• by Colin Kirkland , May 16, 2025

In celebration of YouTube’s 20th anniversary as a video-sharing platform, the Google-owned company announced new ad options at its 2025 BrandCast event, as well as new ways in which advertisers can tap into key cultural trends and more.

“Peak Points” is YouTube’s newest ad product. Using Google’s Gemini AI models, Peak Points identifies meaningful (or “peak”) moments in video clips when audiences are most engaged and will essentially be the best spot for brands to run an ad.

YouTube will automatically label the “targeted moment” (for example, a proposal video’s peak would likely take place the instant the couple embraces after saying yes) directly before a promotion should be placed for the invested audience. 

Right now, Peak Points is still in beta. YouTube plans to roll out the product later this year.

Another product YouTube announced at its event -- “Cultural Moments Sponsorships -- falls in line with other recently unveiled products by Meta and TikTok that aim to help advertisers tap into cultural moments and in-app trends. 

Advertisers now have the opportunity to buy ads alongside major cultural moments, such as the PGA Championship, the Oscars, the Emmys, Black Friday, and other awards-season happenings. According to YouTube, this new suite of ad solutions will offer brands “a high share of voice and brand integrations” within content tapping directly into current culture clips. 

Additionally, YouTube is rolling out a shoppable CTV product feed on which users can browse and purchase items during an ad. “Shoppable TV,” which allows viewers to use their TV remote to click on products within ads on their big screen, is YouTube’s newest way of capitalizing on its position as the largest streaming video service in the U.S. 

Also notable to advertisers is a list of new data regarding Shorts engagement. YouTube says that Shorts views are up 20% year-over-year, with 70% of channels now posting Shorts. The short-form video format now earns as much per watch-hour as long-form videos in the U.S.