YouTube Shorts is adding an image-to-video AI tool, new AI effects
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YouTube Shorts is adding an image-to-video AI tool, new AI effects
YouTube announced on Wednesday that it’s giving Shorts creators access to new generative AI features. The image-to-video feature lets users turn a picture from their camera roll into a six-second video. Users can also use the feature to add movement to landscape photos, animate pictures of everyday photos, or bring group photos to life. The new tool is rolling out over the next week in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. YouTube also announced that AI Playground is its new home for Generative AI creation tools, inspirational examples, prefilled prompts, and more. The features announced today are powered by Veo 2, Google’s AI model for video generation. Last month at Cannes Lions 2025, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced that Google’s Veo 3 video generator will be coming to Shorts later this summer.
The image to video feature lets users turn a picture from their camera roll into a six-second video. Users will see a selection of suggestions that are relevant to the photo they uploaded. YouTube says the feature can be used to add movement to landscape photos, animate pictures of everyday photos, or bring group photos to life.
In an example given by YouTube, the feature turns a static image of a pedestrian signal into a short video that slowly zooms into a dancing version of the walking man symbol.
Image Credits:YouTube
The feature works similarly to an offering already available in Gemini. Plus, it’s similar to the Animate tool in Meta’s Edits app, which also uses AI to transform static images into videos.
The new tool is rolling out over the next week in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. YouTube plans to bring it to more regions later this year. It’s worth noting that Google Photos is also getting a similar image-to-video tool.
As for the new AI effects, creators can use them to transform their doodles into artistic images and turn their selfies into videos where they’re swimming underwater, twinning with someone, and more. Users can find these new effects by navigating to the “Effects” icon in the Shorts camera and then tapping “AI” to browse all of the generative effects.
Image Credits:YouTube
YouTube notes that the features announced today are powered by Veo 2, Google’s AI model for video generation. YouTube says it uses SynthID watermarks and clear labels to indicate that these creations were generated with AI.
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Last month at Cannes Lions 2025, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced that Google’s Veo 3 video generator, which can generate both video and audio, will be coming to Shorts later this summer. He also shared that Shorts are now averaging more than 200 billion daily views.
YouTube also announced on Wednesday that AI Playground is its new home for generative AI creation tools, inspirational examples, prefilled prompts, and more. Creators can find AI Playground by tapping the Create button and then the sparkle icon in the top right corner. It’s available now for everyone in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
YouTube Shorts Adds AI Image-to-Video Tool and New Generative Effects for Creators
YouTube is rolling out a new set of AI-powered tools for its Shorts app. Image-to-video lets creators turn any photo from their camera roll into a six-second video. The tool is powered by Veo 2, Google’s advanced video generation model. YouTube is also rolling out new effects that let creators reimagine their selfies and doodles. And finally, a new hub where creators can test generative tools, explore inspiration, and play with pre-filled prompts.
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Among the highlights is a new image-to-video feature that lets creators turn any photo from their camera roll into a six-second video. Once a photo is uploaded, the tool suggests animations relevant to the content whether that means adding movement to a landscape shot, animating a group selfie, or turning a mundane object into something magical. In one example, YouTube transformed a static pedestrian signal into a short clip where the walking man icon starts dancing.
The feature works similarly to tools we’ve already seen in Google’s Gemini and Meta’s Edits app, and it’s rolling out this week in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with more regions to follow later this year.
But that’s not all. YouTube is also rolling out new AI-powered effects that let creators reimagine their selfies and doodles. Think: sketch-to-art transformations, underwater animations, or surreal twinning sequences. To access these, just tap the “Effects” icon in the Shorts camera and head to the new “AI” tab.
All of this is powered by Veo 2, Google’s advanced video generation model. YouTube says the features come with SynthID watermarks and clear labels to ensure transparency when content is AI-generated. This rollout builds on momentum from Cannes Lions 2025, where YouTube CEO Neal Mohan teased the upcoming launch of Veo 3, which adds generative audio to the mix. That update is expected to hit Shorts later this summer.
And finally, YouTube introduced AI Playground, a new hub where creators can test generative tools, explore inspiration, and play with pre-filled prompts. You’ll find it by tapping the “Create” button and then the sparkle icon in the top-right corner of the app.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/23/youtube-shorts-is-adding-an-image-to-video-ai-tool-new-ai-effects/