YouTube’s New Custom Feeds Feature Lets You Build Your Own Algorithm With AI

For years, YouTube’s recommendation algorithm has worked like a one-way mirror. It watches what you click, how long you watch, and what you skip – then serves you an endless feed designed to keep you scrolling. You had almost no say in the matter beyond a thumbs up or a “don’t recommend this channel.”

That’s finally changing.

At its annual Made on YouTube event on September 23, 2026, YouTube announced Custom Feeds – a new feature that lets you describe, in your own words, exactly what kind of videos you want to see. Think of it as building your own algorithm, powered by AI.

“The world is always at your fingertips,” said Emily Moxley, VP of Product Management for Viewer AI at YouTube, in a pre-brief with reporters. “There’s over 20 billion videos in the YouTube corpus, so you’re always one search away from a treasure trove of topics”.

What Are YouTube Custom Feeds?

Custom Feeds is a prompt-based feature that lets you create personalized recommendation feeds using natural language. Instead of relying solely on your watch history to shape your homepage, you simply type a description of what you want into a prompt box on YouTube.

The feature leverages Google’s Gemini AI model to build a feed around your request. The resulting feed is then pinned to the top of your YouTube home page in its own tab.

Here’s what makes it powerful: because the feed is AI-powered, you can describe your request in lengthy, detailed terms. You can specify:

• What the feed should feature
• What it should exclude
• What content to prioritize
• How you want the feed curated

YouTube’s own examples include building a feed of video podcasts for your 30-minute train commute, or requesting “relaxing commentary videos to unwind with” for a particular mood.

Wired’s testing showed just how specific you can get. One reviewer typed: “Gooey macaroni and cheese recipe videos, Caleb Hearon clip compilations, and crystal singing bowl videos under 15 minutes” – and the feed delivered exactly that.

How to Build Your Own YouTube Algorithm

Getting started with Custom Feeds is straightforward:

1. Open YouTube on web, mobile, or TV
2. Click the “Your custom feeds” button located below the search bar
3. Type a prompt describing the kind of videos you want to see
4. Let Gemini build the feed – YouTube will generate a personalized tab for you
5. Switch between feeds using the tabs at the top of your homepage

YouTube also suggests feed ideas based on your viewing habits. When Gizmodo’s reviewer tried the feature, they were served prompts like “cozy pop girl feed” and “AI policy breakdowns under 15 mins”.

You can create multiple custom feeds for different interests, moods, or routines. One feed could be for workout inspiration, another for deep-dive documentaries, and a third for comedy clips – each living in its own tab and automatically refreshing with new recommendations.

Importantly, Custom Feeds do not replace your main YouTube homepage. You can always access the standard algorithmic feed by clicking the “All” button. Custom feeds are an addition, not a replacement.

Why YouTube Is Doing This

YouTube’s move reflects a broader shift across social media platforms toward giving users more direct control over their algorithms.

Bluesky pioneered the idea of custom feeds years ago as a way to differentiate itself from X. This year, it rolled out Attie, an AI tool that makes feed-building even easier. Meta’s Threads and Instagram have launched their own custom feed features. X introduced AI-powered custom feeds earlier this year. And on the same day as YouTube’s announcement, Spotify began rolling out Taste Profiles, a feature that shows users how its algorithm understands their taste and lets them tweak it with plain language.

“Users are always telling us that they want more control,” Moxley told Wired. “They want more ability to steer their algorithm. With custom feeds, we’re giving them a natural-language way that they can do that. They can tell us exactly what they want”.

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Custom Feeds vs. Ask YouTube: What’s the Difference?

Custom Feeds isn’t the only AI feature YouTube announced at Made on YouTube. The company is also expanding Ask YouTube, its AI-powered search tool that lets you ask questions about videos and get compiled answers.

The key difference:

Ask YouTube is getting more sophisticated too. If you search for information about a new product, the AI can compile comparison tables from multiple videos and external sources, letting you click through to watch the videos that informed its answer.

What This Means for Creators and Advertisers

The rise of user-controlled algorithms has significant implications for the creator economy and advertising.

For creators, Custom Feeds could change how content gets discovered. Instead of relying purely on YouTube’s central algorithm to surface their videos, creators may need to think about how their content fits into specific niches and moods that users are actively requesting.

For advertisers, the shift could make audience discovery more challenging. As B&T reported, YouTube’s AI Custom Feeds create “personalised recommendation environments” that could complicate how advertisers target viewers.

YouTube, however, maintains that the goal is to improve the viewing experience. “Our goal is to connect viewers with the right video faster,” a YouTube spokesperson told CNET. “With Ask YouTube, we expect watch time to remain steady or improve”.

When Is It Rolling Out?

YouTube says Custom Feeds will roll out across web, mobile, and TV starting next month (October 2026) for users in the United States. The feature was tested as an experimental tool earlier this year before YouTube decided it was ready for a broader release.

The Bigger Picture: AI Takes Over YouTube

Custom Feeds is part of a much larger AI push at YouTube. The platform has been integrating Google’s Gemini models across its products, from content creation tools for Shorts to AI-generated video summaries.

The company has faced scrutiny over its AI features, particularly regarding child safety and addictive design. A landmark court decision earlier this year found that Meta and Google designed their sites to be intentionally addictive to children and teens, harming their mental health — a ruling YouTube has denied, saying it’s a streaming platform, not a social media platform.

The Bottom Line

YouTube’s Custom Feeds feature is a meaningful step toward giving users genuine control over what they see. It won’t completely replace the core algorithm – and it’s not meant to – but it offers a powerful new way to curate your viewing experience on your own terms.

If you’ve ever wished YouTube would just show you what you actually want to watch instead of guessing based on your watch history, Custom Feeds is the answer you’ve been waiting for. And it’s arriving next month.

Ready to build your own algorithm? Keep an eye out for the “Your custom feeds” button below the search bar when the feature rolls out to your account.

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