Google tests AI chatbot search feature on YouTube
What's the story
Google is experimenting with a new AI-driven search mode for YouTube. The feature aims to provide a more conversational experience when searching on the platform. It pulls results from various content types, including long-form videos, YouTube Shorts, and relevant text information. Currently, this experimental feature is only available to US-based YouTube Premium subscribers aged 18 or older.
User experience
How to use the new feature
Once activated, the new feature adds an "Ask YouTube" button to the search bar. Clicking on this button takes users to a dedicated page with suggested searches and a text box for questions. When you enter a query, YouTube shows results on a mostly-blank page with loading icon. After a few seconds, it fills out with text details and videos related to your search term.
Result display
What do results look like?
The initial results for a query would include a text summary of the topic, along with bulleted milestones or key points. This is followed by a video related to the topic from a specific channel, and then galleries of videos under different headers. The sections are likely generated by YouTube from the videos highlighted in search results.
Future plans
YouTube plans to expand this experiment beyond Premium subscribers
At the bottom of the results page, users will find more suggested prompts and a text box to ask follow-up questions or start new searches. YouTube has said it is working on expanding this experiment beyond Premium subscribers.