How It Works (The Secret)

You might be wondering: "How do I put my YouTube Stream Key into ApuStream?" The answer is: You don't.

ApuStream is a layout builder, not an encoder. We use a clever trick to give you high-quality streams without paying for expensive cloud servers.

The 3-Step Process

1. Build Your Screen: Inside ApuStream, you add your facecam, your borders, your live subscriber count, and arrange them nicely.
2. Go Fullscreen: When you are ready, you click the green "Go Live" button. The editing menus disappear, your screen stays awake, and your design fills the entire display.
3. Share Your Screen: You open the official YouTube app on your phone, click "Go Live", and choose the "Screen Cast" option. YouTube captures your phone screen, which is currently displaying your beautiful ApuStream layout!

Workspace & Basics

If you are using ApuStream on your phone, the layout is split into two main areas: the Top Bar for general controls, and the Bottom Menu to build your stream. Let us look at what every button does.

The Top Header

This bar stays at the top of your screen. It handles your basic commands and app settings.

• Undo & Redo Made a mistake? Moved a camera too far? Tap the backward or forward arrows to undo or redo your last action.
• App Settings Tap the gear icon to turn on Grid Snapping (makes it easy to line things up straight) or adjust your live menu opacity. You can also click Backup here to save your entire layout file to your phone so you never lose your work.
• Ratio Toggle Tap this square icon to instantly flip your canvas from a horizontal 16:9 box (for standard YouTube videos) to a vertical 9:16 box (for TikTok and Shorts).

The Bottom Navigation (Mobile Menu)

This menu at the bottom of your screen is where you build your stream. There are five main buttons.

Cameras & AI Features

When you add a Camera layer, ApuStream turns on your phone or laptop camera. You can switch between your Front and Back camera easily in the properties panel.

AI Background Masking

You don't need a green screen anymore! We use an AI model that runs right inside your browser to find your body and remove your room.

• Remove BG: Cuts you out perfectly.
• Blur: Makes your messy room look like it was shot on an expensive camera.
• Gray BG: Turns your room black and white, but keeps you in color.

Smart Hand Gestures

When you enable AI Gestures in your camera settings, ApuStream starts tracking your hands. You can trigger on-screen particle effects simply by showing specific hand signs to the camera.

Below is the full list of gestures ApuStream can recognize:

Gesture Name	Description & Effect
Thumb_Up	Gesture: Hold your thumb upward. Effect: Explodes a stream of "Like" (👍) emojis on the screen.
Thumb_Down	Gesture: Hold your thumb downward. Effect: Triggers a stream of "Dislike" (👎) emojis.
Victory	Gesture: Make a "V" shape with your index and middle fingers (Peace sign). Effect: Launches confetti or Peace (✌️) particles.
ILoveYou	Gesture: Extend your Thumb, Index, and Pinky fingers while folding the middle two (🤟) . Effect: Triggers floating Heart (❤️) particles.
Open_Palm	Gesture: Hold your hand flat and open facing the camera. Effect: Recognized as a "Stop" or "Wave" command (Standard tracking).
Closed_Fist	Gesture: Clench your fingers into a tight fist. Effect: Recognized as a "Hold" or "Grab" command.
Pointing_Up	Gesture: Point your index finger straight up. Effect: Recognized as a directional cue (☝️).

Media & Green Screen

You can upload images or videos straight from your gallery to use as backgrounds or logos.

Videos will loop automatically and have no sound by default, so they make great moving backgrounds. You can adjust their volume if needed.

Chroma Key (Green Screen)

If you have an image with a solid green background, you can make the green disappear.

1. Click the layer, and turn on Chroma Key in the properties panel.
2. Pick the color you want to remove.
3. Slowly slide the Tolerance slider. If you slide it too far, your whole image will disappear. Find the sweet spot where just the background vanishes.

Web Layers (The Best Part)

This is the most powerful feature in ApuStream. A Web Layer is a mini-browser inside your stream. You paste a website link, and that website shows up on your canvas.

Why is this useful? Because the internet is full of free tools for streamers. You can paste a link to a live chat box, an alert box, or even another person's camera feed.

Text, Graphics & Widgets

ApuStream lets you design without Photoshop.

Custom Text

Add text and change everything about it. We included amazing fonts like Bebas Neue for gaming, Pacifico for a cursive look, and Press Start 2P for a retro 8-bit vibe. You can add glowing shadows to make neon signs.

Pro Graphics

These are pre-built shapes. You can add a pulsating "LIVE" tag or Cinematic Black Bars. You just click them, and then pick the colors you want them to be.

Live Widgets

These are smart elements that move or count. You can add a Digital Clock, a Countdown Timer for when your stream starts, or a fake "Live Viewer" count that goes up and down randomly to make your stream look busy!

Styling & Properties

When you tap on any layer in your workspace, the right menu opens up with all its settings. If you click the empty background (unselecting everything), you will see the master settings for your whole scene.

Scene Settings (Click the background)

Option	What it does
Scene Setup	Give your layout a name (like "Just Chatting") and pick a background color.
Canvas Ratio	Switch between Horizontal 16:9 (normal YouTube/Twitch) and Vertical 9:16 (TikTok/Shorts) instantly.

General Layer Settings

These are the basic layout tools you will use to arrange your stream.

Option	What it does
Layer Name	Rename your layer at the very top of the panel so you know what it is (e.g., "Main Facecam").
Transform & Position	X and Y move the layer left/right and up/down. W and H stretch the width and height.
Appearance	Lower the Opacity to make a layer see-through, or spin it around using Rotate.
Border & Corners	Add a colored outline. Turn up the Radius to round the corners. Turn the radius all the way up to make a perfect circle webcam!
Drop Shadow	Adds a shadow behind the layer to make it pop. You can adjust the blur, color, and how far the shadow stretches (Offset X and Y).

Visual Tweaks (Cropping & Filters)

Use these tools to clean up how a layer looks. (Note: Text and Widget layers do not have these options).

• Cropping (Top, Bottom, Left, Right): Cut off unwanted edges. Perfect for hiding a scrollbar on a website overlay or cropping out a messy part of your room.
• Filters & Color: Works exactly like Instagram filters. Blur the layer, boost the contrast and saturation, change the hue, or apply Grayscale, Sepia, and Invert effects.

Special Layer Tools

The bottom half of the properties panel changes depending on what type of layer you clicked on.

For Cameras:

• Camera Settings: Flip your video using Mirror View, switch between your phone's front and back cameras, or turn on AI Gestures to trigger particle effects with your hands.
• Smart Effects: Turn on AI background removal, background blur, or a gray background to hide your room without a green screen.

For Web Layers (Chat boxes & Alerts):

• Web Source: This is where you paste the URL link from Streamlabs, StreamElements, or YouTube live chat.
• Chroma Key: If your web widget has a solid background (like bright green), turn this on, pick the color, and slide the Tolerance to make it transparent.

For Images & Videos:

• Media Settings: Click Replace File to swap the image or video without deleting the layer. Change the Fit Mode to Cover, Contain, or Stretch depending on how you want it to fill the box.
• Volume (Video only): Adjust the audio level of your video or mute it completely so it doesn't talk over your microphone.
• Chroma Key: Remove solid color backgrounds from your videos or images.

For Text Layers:

• Text Content: Type whatever you want the text to say.
• Typography: Adjust the font size, line height, and letter spacing. You can also pick a Font Family (like Bebas for gaming), change the weight to bold, align it, force it to ALL CAPS, and even add a text shadow.
• Colors: Pick the color of your text and the color of the background box behind it.

For Pro Graphics & Widgets:

• Widget Settings: Most graphics let you change the Primary and Secondary colors, and type in custom text (like "New Follower" or your username).

Live Gameplay via VDO.Ninja

Want to play Free Fire on your phone, but have your tablet record your face and manage the stream? You can do this without any capture cards by combining ApuStream with a free website called VDO.Ninja.

Step 1: On your Gaming Device or Phone

1. Open your browser and go to vdo.ninja (It would be best to install the official VDO Ninja app.).
2. Click "Share your screen". Choose to share your entire screen.
3. It will give you a link that looks like this: https://vdo.ninja/?view=abc123. Copy it.

Step 2: On your ApuStream Tablet/PC

1. Open ApuStream and add a Web Browser layer.
2. Paste the link from your phone.
3. Important: Add &autoplay=1 to the very end of the link. This makes sure the video plays automatically.
4. Now your live game is showing up inside ApuStream! Put your face camera on top of it, and you are ready.

Live Subs & Chat Overlays

You want your stream to look famous, which means you need real live numbers on the screen.

Live YouTube Sub Counter

We suggest using SocialCounts.org.

1. Search for your channel on their website and copy the link to your live counter.
2. To make it fit perfectly in a stream, add this exact text to the end of their link: /embed?fullscreen=true
3. Paste that modified link into an ApuStream Web Layer. Use the crop tool to hide their logo!

Live YouTube/Twitch Chat

You can use StreamElements.com for this.

1. Log in to StreamElements, go to Overlays, and create a blank overlay.
2. Add the "Stream's Chat" widget to it and click copy URL.
3. Paste that URL into a Web Layer in ApuStream. Their chat box has no background, so it will float beautifully over your game.

Going Live & Audio Fixes

When your layout looks amazing, click Go Live. The screen will clear up and your layout will be ready to record.

The Floating Menu

In the top corner, there is a small, hard-to-see button. Click it to open the Director Menu. From here you can hide or show layers instantly (like unmuting a video), or switch to a completely different Scene.

Backup & Data Privacy

Because ApuStream works completely inside your browser, we never save your data to our servers. Your layouts are saved to your browser's local storage automatically.

How to Backup

You should backup your work often. Click the Gear icon at the top and click Backup. This will download a small file ending in .json to your device. If you ever lose your layout, or want to move to a new laptop, just open ApuStream, click Restore, and select that file.

How do I bring a friend/guest on screen?

Doing a duo-stream, a podcast, or reacting with a friend is super easy. You don't need Discord or complicated screen captures. You just use ApuStream's Web Layer combined with VDO.Ninja.

The Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Tell your guest to open their browser and go to vdo.ninja.
2. They should select "Add your Camera to OBS".
3. They can choose their camera, microphone, and change their own settings (like adding video effects or fixing their audio).
4. Once they click "Start", VDO.Ninja will give them a green link at the top of their screen. Tell them to copy that link and send it to you.
5. In your ApuStream workspace, click Add -> Web Browser.
6. Paste your friend's link into the URL box. (Make sure to add &autoplay=1 to the very end of the link so it plays automatically!)

Can I record offline videos with this?

Yes, ApuStream is fantastic for recording YouTube videos, TikToks, and Shorts without ever going live. However, because ApuStream is a website tool, there is a catch.

Do I need the internet?

Yes. You need an internet connection to load the tool. Once the ApuStream website is fully open in your browser, the actual processing (cameras, graphics, AI) happens completely locally on your device.

How do I capture gameplay if I am just recording offline?

If you aren't streaming a live game from another device, you can simply use the Video File layer!

• Record your gameplay normally on your phone or PC.
• Open ApuStream, click Add -> Video File, and upload your recorded gameplay.
• Add your Camera layer on top of it.
• Click Go Live to enter fullscreen mode.
• Pull down your phone's notification bar and turn on your device's built-in Screen Recorder. Play the video, do your commentary, and stop the recording when you are done. A fully edited video is now saved to your gallery!

Streaming BGMI & Free Fire

A lot of creators ask: "Can I play Free Fire, run ApuStream, use AI background removal, AND screen record to YouTube all on ONE phone?"

The Hard Truth: One Phone is Not Enough

While technically possible, doing all of this on a single phone will cause severe overheating, massive frame drops in your game, and stream lag. Your phone's processor simply cannot handle rendering a heavy 3D game and AI camera layers at the exact same time.

The Pro Setup: Two Devices

To get a buttery-smooth 60FPS stream, you need to separate the gaming from the streaming. Here is how professional mobile streamers do it for free:

Device 1 (Your Gaming Phone)	Device 2 (Your Stream Hub - Old Phone, Tablet, or PC)
1. Install the VDO.Ninja Android App (or use their website). 2. Select "Share Screen" and start capturing your gameplay. 3. Send the viewing link to your second device.	1. Open ApuStream. 2. Add a Web Layer and paste the VDO.Ninja link from Device 1 to show the gameplay. 3. Add your Facecam, Chat boxes, and Overlays. 4. Use this device to screen record and cast to the YouTube Live app.

Performance & Best Practices

If ApuStream is freezing, crashing, or draining your battery too fast, it means your browser is running out of memory (RAM). Follow these golden rules to keep your stream healthy.

1. Kill the AI (Use Green Screen Instead)

The "Remove BG" and "Blur" Smart Effects use heavy Machine Learning models. If you have a budget phone, turn the AI Off. Buy a cheap green cloth, hang it behind you, and use ApuStream's built-in Chroma Key feature. Chroma Key uses almost zero CPU power compared to AI.

2. Close Background Tabs

Mobile browsers consume RAM for every single tab you have open. If you have 50 tabs open in Chrome, ApuStream will crash. Close everything except ApuStream before you hit "Go Live".

3. Limit Your Web Layers

Every "Web Browser" layer you add is basically opening a hidden tab inside your stream. Having a Chat box, a Sub counter, an Alert box, and a VDO.Ninja stream all at once is very heavy. Keep your layout minimal if your device is lagging.

4. Keep the Device Cool

Phones throttle (slow down) their processors when they get hot. Take off your phone case while streaming, or stream near a fan. A cool phone runs 50% faster than an overheating one.