YouTube tests AI-generated quizzes on educational videos

YouTube is experimenting with AI-generated quizzes on its mobile app for iOS and Android devices, which are designed to help viewers learn more about a subject featured in an educational video. The feature will also help the video-sharing platform get a better understanding of how well each video covers a certain topic.

The AI-generated quizzes, which YouTube noted on its experiments page yesterday, are rolling out globally to a small percentage of users that watch “a few” educational videos, the company wrote. The quiz feature is only available for a select portion of English-language content, which will appear on the home feed as links under recently watched videos.

Not all of YouTube’s experiments make it to the platform, so it will be interesting to see if this one sticks around. We’re not sure how many people — especially if they’re no longer in school — want to take a quiz while they scroll through videos.

However, YouTube has long established itself as a destination for users to learn new things, whether it’s how to change a car tire or even perform a backflip. “Edutainment” accounts like TED-Ed and HowToBasic are among the more popular educational YouTube channels, with 18.8 million and 17.3 million subscribers, respectively.

Additionally, many teachers go on YouTube to create educational content or discover and share videos with their students. So, for those that genuinely want to learn more about a topic, the new quiz feature could be an effective way to gain a deeper understanding of the material.

Earlier this year, YouTube partnered with Crash Course and Arizona State University to launch its “Study Hall” initiative, which gives college students free access to four courses covering various subjects, including college math, U.S. history, English composition and more. Crash Course, a channel run by John and Hank Green, has 14.8 million subscribers and approximately 1.6 billion views.

Separately, YouTube has also been testing features such as a three-strikes ad-blocking policy and a new lock screen feature for Premium subscribers.