TVs have become the primary viewing platform for YouTube in the U.S., surpassing mobile and desktop by watch time. The platform, which turns 20 this year, has gone from people “filming grainy videos of themselves on desktop computers to building studios and producing popular talk shows and feature-length films.” Content creators are “becoming the startups of Hollywood,” wrote CEO Neal Mohan in his annual letter to the YouTube user base. Mohan emphasized the company’s role in the entertainment ecosystem as 2024 marked the second consecutive year that YouTube was the most-watched streaming platform in the U.S., according to Nielsen.

“YouTube TV has more than 8 million subscribers and YouTube Music & Premium has more than 100 million subscribers (including trials),” Mohan noted in YouTube’s annual blog post.

Among the new engines stoking “the epicenter of culture,” Mohan “cited sports creators and trick-shot specialists Dude Perfect, who recently opened a new $5 million headquarters in Texas; buffalo-wing-challenge talk show ‘Hot Ones’; and Inoxtag, a French influencer who produced a 2.5-hour documentary about his preparation to climb Mount Everest,” Variety reports.

Mohan also recognized Alan Chikin Chow, who opened a 10,000 square foot studio in Burbank described by Mohan as “a bold, fun and colorful space filled with cutting edge equipment that produces incredible entertainment watched by millions around the world.”

“In 2024, more than 50 percent of channels earning at least $10,000 on YouTube generated revenue from sources other than ads and YouTube Premium, according to Mohan,” writes Variety, noting these “include shopping recommendations and channel memberships.” To fuel that, YouTube recently began rolling out Communities, a fan-engagement hub Variety says is designed to replace comments.

“We’ll also bring Hype, a new feature that helps fans rally around up and coming creators, to more markets around the world,” Mohan said of 2025 plans.

Mohan identified AI as a “big bet” for YouTube, with new tools like “Dream Screen and Dream Track which generate image backgrounds, video backgrounds and instrumental soundtracks for Shorts,” and talked up an in-development feature “to help individuals detect and control how AI is used to depict them on YouTube.”

“The executive pointed to the company’s investments in AI tools for creators, including ones for video ideas, thumbnails, and language translation,” explains TechCrunch, noting that AI dubbing, announced in December, “will roll out to all creators in YouTube’s Partner Program this month, the company said, while another AI feature will identify users’ ages to customize appropriate content and recommendations.”