YouTube is testing the Notes feature

YouTube will soon allow users to add “notes” as part of a new feature to add additional context to videos. The feature will be available in the US first.

YouTube will invite some users and creators in an initial test phase to write annotations, which are said to provide "relevant, timely and easy-to-understand context" to videos.

For example, annotations can clarify when a song is meant to be a parody, warn when a new version of a tested product is available, or inform viewers when older footage is mistakenly treated as a current event.

Social media platform X has a similar feature called Community Notes, which allows select users to add context to posts, including labels such as "misleading" and "taken out of context."

The YouTube Notes feature will initially be available on mobile devices for users in the US and in English. During this phase, independent evaluators will evaluate the usability of the annotations, which will help train the systems before a possible wider rollout, YouTube said.

American viewers will be able to experience the new feature in the coming weeks.