The updated guidance, which took effect on July 16, expands the platform's existing policy on "inauthentic content" for members of the YouTube Partner Program. The changes do not ban AI-generated content outright but specify the types of videos that are no longer eligible for monetization.
Under the revised rules, YouTube identifies three categories of content that could prevent a channel from earning advertising and subscription revenue. These include repetitive or template-based videos with little originality, distressing or emotionally manipulative content designed to attract views, and AI-generated personas discussing sensitive topics such as healthcare, finance, legal matters, or medical advice.
YouTube's Trust and Safety Chief Matt Halprin said AI can help creators produce more high-quality content and enhance creativity, but it can also be used to flood the platform with generic, repetitive videos that lack originality. Such material, including tutorial videos that simply replicate widely available content without adding new value, may no longer qualify for monetization.
The updated policy also targets "off-putting" content, including videos designed to provoke emotional reactions. As an example, Halprin cited videos showing animals in distress before being rescued. Channels primarily focused on this type of content may be removed from the YouTube Partner Program, regardless of whether AI was used in their production.
The third category addresses AI-generated representations of real people. YouTube said it does not want to encourage creators to use AI personas to discuss subjects where inaccurate or misleading information could have greater consequences, including health, finance, and legal issues.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that a Los Angeles County jury found Meta Platforms and YouTube liable for causing harm to a user in the first trial addressing social media addiction.