YouTube Shorts Launches AI Tool That Turns Images Into Video, Unveils New Effects

YouTube has unveiled new generative AI capabilities for Shorts creators, introducing an image-to-video AI tool and a collection of fresh AI effects.

The image-to-video feature transforms any photo from your gallery into a dynamic six-second clip. Users receive tailored suggestions based on their uploaded image. According to YouTube, this tool can inject motion into scenic landscapes, animate everyday snapshots, or enliven group photos.

In a demonstration, YouTube showed how a still image of a pedestrian crossing signal was converted into a brief video that gently zooms in on a dancing version of the walking figure.

This functionality mirrors an existing feature in Gemini and is comparable to the 'Animate' tool in Meta's Edits app, both using AI to convert static images into video format.

The new tool is launching this week across the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with plans to expand to additional regions later this year. Notably, Google Photos is also developing a similar image-to-video capability.

The accompanying AI effects enable creators to convert simple sketches into artistic visuals and transform selfies into scenarios like underwater swimming or creating digital twins. These generative effects are accessible through the "Effects" icon in the Shorts camera, where users can tap "AI" to explore the full collection.

YouTube confirms these new features are powered by Veo 2, Google's advanced AI model for video generation. The platform employs SynthID watermarks and clear labeling to identify AI-generated content.

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During last month's Cannes Lions 2025, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced that Google's Veo 3 video generator—capable of producing both video and audio—will arrive on Shorts later this summer. He also revealed that Shorts now averages over 200 billion daily views.

In addition, YouTube introduced AI Playground as the new central hub for generative AI creation tools, featuring inspirational examples, pre-filled prompts, and more. Creators can access AI Playground by tapping the create button followed by the sparkle icon in the top corner. It's currently available to all users in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.