Observed Signal · Sep 23, 2026 · Product Launch · Source: techcrunch · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
YouTube Launches AI Custom Feeds
YouTube announced a new feature called custom feeds, allowing users to build personalized video recommendation feeds by describing their interests in natural language. Powered by Google's Gemini AI, the feature enables users to create feeds for specific purposes, such as a commute playlist or mood-based content. The custom feed appears as a pinned tab on the user's home page and can be edited with detailed instructions. The feature will roll out on web and mobile next month. This announcement was made at the Made On YouTube event and follows similar moves by other platforms like Bluesky, Threads, and Spotify.
YouTube's custom feeds introduce a novel AI-based discovery feature, but it's primarily a consumer-facing update with limited direct adtech implications.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- YouTube announced a custom feeds feature using AI to generate personalized video feeds.
- Users can describe desired content in natural language, powered by Google's Gemini AI.
- Custom feeds will be available on web and mobile starting next month.
- The feature was introduced at the Made On YouTube event.
- YouTube has over 20 billion videos in its corpus.
Connected Companies & Entities
6 Entities mapped“The prompt-based feature leverages Google’s Gemini AI model to build the feed around your request....”
“Other services, including Meta’s Threads....”
“Instagram's new Blend feature creates a custom Reels feed....”
“Spotify is giving you the keys to its recommendation algorithm with U.S. launch of Taste Profile....”
“X's new AI-powered custom feeds....”
Ontology Mapping & Concepts
Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Made on YouTube 2026: AI, Shopping, Creator Commerce
At the Made on YouTube 2026 event, Google unveiled a suite of new features aimed at transforming YouTube into a comprehensive commerce and creator platform. Key announcements include AI-powered 'Custom Feeds' for personalized video recommendations, an expanded 'Ask YouTube' assistant for product queries, and the growth of its shopping affiliate program to 35 markets by end of 2026, with over 1.3 million creators participating. The Gemini AI model will assist in video editing within Shorts and YouTube Create, while YouTube Studio gains AI tools for thumbnails and A/B testing. Livestreaming will see new monetization features like 'Live Showdowns' and 'Live Auto Dubbing' planned for 2027. The platform is also enhancing creator-brand collaborations through 'Ask Studio' and expanding its likeness detection to include voice. These moves position YouTube as a more integrated shopping and commerce ecosystem, challenging traditional search and social commerce platforms.
YouTube's Ask YouTube expands into AI-powered video shopping
At its Made On YouTube event, YouTube announced that its AI-powered conversational search feature, Ask YouTube, will now serve as a shopping companion. The feature will provide organized product recommendations, comparison tables, and follow-up question capabilities on watch pages. This leverages a custom Gemini model that maps complex queries to specific moments in videos. YouTube reported that over 140 million people used Ask YouTube in June, a 500% increase since December, highlighting the growing adoption of AI-driven discovery and its potential impact on commerce.
GreenCore Solutions Opens London Office for A2A-Grocery Agentic Commerce
GreenCore Solutions Corp. (GSC) announced the opening of a sales office in London, UK, under a new entity, GreenCore Solutions (UK), to support its agentic commerce hub, A2A-Grocery.co.uk. The company introduced its 0-100 Agentic Density Scale, indicating that the UK and Europe account for 84% of grocery makers, while the USA accounts for only 16%. GSC's AI agents have processed 100 million transactions year-to-date, with 40% from Europe, 20% from the USA, and 40% from the rest of the world. The London office aims to connect European makers with AI agents buying for grocery retailers across 20 markets. GSC operates on Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Enterprise, with data residency in each market.
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