The Best Python Talks on YouTube

Learning Python on YouTube? It’s a thing! If you want to get an overview of this popular programming language, check out our picks for the best Python lectures on the ‘Tube.

Be honest: Does YouTube only mean funny cat clips and new Ariana Grande or Drake music videos to you? Don’t get me wrong – I love them too, but YouTube is much more. If you know where to look, it’s actually a great place to learn something new from experts. In this article, I’ll show you my picks for the 5 best Python lectures on YouTube.

Of course, this is not a complete list; there are many valuable Python videos on YouTube. Perhaps in the future I’ll do another list. If you’d like more, let me know in the comments.

Python Videos on YouTube That Are Worth Your Time

1. A Discussion with Guido van Rossum (Oxford Union)

Guido van Rossum, the creator of Python, can’t be missing from this list. The Dutch programmer is the father of Python, which he created in 1991, as well as a former Google employee and co-creator of Dropbox. He’s considered the most important person in the global Python community and has made the most important decisions about the language’s development. He retired in 2019, but he still makes time to chat about Python. He’s definitely worth listening to.

The lecture is actually a conversation with van Rossum at Oxford University in the UK. For about 50 minutes, he talks about his career, how he started programming, why he had to learn Pascal, and how Python started out as a hobby.

If you are interested in why Python was created and how its creator thinks it will continue to evolve, watch this conversation. The students ask very interesting questions, and van Rossum is not afraid to answer. Maybe it’s just my impression, but this guy is really cool. Watch it for yourself and see what you think. And, if you feel motivated to learn the language for yourself, try our Python Basics track!

2. Being a Core Developer in Python (Raymond Hettinger)

Raymond is one of Python's big fish; he teaches very advanced Python to people all over the world. He’s co-created the CPython project, implemented and maintained many great Python features, and written several brilliant books. He knows his stuff and is a legend in the Python community. I also recommend following him on Twitter.

Considering all that he’s accomplished, Raymond is quite modest. He can speak and you can see that he enjoys doing it. This Python lecture was given at the 2016 PyBay conference. He covers some fairly advanced topics, but mostly the focus is on the mindset of Python developers. He presents many interesting examples and solutions as well as scenarios that illustrate his theories. The talk shows why you should not needlessly change code already written by someone else, how to keep an appropriate distance from programming problems, etc. It’s very interesting stuff, but you have to be focused while listening.

If you're thinking of becoming a Python developer – or if you want to be a productive and valuable part of the global Python community – check this video out.

3. What Does It Take to Be an Expert at Python? (Coding Tech)

Warning: Unless you’re familiar with Python, watching this lecture can boil your brain. This is an absolutely gigantic amount of advanced Python knowledge, featuring advanced code that solves very complex problems.

This was presented by James Powell at the 2017 PyData conference. He answers the question of what it takes to be an expert at Python. (Hint: It involves learning a lot and practicing Python even more. You need to know many libraries, functions, and extensions.)

James spoke to Microsoft’s advanced programmers –  and he speaks in their language. Don't expect simple translations and definitions. This 2-hour lecture is intended for professionals. I watched it twice and realized that I won’t be using everything discussed on the lecture in my coding. If you're new to coding, this lecture might scare you. But don't be afraid; if you spend enough time and energy, you can become an advanced Python developer. Dreams come true!

4. The Boring Python Office Talk – Automate PowerPoint, Excel, and PDF with Python

Now for something a bit different. The presenter of this video, Stefan Baerisch,  is not a born speaker; he's more of a tech guy who was told to come to the conference and say something. But what he says is very interesting.

What will you learn from this YouTube video? First of all, you’ll learn that Python can make life easier for non-programmers (e.g. administrators and office workers). In this case, it is all about Python and Excel, PowerPoint, and PDF files (XLSX, PPTX, and PDF) and the automation of boring tasks associated with them.

Stefan demonstrates how easy it is to automate routine admin tasks: preparing automatic Excel reports, creating PowerPoint presentations from scripts, or automatically changing PDF layouts. He also covers how to automate the creation of charts and summaries. As boring as it sounds, this is really what programming is all about – problem-solving and making work easier. It's worth spending half an hour to see what Python can do in the office.

After watching this Python lecture, you will know how to automate at least some of your daily office office. What will it do for you? You will be able to focus on more creative tasks. You’ll work more efficiently and your boss will surely notice it. Maybe you will even be able to work shorter hours and come home earlier? If you don't try, you won't know.

5. You Should Learn to Program (TEDx, Christian Genco)

Did you know that your smartphone has a million times more computing power than the computer used by NASA for the first flight to the moon? So what are you doing with your smartphone? You play Angry Birds and listen to music, instead of making complicated calculations and changing the world.

In this clip, Christian argues that it is really worth learning programming – not to become an advanced developer, but to make your daily activities easier.

As you will learn from this clip, programmers are people who don't want to do something and therefore invent codes to do it for them. I don't know about you, but that philosophy appeals to me. I, too, learned Python programming precisely because I wanted to ease some of my boring and stupid everyday activities.

Christian is an SMU President's Scholar majoring in Computer Science with a premedical specialization. He’s a smart guy and one who amusingly describes the future and the development of technology and what it can lead us to. Christian is on a mission to inspire the world to learn to program. He inspired me. And you?

6. A 12-Year-Old App Developer (TED, Thomas Suarez)

World leaders and great personalities speak at TEDx conferences. Sometimes, however, children speak the wisest. Here is just a 5-minute clip of a lecture by 12-year-old Thomas, who liked computer games so much that he decided to learn to create them himself. That’s right – a little boy learned to code. So why are you still afraid that you can't do it?

Thomas presents the topic in a very accessible way. He learned because he needed something: to create games. Programming is about problem-solving. The problems can be boring and repetitive office tasks or high-end computing programs. Either way, coding comes down to solving a specific problem or responding to a specific need.

Now, Go Watch One of These YouTube Python Videos!

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