AI music tools, smart comments, and more: Here are the latest features YouTube is quietly rolling out

YouTube is testing a couple of new features that could make the platform feel a bit more user-friendly. The focus this time is on making conversations easier to follow and helping creators get more out of Shorts with built-in music tools.

Let’s start with the comments. If you’ve ever tried to follow a thread on a popular video, you know how messy it can be. Replies are often stacked in a single line, which makes it hard to tell who’s responding to what. YouTube is now experimenting with a new threaded layout. This means replies will be neatly grouped under the original comment, and viewers can tap a button to see the full discussion in a cleaner format.

At the moment, this feature is only available to a small group of Premium users on mobile. YouTube says the goal is to create a more focused reading experience, especially on videos where conversations tend to get long and tangled.

The second feature in testing is for creators who use YouTube Shorts. It’s called Dream Track, and it helps generate short music clips using artificial intelligence. The feature first launched last year and included collaborations with artists like John Legend, Demi Lovato, and T-Pain.

Here’s how it works. Creators type in a short prompt, such as “chill piano melody” or “energetic pop beat,” and the tool produces a 30-second audio track to match the mood. They can choose between vocals that resemble certain artists or stick with instrumentals. All of the music generated is clearly marked, so viewers know it was created with the help of AI.

According to YouTube: “The tool is embedded in the Shorts creation experience. You can simply type in what you want your track to sound like, and Dream Track will generate a short original piece based on that prompt and artist style.”

For now, both features are limited to test groups in the United States. YouTube has not shared a timeline for when these updates might roll out in other countries, including India. But if the tests go well, Indian users could see these tools appear in their apps in the coming months.

These updates might seem small, but they reflect something important. YouTube appears to be taking a step-by-step approach to improving how people interact on the platform. The changes are subtle, but they show a growing focus on clarity, creativity, and giving users more control over how they express themselves.

Sci/Tech