Weekly Prompt: YouTube's AI updates and more

YouTube embraces AI at 'Made on YouTube' 2024

At its annual 'Made on YouTube' event, YouTube unveiled a range of new features designed to empower creators, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence (AI), e-commerce, and community building.

Taking centre stage was the announcement of Google DeepMind's Veo, a generative AI video model, being integrated into YouTube Shorts. Arriving later this year, Veo will allow creators to generate sophisticated video backgrounds from text prompts, enhancing the existing 'Dream Screen' feature. Additionally, Veo will enable the creation of six-second standalone video clips within Shorts. All AI-generated content will be clearly watermarked using DeepMind's SynthID technology.

Beyond video, YouTube is expanding its automatic dubbing tool to include French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. The company is also testing 'expressive speech' technology, aiming to capture a creator's natural tone and intonation in dubbed audio.

Recognising the importance of community, YouTube is expanding its 'Communities' feature, providing a dedicated hub for creators and fans to interact. New AI-powered tools will offer reply suggestions tailored to a creator's communication style, fostering more engaging conversations. YouTube also plans to introduce a 'community spotlight' to highlight top contributors and provide creators with deeper audience insights.

Further bolstering its e-commerce offerings, YouTube is expanding its Shopping affiliate program. Already available in the US and South Korea, the program will launch in Indonesia in partnership with Shopee, followed by Thailand and Vietnam.

Other notable announcements include the rollout of YouTube's 'Hype' feature to new markets, allowing viewers to support their favourite creators and potentially boost their visibility. Additionally, YouTube is introducing AI-powered tools within YouTube Studio to assist creators with brainstorming video ideas, generating thumbnails, and crafting replies to comments.

Sources: Google Blog, TechCrunch, Variety

Additional prompts

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