Google is conducting an experiment using artificial intelligence (AI) to automatically generate video summaries on YouTube. This new feature, according to a notice on YouTube’s support page, will provide brief overviews of a video’s contents without replacing its existing human-written description. The AI summaries will be displayed on YouTube’s watch and search pages alongside a limited number of English-language videos and will only be viewable by a select group of users. The goal is to make it easier for viewers to quickly determine if a video aligns with their interests.
This experiment is part of Google’s broader implementation of generative AI initiatives. The company unveiled a generative AI feature at its developer conference in May, which aimed to summarize app user reviews on the Play Store. Furthermore, Google has developed a new Search Generative Experience and Duet AI tools for its Workspace productivity apps.
Other companies have also explored the use of AI to automatically generate summaries for online content. For instance, Artifact recently introduced a summary feature for news articles. If the AI-generated summaries on YouTube prove successful, it will be interesting to observe how creators adapt their video structures to cater to both human viewers and Google’s AI algorithm. Every policy change and new feature on the platform can have significant implications for content creators as they try to satisfy the recommendations of YouTube’s algorithm while still engaging their human audience.
