The extent to which artificial intelligence (AI) is used in YouTube’s Shorts format has ignited a new crisis in the digital publishing world. Extensive field research conducted by the video editing platform Kapwing proved that one in three short videos presented to users is created using AI tools.

AI-powered content has exploded.

Analysis of newly created accounts shows that 33% of the top 500 suggested videos consist entirely of low-effort content focused on viewer manipulation. A large portion of these videos lack any narrative coherence, opting instead to increase watch time by creating visual clutter.

This digital transformation is also fundamentally disrupting the economic balance on the platform. According to research data, channels that create content using AI are surpassing professional producers and generating enormous revenues. The Indian-based channel Bandar Apna Dost, which earns approximately $4 million annually with its entirely AI-generated monkey videos, is the most concrete example of this.

The time spent preparing content by real people using expensive equipment and weeks of preparation is being replaced by videos generated in seconds with commands. This directly lowers the quality of content on YouTube and risks eliminating professional creators from the ecosystem.

From an advertiser and user experience perspective, the platform’s credibility is facing a major test. Brands are expressing their discomfort with their ads appearing alongside low-quality and meaningless content, while YouTube management is caught between innovation and quality control.

Current data confirms that users’ access to real and high-quality information is increasingly restricted, and the sense of belonging to the platform is weakening. While these AI-generated videos achieve high viewership numbers in the short term, they are causing permanent damage to the unique structure of digital publishing in the long term.