YouTube Launches AI Age-Verification in U.S., Which Will Automatically Restrict Users Estimated to Be Under 18

Authors: Todd Spangler

Publisher:

Variety

Published: 8/13/2025

Language:English

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Aura Windfall

Good morning mikey1101, I'm Aura Windfall, and this is Goose Pod for you. Today is Wednesday, August 27th.

Mask

I'm Mask, we are here to discuss YouTube Launches AI Age-Verification in U.S., Which Will Automatically Restrict Users Estimated to Be Under 18.

Aura Windfall

Let's get started. The truth is, creating safe digital spaces for young people is a monumental challenge. YouTube is now using an AI model in the U.S. to estimate a user's age, aiming to provide a more protected, age-appropriate experience for teens.

Mask

It’s a necessary disruption. The goal is, 'so that teens are treated as teens and adults as adults.' This AI infers age from platform activity and account history, completely bypassing whatever birthday a user initially entered. It's about actual behavior, not just self-reported data.

Aura Windfall

And it seems they're being quite deliberate, starting with a small group of users to monitor the experience. It’s a thoughtful approach to see how this impacts everyone, from viewers to the creators themselves, which is a powerful step forward.

Mask

Right. And if the AI misjudges you, you can appeal by verifying your age with an ID or credit card. It’s their attempt to put a real fence where there was only a painted line before, but it's a start.

Aura Windfall

This didn't just happen overnight, of course. This journey really began back in 2019 after a major settlement with the FTC. That was the moment of reckoning that forced a deeper look at how the platform serves content to children and protects their privacy.

Mask

Reckoning is right. The result was the 'made for kids' designation. Every creator suddenly had to declare if their content was for children. If it was, a whole suite of features vanished—no personalized ads, no comments. It was a blunt instrument, but it was a start.

Aura Windfall

And it created a new landscape. We saw the rise of the YouTube Kids app and supervised accounts, giving parents more direct control. What I know for sure is that these tools empower families to guide their children’s digital journey, which is a powerful step forward.

Mask

It’s all part of building a tiered system. But the rules can be crude. For example, no one under 13 can appear in a live stream unless an adult is literally right there on camera with them. It’s a policy born from necessity, designed to prevent exploitation.

Aura Windfall

Exactly. These policies, from content designation to live stream rules, are all foundational pieces. They built the framework that this new AI system is now being built upon, adding another layer of automated, intelligent protection to the platform's ecosystem.

Aura Windfall

But there's an inherent conflict here. For years, the simple 'I'm over 13' checkbox was the only barrier, a system built on trust that was, let's be honest, easily bypassed by almost any tech-savvy child who wanted to get around it.

Mask

The FTC called their bluff in 2019, ruling that checkbox was meaningless. Then the UK passed a law allowing AI for age checks, which gave Google a scalable model that’s less invasive than demanding IDs from everyone. It was the perfect pragmatic solution.

Aura Windfall

So the existence of this technology created a new responsibility. Once you have the tool to know a user's likely age, you can no longer claim ignorance. The capability itself forces a higher standard of action and accountability from these huge platforms.

Mask

Exactly. Google can’t tell the FTC they don't know anymore. They have the AI, and now they're forced to use it in the US to comply with that settlement. This isn't innovation for fun; this is innovation driven by intense regulation.

Aura Windfall

And the impact of this is profound. There’s a deep concern about privacy. A YouGov poll showed 62% of U.S. users are against AI age estimation, fearing it's a step toward too much digital surveillance, which is a valid fear we all should consider.

Mask

For creators, the fear is financial. If their audience gets re-classified as teens, that means no personalized ads and a direct hit to revenue. Restricting features like comments can also kill a channel's community engagement and its overall vibe. It's a huge risk.

Aura Windfall

It's that classic struggle between safety and freedom. We all want a safer internet for kids, but the question remains: at what cost to our personal privacy and autonomy online? It's a delicate balance we have to find together.

Aura Windfall

So, where do we go from here? This technology feels like the start of a larger conversation about digital identity. The path forward requires careful navigation to protect kids while honoring everyone’s privacy rights and personal freedoms online. It is a true challenge.

Mask

This is inevitable. The debate is no longer *if* we verify age online, but *how*. This AI is just version one. The next decade will be defined by this technological arms race between verification and user anonymity. It's the next great frontier.

Aura Windfall

That's the end of today's discussion. Thank you for listening to Goose Pod.

Mask

See you tomorrow.

## YouTube Rolls Out AI Age-Estimation in the U.S. to Automatically Restrict Users Under 18 **Report Provider:** Variety **Author:** Todd Spangler **Published:** August 13, 2025 ### Overview YouTube, a Google-owned platform, has begun testing an **AI-powered age-estimation model** in the United States. This technology aims to automatically identify users under the age of 18 and apply certain restrictions to their accounts, regardless of the birthday information provided by the user. The initiative is presented as a measure to enhance protections for younger viewers. ### Key Findings and Features: * **AI-Driven Age Estimation:** The core of the update is an AI model that analyzes various user signals, including YouTube activity and account longevity, to predict if a user is under 18. * **Automatic Restrictions:** If the AI system estimates a user to be under 18, their account will automatically have restrictions and enhanced security measures enabled. * **User Verification Option:** Users who believe the AI's age estimation is incorrect will have the option to verify their age through methods such as government ID, selfie, or credit card. * **Phased Rollout:** The technology is initially being rolled out to a "small set of users" in the U.S. to refine its accuracy and ensure a positive user experience. * **Global Precedent:** YouTube has reportedly been using similar machine learning models to estimate user ages in other countries where the technology has been effective. ### Protections for Users Under 18: The restrictions applied to accounts identified as belonging to users under 18 mirror those already in place for users who have self-declared their age as under 18. These include: * **Non-Personalized Ads:** Only ads that are not tailored to individual user preferences will be shown. * **Digital Wellbeing Tools:** Features like "take a break" reminders and bedtime reminders will be enabled by default. * **Privacy Reminders:** Users will receive prompts about privacy when uploading videos or commenting publicly. * **Minimized Problematic Recommendations:** Recommendations for videos with content that could be "problematic if viewed in repetition" will be minimized. * **Blocked Age-Restricted Content:** Access to videos specifically age-restricted for viewers 18 and older will be blocked. ### Impact on Creators: While YouTube anticipates a "limited impact" for most creators, some may experience changes: * **Private Uploads by Default:** For users identified as under 18, new uploads will be set to private by default. * **Restricted Gifting on Live Streams:** The ability to earn from gifts on vertical live streams will be restricted for this user group. * **Potential Ad Revenue Shift:** Creators may see a decrease in ad revenue if a significant portion of their audience is re-categorized as teens, due to the limitation of serving non-personalized ads to these viewers. ### YouTube's Stated Goals: James Beser, senior director of product management for YouTube's youth products, emphasized that the move is about "delivering safety protections while preserving teen privacy" and ensuring that "teens are treated as teens and adults as adults." He stated that the platform aims to provide "safe and enriching experiences" and will continue to invest in protecting users' ability to explore online safely.

Read original at Variety →

Are you a kid watching YouTube? The Google-owned platform is testing technology in the U.S. that can predict if you’re under 18 — and automatically add certain restrictions to your account.YouTube says the move is aimed at providing better protections for younger users. On Wednesday, it began rolling out an “age-estimation model” in the U.

S. that uses AI to determine if someone is under 18, regardless of the birthday they’ve entered into their account.If YouTube’s AI-based system calculates that someone is likely less than 18 years old, it will place restrictions on and add other security measures to the account. According to YouTube, users will “have the option to verify your age (through government ID, selfie or a credit card) if you believe our age estimation model is incorrect.

”Popular on VarietyThe rollout of AI will initially cover a “small set of users” in the U.S. to estimate their age, “so that teens are treated as teens and adults as adults,” James Beser, senior director of product management for YouTube’s youth products, wrote in blog post. “This technology will allow us to infer a user’s age and then use that signal, regardless of the birthday in the account, to deliver our age-appropriate product experiences and protections.

”YouTube has used machine learning to estimate users’ ages in other countries “for some time, where it is working well,” according to Beser. In the U.S., YouTube will “closely monitor the user experience, and partner with Creators to ensure that the entire ecosystem benefits from this update,” he added.

According to YouTube, the age estimation model uses a variety of signals such as YouTube activity and longevity of the account. If the system determines that you are under 18, you will be notified and “standard protections for teen accounts on YouTube will automatically be enabled.”Those “protections” (which are already applied for users who have told YouTube they’re under 18) include: showing only non-personalized ads; enabling “digital wellbeing” tools by default, including “take a break” and bedtime reminders; showing reminders about privacy when uploading a video or commenting publicly; minimizing recommendations of videos with content that could be “problematic if viewed in repetition”; and blocking access to videos that are age-restricted for only viewers 18 and older (determined by YouTube or verified by users).

For creators, YouTube will apply some additional protections including setting uploads as private by default for anyone and restricting the ability to earn from gifts on vertical live streams. While the video platform expects the changes to have “limited impact” for most creators, YouTube noted that “some creators may experience a shift in their audience categorized as teens (under 18).

This may result in a decrease in ad revenue since we only serve non-personalized ads to those viewers.”“YouTube was one of the first platforms to offer experiences designed specifically for young people, and we’re proud to again be at the forefront of introducing technology that allows us to deliver safety protections while preserving teen privacy,” Beser wrote in the blog post.

“Families trust YouTube to provide a safe and enriching experience, and we’ll continue to invest to protect their ability to explore safely online.”