YouTube is getting an injection of Google’s AI-assisted search functionality in the shape of a new carousel feature. In a blog post, YouTube said the AI-generated carousel is currently exclusive to its Premium members in the US. It might appear (it seemingly won’t happen every time) when you search for “queries related to shopping, place, or things to do in a specific location” in the YouTube app on your phone.
This carousel pulls in a series of relevant videos that play in order from left to right (you can also tap a video’s thumbnail to jump straight to that clip), with each one getting its own headline and a paragraph of text that explains its inclusion. The implementation, unsurprisingly, looks a lot like going through your friend’s stories on Instagram. YouTube says each video in the carousel provides “useful insights” related to your query.
YouTube has also announced that it will start rolling out its previously Premium and Android-exclusive conversational AI tool to standard users in the US. The AI assistant can be activated by clicking the “Ask” button that appears between the existing share and download options in the toolbar below a video, and allows you to ask it questions related to the content of the video. You can also have it summarize a video before you hand over five minutes of your time to watching it, or get recommendations for similar content. When it first introduced this functionality, YouTube said its AI tool draws on information within YouTube itself and the wider web. It’s not clear how many users will be able to use the new feature or how often you can expect it to show up. It’s also unclear if or when iPhone users will get it.
Google’s AI Overview tool has been a controversial topic because it’s not always accurate with the information it provides, among other reasons. Whether similar issues arise for YouTube creators remains to be seen.
