YouTube promises custom feeds and a lot more AI later this year
YouTube plans custom feeds, GIF comments, group chat, and broader Ask YouTube and Ask Music AI features.
At Made on YouTube, Google previewed Custom Feeds, which let users add tabs by describing desired content and rating suggestions, with a US rollout soon on web, mobile, and TV. Later this year, comments will support GIFs on videos and Shorts, and direct messages will add group chat in the US, UK, Singapore, Brazil, and some European countries. Ask YouTube will answer questions in product-review videos and offer organized recommendations and comparison tables in search. Ask Music will sit at the top of YouTube Music, create or edit playlists, and surface mix suggestions.
- Custom Feeds create topic tabs from a user-written description.
- GIF comments and limited-region group chat arrive later this year.
- Ask YouTube adds product Q&A, recommendations, and comparison tables.
- Ask Music moves to the top of YouTube Music and edits playlists.
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The annual Made on YouTube event has just wrapped up, offering an early look at the features you can expect to come to Google’s dominant online streaming platform in the coming months. Yes, there’s plenty of AI for both viewers and creators, but there’s also a handful of non-AI updates mixed in there, too.
The makeup of YouTube’s homepage feed comes under fire often, but the platform is preparing to give you more options. With Custom Feeds, you’ll be able to add new tabs to the YouTube interface with content of your choice. To create a feed, just type a description and let YouTube populate the page. You can refine your description and rate video suggestions to tune the Custom Feed. Google says you’ll be able to save “multiple” feeds without specifying the exact number. This feature will roll out soon in the US for web, mobile, and TV users.
Interacting on YouTube will also change later this year. The platform will finally add the option to post GIFs in comments, which has apparently been a common request for some time. The comment box will let you search for popular animated thumbnails and post them on both regular videos and YouTube Shorts. The YouTube direct messaging feature is also adding support for group chat, but it’s only going to be available in the US, UK, Singapore, Brazil, and some European countries to start.
YouTube is probably going to nudge you to chat with a robot more often, too. The AI-powered Ask YouTube feature is not new, but it’s getting several new features that will make it more prominent across the platform. The AI will take on a conversational role in product review videos, allowing you to type or use voice commands to get more information about a product. In search, Ask YouTube may offer organized video recommendations and product comparison tables, too.
The music version of this AI is also expanding. Ask Music is getting more prominent placement in the YouTube Music app, right at the top where search used to be (it recently moved to a tab at the bottom). Ask Music can create or edit playlists and tell you about an artist. It will also surface suggestions throughout the app, like when you’re creating a mix.