AI meets hyper-exact ad placement in YouTube’s latest pitch to advertisers. YouTube has announced a new ad placement scheme based on AI assessment of something called Peak Points — the moments in videos which have highest engagement, or are emotionally impactful.
As one might presuppose, AI is involved in determining those moments. The idea is to grab the user’s attention when they are most focused on the content. We see the value there, but wonder how it will balance with a theoretical Pissed Point over the interruption. As TechCrunch theorizes: “However, viewers may find these interruptions frustrating, especially when they’re deeply engaged in the emotional arc of a video and want the ad to be over quickly to resume watching.”
At any rate, we asked Google’s Gemini AI to explain Peak Points:
- Gemini AI analysis: YouTube employs Google’s Gemini AI to analyze videos, identifying “peak” moments where viewer engagement is highest.
- Strategic ad placement: Ads are then placed immediately following these peak moments, aiming to maximize ad viewability and effectiveness.
- Emotional and Contextual Cues: Gemini analyzes various cues like facial expressions, voice tone, and contextual elements within the video to determine the optimal ad placement.

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