Your AI clone can now appear on YouTube – here's how to create your own AI Avatar

YouTube is rolling out a feature that will allow you to have your own avatar represent you in YouTube Shorts, with this avatar an AI creation. YouTube says that the feature is designed to "safely and securely" provide the tools to insert yourself into videos.

The feature was first hinted at alongside YouTube talking about features to combat AI slop on social platforms, with the company outlining that this will include watermarks and digital labels so that it's clear that it's AI content - which is perhaps what it means by "safely and securely".

When the feature arrives – it's currently heading to everyone "outside Europe" according to 9to5Google – it will be integrated into the YouTube app, so it'll be quick and easy to create an AI version of yourself to use in Shorts.

Google says that the creation process only has to be done once, but you will be able to go back and update your avatar as your look changes over time. You also need to be over the age of 18 to use it and have your own YouTube channel.

How to create your AI avatar in YouTube

Here are the steps you'll need to take to create your AI avatar:

• Open the YouTube app on your phone
• Tap + to create a new video and then hit the AI star in the top right-hand corner
• Hit "create video" and then "make a video with my avatar"
• You'll then be guided through a selfie and voice capture process
• Once you're happy, you can enter a prompt to create a video using your avatar

The creation of new content – remembering that YouTube doesn't seem to think this is going to lead to a proliferation of AI slop – isn't the only thing you'll be able to do. You'll also be able to add your AI avatar to other Shorts using the YouTube Create app.

The created videos can be up to 8 seconds long – Shorts can be up to 3 minutes long – but you can create a number of different AI videos and stitch them together.

It sounds like it could be a fun tool for some creators, but it isn't going to help boost the credibility of a platform where people are already calling out fake content and getting flooded by AI generated clips. If anything, this might just legitimise the process, but move it through Google's servers instead.