YouTube’s giving Shorts creators more capacity to enhance their creations with gen AI, with the incorporation of new generative AI features into the Shorts composer flow.
And not only new features, but a whole new AI model, which will produce better-looking AI video content to enhance your creativity.
As explained by YouTube:
“Last year, we shared updates to Dream Screen, our feature that lets you generate unique AI backgrounds for your Shorts with just a text prompt. Today, Dream Screen is getting another major upgrade with the integration of Google DeepMind’s newest video generation model, Veo 2, making it more powerful than ever. And we’re also now launching a new capability powered by Veo 2: generating standalone video clips that you can add to any of your Shorts.”
Google’s Veo 2 model generates realistic looking video content, in high definition (up to 4K), and can produce some impressive results based on just text prompts.
And now, Shorts creators will be able to use Veo 2 to not only generate better-looking video backgrounds, but also to create entirely new, AI-originated short clips.
To use this new process, Shorts creators will be able to open the media picker in the Shorts creation flow, then tap “Create” at the top of the window.
“After inputting your prompt, select your image, then tap Create video, and choose your desired length.”
As you can see in this example, the process will enable you to create segments from Veo prompts, or you could even create an entire Short of just AI-generated clips.
Which could be a big change for YouTube, with the above example illustrating how the option could be used to enhance your storytelling.
Though AI-generated creations still mostly look a little too shiny, a little too unrealistic to truly integrate with real footage.
But the technology is always improving, and you can see a future where these will fit seamlessly into your creations, enabling more imaginative, creative videos, without needing a Hollywood special effects budget.
Conversely, it could also lead to more AI slop, with people using generative AI video to create junk content that just clogs up platforms, and adds not much to the viewing experience.
For example, I’ve recently been inundated by these types of AI-generated animal morphing displays on reality talent shows.
There’s a heap of these on TikTok, all of them pretty much the same thing, over and over, with these body-contorting, limb-breaking, ridiculous AI transitions.
Which is the other consideration of gen AI, that while you may be able to use these options to create new content, that doesn’t account for actual creativity, which is much harder to tap into.
Yes, being able to create whatever you want is a big step, but without a compelling concept, it could end up just adding more junk, as opposed to enhancing the viewer experience.
There are also concerns around deepfakes, and the misrepresentation of real people, though YouTube does note that these creations will incorporate SynthID watermarks, and will include labels to indicate when AI has been used.
I mean, given the broader hype around AI, it makes sense for YouTube to add more options like this where it can. But I maintain that human creativity remains the key to maximizing these tools, and that’s something that only comes to those who take the time to research, invest thought, and conceptualize their ideas.
So much like social media itself, giving people the tools to share every thought that comes into their head doesn’t necessarily mean that will lead to better content overall.
But more creation should lead to a greater breadth of ideas, and that should be a benefit. Maybe.
Either way, more content for YouTube.
YouTube says that its new AI creation elements for Shorts are being rolled out to users in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand from today, with more regions to follow.
