YouTube Live is getting upgrades including AI-generated highlights and soon the ability to simultaneously broadcast in both horizontal and vertical formats, allowing creators “to reach viewers on every screen.” Playables on live minigames have been added as a way to ease newbies into live streaming. Creators can chat with their audience while playing from among 75+ games, monetizing the stream just like any other live broadcast. Next year, YouTube will begin testing live reactions, enabled by starting a mobile live stream to share reactions with others who are currently live.

“It turns any stream into a shared event, letting creators of all sizes share commentary, analysis, and real time reactions,” YouTube explains in a blog post that summarizes the news from Google’s Made on YouTube event.

The company believes live streaming “is primed to become a ‘cultural phenomenon,’” writes The New York Times, quoting the platform’s VP of Product Management Toni Reid, who puts it “at a similar inflection point as video podcasting was roughly four years ago.”

According to the video platform, more than 30 percent of daily logged-in YouTube viewers were watching live content in Q2 2025, tuning in to “everything from let’s plays to Q&As.”

“The live-streaming market continues to grow,” and YouTube is weathering intense competition from TikTok Live, reports TechCrunch, noting that the Playables move “could also position YouTube more squarely in competition with Twitch, a platform known for its strong emphasis on gamers.”

The simultaneous horizontal and vertical broadcast capability will “optimize the viewing experience for both desktop and mobile” while positioning the Google-owned company “to better compete with mobile-first platforms,” writes TechCrunch, noting that the platform is also adding “AI-powered highlights that automatically select the best moments from a live stream to turn them into shareable Shorts.”

Rolling out as a test early next year are the real-time live-stream reactions, which The Verge says “allows streamers to go live on mobile alongside content like live events and keynote announcements, building on the popularity of reaction streams on YouTube and Twitch, but with fewer concerns around licensing and copyright restrictions.”

Another new feature lets creators with channel memberships “transition between public and members-only live streams, encouraging viewers to become paying channel members to avoid missing out,” explains The Verge, pointing out that ads appearing alongside YouTube live streams on desktop and TV are “expanding to mobile devices later this year.”

Related:
YouTube Unveils Array of New AI Tools, Including Video Model, ETCentric, 9/18/25
YouTube Live Gets a Twitch and TikTok Inspired Update, Mashable, 9/16/25
YouTube Live: Ads That Don’t Stop Streams, Simultaneous Horizontal/Vertical Broadcasts, Tubefilter, 9/16/25