Overview

• YouTube introduced YouTube Labs as a new program for testing early AI prototypes, with sign-ups open to a limited number of U.S.-based participants.
• The first experiment adds AI hosts to YouTube Music that interject during radio and mixes with brief stories, fan trivia, and commentary, similar to a radio DJ.
• Participants see a new AI button on the Now Playing screen, the feature label “Beyond the Beat,” and controls to snooze the host for an hour or a day.
• YouTube cautions that the spoken commentary may contain mistakes, quality can vary, features may be disabled without notice, and user interactions may be used to improve Google products.
• Access terms are reported inconsistently, with Engadget saying Labs is Premium-only while TechCrunch cites YouTube saying sign-up is open to all users though access remains limited.