youtube shorts rolling out A new AI-powered feature that gives creators an easy way to realistically clone themselves on camera. The launch, which was hinted at earlier this year, reflects the platform’s troubled relationship with AI-generated content, adding more generative features while struggling to prevent AI sloppiness, deepfake scams and impersonations.
YouTube says the new tool will let users create a digital version of themselves, called an avatar, which can be inserted into existing Shorts videos or used to create entirely new ones. The company said the avatars will “look and sound like you”, making them a safe and secure way to use AI to create new content.
Creating an avatar is a little more involved than just pressing a button, but it seems simple enough. one in blog post Outlining the process, YouTube said users must first record a “Live Selfie” capturing their face and voice while following a series of prompts. For best results, the company recommends good lighting, a quiet area, a background free of images of other people or faces, and placing the phone at eye level.
Once an avatar is created, users can select “Make a video with my avatar” to create a clip from the prompts while creating a video, which can be up to eight seconds long. according to 9to5google. Users can also add their avatar to “eligible shorts” in their feed, although YouTube did not specify what qualifies a short.
The AI avatar feature comes with quite a few restrictions. They can only be used in the creator’s own original videos, who also control whether their shorts can be remixed or not. YouTube says that creators can remove their avatar or the video where it appears at any time. Avatars that are not used to create new content for three years will be automatically deleted.
Not everyone will be able to use this feature immediately. YouTube says the tool will be “gradually released,” though it did not give a timeline or indication of where it would be available first. The company says that creators must be at least 18 years of age and have an existing YouTube channel.
Its arrival comes as one of Google’s main AI rivals, OpenAI, retreats from video creation. The startup said it was shutting down its Sora video tool last month after struggling for a year to get the ambitious social platform off the ground. It was expensive and faced copyright challenges, deepfake controversies and negligence, making it an unattractive bet for investors ahead of an anticipated IPO this year.
