Arrr! 'Tis said that YouTube be makin' a grand notion to find ye tunes by merely hummin'!
2023-08-24
Arr, me hearties, ye won't believe the tales! Google be tryin' newfangled tricks on YouTube, me shipmates. They say, if ye dare hum a merry tune for three ticks o' the clock, ye'll uncover the secret shanties ye seek.
YouTube is testing out a new search function that can identify songs just from someone humming a tune. This feature is part of a project to introduce Shazam-like technology to YouTube. It allows people to look up songs either by humming or recording a song that's currently being played into the voice search tool. The humming or recording must last at least three seconds for the song to be identified. Once found, YouTube will bring up relevant, official content from YouTube channels or user-generated videos featuring the track. The test is currently limited to a small percentage of people who watch YouTube on Android devices.While the technology behind analyzing humming to find specific music tracks is not new, YouTube's version appears to have been vastly improved. Google Search and Google Assistant for mobile already rolled out this functionality in 2020, but YouTube only requires three seconds of humming compared to 10 seconds on Google Assistant. It remains to be seen if Apple's Shazam will follow suit and incorporate humming and singing into their music recognition software.
In addition to the humming search feature, Google is also experimenting with a "channel shelf" feature on YouTube, which bundles together multiple uploads from a user's Subscription feed. This is aimed at making it easier for users to find and engage with content, as well as alleviating pressure on creators who feel the need to upload videos multiple times a day.
Overall, YouTube's new search function and channel shelf feature aim to enhance user experience and make it easier to discover and enjoy music and other content on the platform.