YouTube Puts a Prompt-Based Feed Builder on the Homepage

YouTube is adding a new “Custom Feeds” button to its homepage, giving users a direct way to describe the mix of videos they want to see — and have the platform generate a personalized feed around that request.

The feature, announced during YouTube’s Made on YouTube event, sits below the search bar alongside tabs such as Music and Podcasts. A viewer can open it, type a natural-language prompt like “rainy Shanghai vibe: café jazz, street food, and vlogs,” and YouTube uses large language models to produce a freshly tailored homepage.

Custom Feeds began as an experimental feature and will now roll out to all US users across mobile, desktop, and TV. Users can save multiple custom feeds, and the standard homepage remains available through the “All” button. YouTube also suggests prompt extensions, such as “uploaded this month” or “without talking or commentary.”

Emily Moxley, YouTube’s vice president of product management, said the tool responds to viewers who want more control over the algorithm in a natural-language way. The update arrived alongside broader generative AI additions, including an expanded Ask YouTube tool for shopping-related video questions.

Why YouTube Chose Low-Stakes Steering Over a Direct Algorithm Dial

YouTube’s Deliberate Choice: Prompts, Not a Direct Recommendation Dial

YouTube’s team tested a feature that would let users directly steer the overall recommendation algorithm and decided not to ship it. Moxley said testers were “nervous and afraid” of messing it up. Custom Feeds is the low-stakes compromise: users can experiment with a separate feed without altering the default homepage. That is a meaningful product distinction — it gives a sense of control while protecting YouTube’s core ranking system from user error or anxiety.

A Familiar Industry Pattern, With YouTube’s Scale

The move follows Meta’s “Your Algorithm” controls on Instagram and Spotify’s prompted playlists. Across these platforms, generative text is becoming a user-facing tool for personalization. For YouTube, this also feeds the company a new kind of preference signal: natural-language prompts that can reveal what viewers want in their own words, potentially informing future recommendation work without surrendering the main feed.

How to Try Custom Feeds When the Button Reaches Your Account

When the button appears on your account, there are a few low-effort ways to make it useful:

  • Type a specific, multi-part request rather than a broad search term — for example, combining a topic, a format, and a length limit.
  • Use YouTube’s suggested prompt add-ons, such as “uploaded this month” or “without talking or commentary,” to refine the feed further.
  • Save multiple custom feeds for different moods or routines, and return to your standard homepage anytime via the “All” button.

Custom Feeds do not replace your normal recommendations, so experimenting with a prompt carries little risk of permanently reshaping your default feed.