The future of YouTube: Colin & Samir’s favorite updates from Made On YouTube

News and Events

Sep 16, 2025 [[read-time]] minute read

YouTube is now the most-watched platform on connected TVs, and 48% of the views on our own show come from people watching on TVs in their living rooms.

Fifteen years later, that same simplicity is still there: you can still open your laptop, hit record, and share something with the world. But around that simplicity, YouTube has expanded in ways we never could have imagined. Just this month we watched a live NFL game on YouTube, with multiple creator-led streams running alongside it. YouTube is now the most-watched platform on connected TVs, and 48% of the views on our own show come from people watching on TVs in their living rooms. We can even upload a video today with 15+ different language tracks on it so anyone in the world can watch what we create. That's a long way from our broken hard drive update video. In just the last four years, creators, artists, and media brands have earned over $100 billion on the platform.

Today, YouTube rolled out more than 30 updates: new tools that change how we collaborate, monetize, and connect with audiences. And when YouTube announces features at Made on YouTube, it's never just about product updates. It's a glimpse at where the entire entertainment industry is heading.

We went through all of them and pulled out the ones that got us really excited. Some are updates we've been waiting on for years. Others feel like we're getting an early look at the future of media.

Made On YouTube 2025: Auto-Dubbing

Auto Dubbing with Lip Sync

YouTube just introduced auto-dubbing with lip sync. It's exactly what it sounds like: YouTube will translate your video into another language and reanimate your lips so it looks like you're actually speaking it.

Why this matters: Creators have been able to dub videos for years, but the lip sync takes it to another level. It makes the content feel more natural, more immersive, and removes the distraction of words not matching mouth movement. That means audiences can connect with your videos in their own language, without anything getting lost in translation.

Our take: We tested this with Portuguese and it truly shocked me. Watching myself appear to actually speak Portuguese was surreal and it made me realize how much more accessible our content can be. I kept zooming in on my mouth to see that this isn't just a technical upgrade, it's a bridge to whole new audiences around the world.

Packaging is everything on YouTube ... A/B testing takes some of the pressure off - it gives you room to experiment instead of betting everything on one idea.

A/B thumbnail and title testing

If you've ever stayed up debating which thumbnail or title will work best, first off…You're not alone. Second, YouTube just made life easier. Last year, they rolled out A/B testing for thumbnails. Now, you can test up to three thumbnails and three titles on a single video.

Why it matters: Packaging is everything on YouTube. As MrBeastsays, "if they don't click, they don't watch." And it's only getting harder to stand out. A/B testing takes some of the pressure off - it gives you room to experiment instead of betting everything on one idea.

How it works: You upload three thumbnails and/or three titles in YouTube Studio. The platform runs them against each other and automatically picks the winner based on watch time percentage.

My take: We've been running tests on older videos and have already seen bumps in views. More data means better decisions, and ultimately, more people watching. For us, this feels less like a nice-to-have and more like a new standard for how we publish. We're making three variations when we're coming up with our ideas.

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Auto generated Shorts

This one's simple but huge - especially for podcasters like us. YouTube can now automatically generate Shorts and clips from long episodes.

Why it matters: Shorts are one of the best ways for new viewers to discover your content. For long-form creators, that discovery often depends on how easily you can turn a two-hour episode into bite-sized, shareable moments. This update makes that process faster and more accessible.

How it works: YouTube's AI scans your long-form video, identifies engaging moments, and cuts them vertically into ready-to-publish shorts. From there, you can edit, tweak, or post them directly to Shorts.

Unpacking the magic of our new creative tools

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YouTube is the only career I've ever known, and I feel lucky that my job is sitting down with creators who inspire me. When I see updates like these, I get excited not just about using them myself, but about watching how other creators will push them further. YouTube ships the features and we, as creators, turn them into new formats, new ideas, and new ways to connect with the world. It's already the best time to be a creator. These updates just make it better.

These are just a few of our favorites from the 30+ updates YouTube announced. To see the full breakdown, check out the video below.

The next 20: Powering the future of entertainment together at Made on YouTube