Is YouTube's new AI feature 'Ask' really useful?

Google's AI is everywhere, and its next goal is to change the YouTube experience. The platform is currently testing a new AI feature to help viewers get the most out of the videos they watch by supporting real-time Q&A interactions directly in the video.

Currently, this feature is in beta and limited to the YouTube Android app for YouTube Premium subscribers 18 and older, available in the United States.

Once you've enabled this feature for your account, you'll start to see an 'Ask' button below eligible videos. Viewers can then type in questions related to the video or choose from the provided prompts to request a summary or related content. AI then processes both the video content and the query, providing contextually appropriate responses without pausing play.

The responses appear to be quite accurate and surprisingly quick, suggesting that Google's AI may have pre-analyzed YouTube videos even before users used the feature.

YouTube's experimental AI Ask feature

According to testing, most videos that use English to talk or narrate content display the Ask prompt, including all the latest videos on the YouTube channel. Informational videos that are a mix of Hindi and English do not show the Ask prompt, and the same goes for music videos.

Currently, YouTube claims that the feature will only be available until May 1, but many people are eagerly waiting for the feature to be widely rolled out. There are tons of informative videos and tutorials on YouTube, so having a way to quickly summarize them or ask about the specific thing you're looking for would be great.

Isabella Humphrey

Update 19 April 2024