YouTube Rolls Out AI-Powered Search Results Carousel

YouTube has rolled out a new artificial intelligence-driven feature called the Search Results Carousel, aimed at elevating user experience on the platform. Launched exclusively for YouTube Premium users in the United States, this feature enhances search functionality by presenting videos in a more visually engaging and intuitive layout. Alongside this, YouTube is expanding access to its conversational AI assistant to select non-Premium users.

What is the YouTube Search Results Carousel?

The Search Results Carousel is an AI-based layout that appears when users search for certain categories, such as shopping, travel, or activities in specific locations. This new layout includes:

• A featured video clip displayed prominently at the top

• A row of additional relevant video thumbnails underneath

• AI-generated text descriptions to provide better context and assist in video selection

According to YouTube, this feature aims to help users discover more accurate and useful content, faster and more intuitively than ever before.

Initial Rollout and Availability

Initially tested in April 2025 with a limited group of users, the Search Results Carousel is now being offered to a wider Premium audience in the U.S. It supports videos in English and is available on both Android and iOS mobile apps.

The current test phase is expected to run through July 30, 2025, as per YouTube’s experiments page. Post this testing period, YouTube may expand the feature to additional regions depending on user feedback and performance analytics.

Conversational AI Tool Expands to Non-Premium Users

In addition to the carousel feature, YouTube is extending its conversational AI assistant to a select number of non-Premium users. This tool, powered by Google’s Gemini AI, allows users to interact with videos more intelligently.

You can find the assistant by tapping the sparkle icon located just beneath the video player, beside Like, Share, and Download buttons. Through this tool, users can:

• Ask questions about the video’s content

• Request video recommendations or summaries

• Receive real-time, AI-powered responses

While this tool remains exclusive to Android devices for now, its wider rollout signals YouTube’s intent to make AI tools more accessible to general users.

AI Integration to Drive User Engagement

These innovations are part of YouTube’s broader strategy to integrate AI technologies into its platform and create a more dynamic, personalized user experience. The carousel and conversational tools are designed to:

• Improve content discoverability

• Offer smart suggestions based on user intent

• Enhance engagement through interactive elements

By adopting AI, YouTube follows a growing trend among major tech platforms seeking to improve usability through intelligent automation and machine learning.

What’s Next for YouTube’s AI Tools?

As the testing phase progresses, YouTube is expected to gather critical feedback from users to refine and optimize these new features. There is also a possibility of expanding the Search Results Carousel and conversational AI features to other languages and geographies in the future.

This phased rollout approach enables YouTube to scale responsibly while fine-tuning the user experience. It also reflects the platform’s commitment to offering next-generation features that leverage the full potential of artificial intelligence.

Conclusion

With the introduction of the AI-powered Search Results Carousel and the expansion of its Gemini-based conversational assistant, YouTube is taking significant steps toward a more interactive and personalized video discovery experience. As AI continues to evolve, YouTube’s early adoption of these tools is likely to shape the future of online video engagement globally.