Rapid changes in media and creativity are giving viewers new expectations and opportunities. As multiformat, multi-device consumption becomes the norm, new tools and technologies are enabling bigger, bolder ideas to become a reality. To better understand this changing landscape, YouTube released their latest Culture & Trends report, analyzing hundreds of trends and running surveys with Ipsos in 14 countries, with adults who are online, aged 18-44, and Gen Z who are online, aged 18-24. Here are some trends that caught our attention:

We are all creators: New creative tools are emerging daily. From generative AI, to simplified editing features, YouTube is enabling new kinds of creativity. With editing, directing, and designing capabilities simplified for the common person, creating has become a pop-culture activity. Now, the “biggest trends are defined by the ways fans make them their own”.

Endless consumption: Expectations on YouTube are evolving, with audiences expecting content to be available across multiple formats to satisfy their interests (68% of people surveyed say they watch videos about topics that they are into in multiple different formats). Viewers now diversify their consumption, viewing long-form, short-form, live, and pre-recorded content across mobile and connected TV screens.

Meme takeover: YouTube has increased competition with TikTok and Meta in the “meme war” vying for the attention of short-form content creators using meme templates/concepts to riff on current affairs i.e., Emma D'Arcy/Olivia Cooke “Negroni Sbagliato” being remixed into meme-able shorts. 14M videos per month created using clipping tools suggests that there's a rise in meme content on the platform.

AI on the rise: AI is expanding creativity i.e. re-imagining popular films made by iconic directors. The way creators use it now gives us a sneak peek into how content will be created on the platform — and viewers are already watching a lot of videos about or made with AI, with 60% of respondents open to watching AI generated content.

Key takeaways

The audience is bigger than ever on YouTube. Creators, editors, viewers and fans are all still very much consuming content on the platform. For brands, YouTube remains an effective platform to reach a wider breadth of your target audience. Perfect for upper funnel tactics, and lower with the right messaging.

With the larger push in short-form content recently, there are more options to reach our audience. With Google now monetizing Shorts, there is more potential to further value with the vertical creatives you are running in your campaigns.