YouTube tests new ‘Play Something’ button to help users find new content
With a click of a button, you can give YouTube the power of deciding what you'll watch today.
YouTube has long been the go-to platform for millions seeking everything from cat videos to educational tutorials. But with 3.7 million videos uploaded daily, it can sometimes be difficult to find the right one. Hours of scrolling, searching, and debating what to watch can leave users frustrated and indecisive.
To make browsing easier, YouTube has decided to rip a page from Netflix's playbook and is now testing a feature called "Play Something" to help users find something to watch without the hassle of deciding.
The "Play Something" button is perfect for those days when you're unsure what to pick from YouTube's vast content library or simply want to discover something new and interesting. Positioned just above the app’s bottom bar, the button plays a random video when tapped.
It can select a YouTube Shorts clip or a full-length video, but whatever it chooses will be displayed in portrait mode. While it's unclear why the platform opted for portrait mode, we hope this will change when the feature is fully released.
It's also not yet clear when the feature will be widely available, but for now, it's in beta on Android devices.
Kelechi Edeh
For obsessive YouTube viewers, like myself, who feel like they’ve seen it all, this feature would be a welcome addition. With YouTube’s recent push to test new features like voice replies and Shorts-style infinite scroll for long-form videos, it appears the platform is looking for fresh ways to keep things interesting.
Currently, YouTube is the second-largest social platform, with 2.7 billion monthly active users—barely beating WhatsApp, which has 2.4 billion users, according to Exploding Topics. With experimental updates like this one, that gap could widen significantly in the future.
