YouTube will soon let you make three-minute shorts

Creators can now create YouTube Shorts with a duration of up to three minutes, the company announced Thursday. This change is part of a broader rollout of features including templates, the ability to mix YouTube videos directly with Shorts, a video generation model powered by artificial intelligence (AI), and new ways to generate trending content on Discover YouTube. The video streaming platform says these additions give creators more tools to better express themselves.

YouTube Shorts gets new features

In a blog afterYouTube has announced that it will increase the duration of Shorts to a maximum of three minutes starting October 15. This change applies to videos created with a square or higher aspect ratio, but does not affect existing Shorts. The company noted that it was a “highly requested feature” by creators.

Creators can also stay on top of the latest trends by creating trusted content with the addition of a template feature. They can tune their clips to the trend sounds and then further customize them. Shorts can be recreated by tapping Remixes option next to Shorts and then select Use this template. In the coming months, YouTube will also roll out the ability to access its videos via the Shorts camera. This is said to make remixes easier. Shorts creators can also extract clips directly from YouTube videos and use them in their content.

The video streaming platform also re-emphasized that it will be rolling out Google DeepMind’s Veo video generation AI model in the coming months, bringing more video backgrounds and standalone video clips. YouTube says it’s making it easier for viewers to keep up with the latest trends with a new Shorts trends page on mobile. Previews of comments also appear in the Shorts feed, so creators can get a taste of what their audience has to say.

However, if YouTube users don’t prefer Shorts, they can now adjust their recommendations by using the Show fewer shorts option.