YouTube is courting creators — and sponsors — with streaming shows

A striking development has emerged in artificial intelligence. News NewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. FollowSee All News Podcasts PodcastsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. FollowSee All Podcasts Streaming StreamingPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.

FollowSee All StreamingYouTube is courting creators — and sponsors — with streaming showsThe platform announced a slew of new shows from popular creators in front of a room full of brands and advertisers. The platform announced a slew of new shows from popular creators in front of a room full of brands and advertisers. by Mia Sato Mia SatoFeatures Writer, The VergePosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.

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FollowSee All by Mia SatoMay 13, 2026, 9:30 PM UTC Image: YouTube Mia Sato Mia SatoPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. FollowSee All by Mia Sato is features writer with five years of experience covering the companies that shape technology and the people who use their tools. In the ongoing fight for content and talent, YouTube is pitching itself as the connector between the creators and advertisers — and marketing its creators not just as the future of social media, but also of advertising, TV, streaming, and entertainment more broadly.

At the company’s annual advertiser event in New York on Wednesday, YouTube introduced a new slate of exclusive shows coming to the platform, hosted by some big names: a travel show with Trevor Noah, a Met Gala documentary series from podcaster Alex Cooper, a new series from Kareem Rahma, the host of the popular show Subway Takes, and more. The pitch to advertisers: Invest in these YouTube-only series. On the content creator side, YouTube’s appeal has long been its relatively generous ad revenue split that creators earn through views.

But the company has steadily added more and more ways for content creators to make money, like shopping features and a hub for brands to find creators that might be a fit for them. Advertisers are also increasingly dumping money into sponsored videos, where creators can swap out brand sponsors when a campaign is over, essentially creating a billboard that constantly updates. RelatedIt’s finally time to retire the word ‘podcast’YouTube is everything and everything is YouTubeYouTube accounts for a huge chunk of what people watch: 12.

7 percent of all TV viewing, according to Nielsen. It also offers advertisers more than 3 million eligible content creators whose content can serve as an ad space, along with built-in AI tools to help advertisers find those channels. Rahma told The New York Times this week that when he started posting his series on YouTube, the company offered to help him secure sponsors for his new show (and spin up his Emmy campaign).

This advance offers important signals about the future of the sector, and the tech world is watching closely.