Get Ready to See More AI on YouTube

More AI slop may be headed to YouTube. 

The video-sharing platform is jumping on the AI bandwagon with a new batch of AI-powered tools for content creators. The company announced on Tuesday that users will now be able to use AI to more easily edit videos, generate short clips, and even protect their likeness from other AI tools.

The updates come as YouTube and its parent company, Google, race to catch up with other AI companies like OpenAI. Last month, Google updated its AI image model, unofficially dubbed nano-banana, to better compete with ChatGPT’s image generator, which went viral with Studio Ghibli-style images. Image generators have become one of the most widely used AI applications for everyday users, and now YouTube is hoping to prove that anyone can use AI to make videos, too. 

Veo 3 comes to YouTube Shorts

YouTube partnered with Google DeepMind to bring a custom version of their video-generation model, Veo 3, to Shorts—the company’s TikTok and Instagram Reels-like feed of quick, scrollable videos.

This version, called Veo 3 Fast, makes it simple for users to whip up clips on their phones, all for free. It runs faster with a lower latency of 480p and can generate videos with sound.

To try it now, users can hit the create button on the YouTube app and then tap the sparkle icon in the top right of the screen to access Veo 3 and the other AI tools.

The new additions are already live in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with more regions coming soon.

Additionally, YouTube plans to roll out more Veo features on Shorts in the coming months. These options will allow users to animate photos and videos, apply visual styles, and add objects to videos.

AI can now take the first pass at editing

YouTube is also testing out a new tool called Edit with AI, which transforms raw camera-roll clips into a ready-to-go first draft by selecting the best moments, adding music and transitions, and can even add a voiceover in English or Hindi.

YouTube is currently testing Edit with AI on Shorts and in the YouTube Create app, with plans to bring it to select markets in the coming weeks.

Protecting Users’ Faces from AI

Finally, even with all the shiny new AI toys, YouTube acknowledged it has to try to mitigate the new risks that come with them, too.

So, the company is expanding a likeness-detection tool to all YouTube Partner Program creators in an open beta. The feature flags videos that rip off a user’s facial likeness and allows them to request that the unauthorized videos be taken down.

Think of it as Content ID—YouTube’s copyright-flagging system—reimagined for the AI era, when anyone’s face can be deepfaked in seconds.