on demand.

Do Claude routines cost extra?

Scheduled tasks have no separate price in Claude, and their runs use your normal Claude plan usage. The videos use credits from your OpenArt account, based on the model and settings.

Can ChatGPT scheduled tasks make videos?

Yes, with the OpenArt plugin. In our test, a ChatGPT scheduled task made a 5-second Seedance 2.5 Draft video and saved it to the OpenArt library.

How do I stop a scheduled job from using too many credits?

Write a cost limit into the prompt and tell Claude to stop and report if a run would cost more. Use Seedance 2.5 Draft for daily jobs and upgrade only the videos you keep to 1080p.

Can Claude send the finished videos to Slack?

Yes. Connect Slack under Customize > Connectors before you create the task, then ask Claude to send you the video links in Slack at the end of each run.

Connect OpenArt MCP to Claude