YouTube has announced that it is introducing a new feature that allows advertisers to use Google’s Gemini AI to determine ad placements in videos. The new ad format, called Peak Points, was revealed during the company’s Upfront presentation at its YouTube Brandcast event.
The way Peak Points works is by using Gemini to analyse videos and identify moments that have the highest viewer engagement or the most emotional impact. The AI will then suggest placing an ad immediately after these moments. The idea behind this is to grab the viewer’s attention at the point where they are the most invested in the content.
TechCrunch pointed out that this new form of advertising uses a strategy similar to emotion-based targeting, which involves placing ads that align with the feelings a video evokes in the viewer. Emotion-based targeting is based on the idea that viewers are more likely to remember ads when they are experiencing heightened emotional states.
However, it is quite likely that placing ads at these points in a video may only inspire ire in the viewer. An animation presenting the Peak Points feature showed a recommended ad placement immediately after a couple’s marriage proposal, which probably won’t evoke any positive emotions if the viewer is invested in what is happening in the video. That said, it is unclear how this system will actually play out in practice, and how disruptive the ads will be remains to be seen.
(Source: TechCrunch)
