Desk Report:
A decade ago, YouTube was all about low-budget amateur videos made by amateur youth. But in the past 20 years, YouTube has become the most popular way for Americans to watch television. The platform has more than 2.7 billion users.
YouTube has already surpassed a century-old entertainment giant like Disney. According to Nielsen, an international research and data analysis company, YouTube’s viewership in the United States was 13.4 percent in July 2024, while Disney’s was only 9.4 percent.
According to the forecast of the analyst firm MoffettNathanson, YouTube’s revenue will surpass Disney’s in 2025, where Disney’s media revenue in 2024 was about $60 billion. Although Alphabet (Google’s parent company) does not regularly disclose YouTube’s specific revenue, YouTube earned more than $50 billion in advertising and subscriptions in the four quarters through September 2024.
AI-powered future announcement
At YouTube’s annual ‘Made on YouTube’ product launch event last Tuesday, the company announced that artificial intelligence, or AI, will be their main force in content creation in the next decade.
YouTube CEO Neil Mohan said, “This is just a tool, nothing more. No studio, network, technology company or AI tool will control the future of entertainment alone.”
He also said that YouTube is now a respected and sustainable career path, where content creators can work without the constraints of traditional media houses and this time they will be helped by cutting-edge AI technology.
More than 30 new features for content creators
At this year’s event, YouTube unveiled more than 30 new features, most of which use AI. These include—
Automatically adding relevant shopping links to videos.
Instantly creating a first cut by combining multiple clips.
Videos created with AI for audio podcasts.
A generator for creating songs from speech.
YouTube’s Vice President of Creator Products Amjad Hanif said that YouTube’s own employees are now also using AI to generate ideas quickly. Due to this, the speed of product development has increased many times compared to before.
Celebrity participation and YouTube’s influence
The event was attended by YouTube stars such as British pop star Dua Lipa, Marc Rober, Smosh and Brandon B, each of whom has 16 million subscribers or more. According to many, these YouTube stars have taken the place of late night TV hosts for today’s generation.
Dua Lipa said that YouTube has helped her connect more closely with her fans. However, when asked about her reaction to the use of AI, her spokesperson did not immediately comment.
YouTube said that in the last four years, they have paid more than $ 100 billion to content creators. With this money, many content creators are building their own studios in the style of Hollywood.
After 20 years, YouTube is no longer just a video site; It has become the center of a global entertainment industry. With Google’s technical support and the power of AI, YouTube is now moving at breakneck speed towards shaping the media landscape of the future.
Source: Reuters
