YouTube Testing Google Lens Button With Object Detection, OCR-Based Search on Android: Report

YouTube is set to offer improved functionality with the integration of a new Google Lens button, according to a report. A new option to perform a search using Google's visual lookup tool has been added to the top panel that includes search bar on the YouTube app for Android, enabling users to take an image of an object and search for it on the video-streaming platform. The feature is now rolling out to users, which means not all users will see it immediately on their smartphones.

Google Lens on YouTube

According to a 9to5Google report, the YouTube app on Android has been updated with a new Google Lens button that brings support for the company's visual search tool to its popular streaming platform. It is shown to appear when searching for videos, alongside the microphone button that lets users dictate search terms instead of typing them.

Google Lens can identify objects in the viewfinder by comparing them with similar images on the Internet. It is also claimed to be capable of translating over 100 languages in real time. Google also says it can provide step-by-step instructions for completing homework. Additionally, it is also equipped with optical character recognition (OCR) functionality, which lets it identify text in images.

According to the publication, users will reportedly be able to capture images of objects using Google Lens and perform a search on YouTube. Apart from the search bar, the Lens icon also reportedly appears on top of the search results page on YouTube for Android.

Gadgets 360 staff members were unable to verify the availability of this feature on YouTube for Android. The report suggests that the Google Lens integration is being rolled out in a phased manner and all users may not see it on their handsets immediately.

YouTube Tests Dream Screen Support

YouTube also recently started testing a new Dream Screen feature for Shorts that will add custom green screen images generated by AI to the videos, according to a blog post by the company. To use it, creators can simply provide a text prompt describing what they want in the background.

It is speculated that this feature is aimed at creators who prefer to use creative backgrounds to stand out in the videos, without requiring the resources to do so. Google says it is an experimental feature, meaning only select Shorts creators will have access to it.