YouTube Tests Conversational AI Feature on TV

The competition to bring conversational AI into living rooms is intensifying, and YouTube is the latest to extend its AI tool to smart TVs, gaming consoles, and streaming devices.

Previously tested on mobile and web, this experimental feature now places conversational AI directly on the biggest screen at home. Users can inquire about what they're watching without ever leaving the video.

As outlined on YouTube’s support page, eligible viewers can tap an "Ask" button on their TV to activate the AI assistant. It provides video-specific suggested questions, or users can press their remote's microphone to ask anything about the content. For example, they could instantly get a recipe's ingredient list or learn the story behind a song's lyrics, all without pausing or switching apps.

The feature is currently in a limited test for users over 18 and supports English, Hindi, Spanish, Portuguese, and Korean.

YouTube first introduced this conversational AI tool in 2024 to help viewers explore content more deeply. Bringing it to TVs aligns with growing viewership on this platform; more Americans now watch YouTube on television than ever before. A Nielsen report from April 2025 found YouTube captured 12.4% of total TV viewing time, outpacing major players like Disney and Netflix.

Other tech giants are also pushing conversational AI forward. Amazon deployed Alexa+ on Fire TV, allowing for natural conversations where users can request personalized show recommendations, search for specific movie scenes, or ask about actors and filming details.

Roku, meanwhile, upgraded its AI voice assistant to answer open-ended questions about films and series, such as "What is this movie about?" or "How scary is it?" Netflix is also experimenting with its own AI-powered search.

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In another AI-driven effort to enhance TV viewing, YouTube recently launched a feature that automatically upscales lower-resolution uploaded videos to full HD quality.

The platform is also rolling out additional AI capabilities, including a comment summarizer to help viewers quickly grasp discussion highlights and an AI-generated search results carousel. This January, YouTube announced creators will soon be able to produce Shorts using AI-generated avatars of themselves.

Last week, YouTube also released a dedicated app for the Apple Vision Pro, allowing users to watch content on a virtual, theater-sized screen within an immersive environment.