In a move that could change the video landscape, YouTube will integrate Google’s most advanced AI video generation tool, Veo 3, into YouTube Shorts later this summer.
YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced the integration in a keynote at the Cannes Lions festival Wednesday, where he was joined by YouTube creators Amelia Dimoldenberg, Alex Cooper, and Brandon Baum.
“The possibilities with AI are limitless,” Mohan said. “A lot can change in a generation. Entertainment itself has changed more in the last two decades than any other time in history. Creators led this revolution.
“My bet for the next 20 years? Creators will flip formats, blend genres, and push deeper into the mainstream — as brand ambassadors, big business ventures and visionary storytellers,” he continued. “Communities will continue to surprise us with the power of their collective fandom. And cutting-edge AI technology will push the limits of human creativity. My biggest bet is that YouTube will continue to be the stage where it all happens. Where anyone with a story to share can turn their dream into a career… and anyone with a voice can bring people together and change the world.”
YouTube already uses an older generation of Veo for its Dream Screen background generation tool, but Veo 3 is a substantial upgrade. It announced the product back in 2023, and has been iterating on it since.
The company has also been proactive in trying to get ahead of potential issues or controversies, including partnering with CAA and some top creators to develop a tool that gives celebrities and other high-profile people control over their likeness on the platform.
Already videos created by Veo 3 have gone viral on social platforms, including concepts that imagine if historical or fictional figures were vloggers, though Mohan framed it’s integration into shorts a tool to “open new creative lanes” for creators.
Shorts has become a strategic imperative for YouTube as platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels also battle for shares of the short-form video audience. YouTube launches Shorts in 2021, and Mohan revealed Wednesday that it now averages more than 200 billion views per day, an astonishing number that underscores YouTube’s scale in streaming video.
Mohan also sued the keynote to highlight something that has become a recurring theme for the platform in recent years: That YouTube has become a dominant force in entertainment and popular culture, and telling the crowd in Cannes that creators “are the startups of Hollywood.”
“Like most startups, these creators are reimagining the industry that inspired them and creating new jobs for writers, editors, actors and producers. Some are even building state-of-the-art studios,” he said. As THR previously reported, some creators have raised financing and turned to entertainment veterans to build bona fide production facilities.
