YouTube Unveils AI Tools to Boost Creator Earnings

YouTube chief executive Neal Mohan has outlined YouTube’s 2025 strategy, focusing on shifting user behaviours and AI-driven content.

In his annual address, Mohan explained key trends shaping YouTube’s future. He also showed how creators and users can benefit.

At the heart of his vision, Mohan positions YouTube as the “epicentre of culture,” noting its expanding influence across various cultural moments.

“This was clear in the lead-up to the 2024 U.S. Presidential election. Joe Rogan’s interview with President Trump reached 55 million views. Content from primetime comedy sketches and events like the Super Bowl also found their way to YouTube,” he said.

Podcast Growth and New Tools

YouTube’s growing role in the podcasting space was another key point.

“We’ve long invested in the podcast experience,” Mohan said.

The platform plans to introduce new tools to enhance podcast creation and monetisation. These tools aim to help creators grow their audiences and revenue more easily.

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Creator Monetisation Expands

Monetisation continues to be a major focus. Mohan outlined plans to broaden income sources for creators beyond traditional ads.

“Last year, more than 50% of channels earning five figures or more made money from sources other than ads,” Mohan revealed.

He cited creators like Bora Claire, who has generated hundreds of thousands in sales through shopping recommendations.

Channel memberships grew 40%, showing that creators are successfully diversifying income streams.

Shift to TV Viewing

The shift in viewing behaviour was another dominant theme. Mohan pointed out that Connected TV (CTV) is now more popular than mobile devices in the U.S. as the main way people watch YouTube. This marks a major change in viewing habits.

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To improve TV viewing, YouTube is launching new features like “Watch With.” This feature allows creators to give real-time commentary on events. It also supports second-screen interactions. Users can interact with videos on their phones while watching on TV.

AI Tools for Creators

As it expands into AI, Mohan said YouTube is exploring more AI-powered tools to simplify content creation.

Video thumbnail generation, title suggestions, and multilingual AI-generated audio are some tools under development. These aim to help creators produce content faster and more efficiently.

Additionally, Mohan addressed AI ethics. He said, “We’re developing tools to help individuals detect and control how AI is used to depict them on YouTube.”

Read Mohan’s full 2025 overview.