The rumored AI-powered age verification tool on YouTube is now available this week. Starting Wednesday, the company will begin rolling out an age estimation model to determine whether they are over 18 years old.
On July 29, the company announced that the tool would come to the US a few weeks after it was tested in other markets. The goal is to better protect young users from viewing age-appropriate content.
The AI verification tool works only after a user is logged in to an account and is used regardless of the date of birth the user enters when creating an account. This is the most common way for younger users to trick the platform and get access to more mature content. The age estimation tool uses several signals, such as YouTube activity, as well as how long the account has been present to determine the potential age of a user.
If a user is deemed under the age of 18, you will be notified and your YouTube experience will be changed more appropriately for your age. This means enabling digital benefits tools, such as bedtime reminders, Break Reminders, and Time Wathed features, as well as implementing impersonal ads. Young users can post videos, but can only be personally posted to selected friends. These younger accounts will also implement privacy warnings and restrictions regarding video recommendations.
Users who are mistakenly flagged as young have the option to check their age by providing a government ID, selfie, or credit card.
“YouTube is one of the first platforms to provide experiences specifically designed for young people, and we are proud to be able to implement technology that can provide safety while maintaining teen privacy. “Families trust YouTube to provide a safe and enriched experience. We will continue to invest in protecting our ability to safely explore online.”
YouTube is not the only tech giant using AI tools to determine the age of users. Meta-owned Instagram announced a similar strategy this April.
