YouTube has announced the launch of its new annual recap feature, “YouTube Recap,” which allows users to review the content they watched on the platform throughout the year. This expands upon the annual recap feature already available on YouTube Music.

The new feature offers up to 12 personalized cards highlighting the user’s most-watched channels, interests, and evolving viewing habits, along with a personalized rating system reflecting their preferred content type.

These personalized ratings include “Skill Maker” for those drawn to educational content, “Joy Spreaders” for fans of positive content, and “Rule Breakers” for those who follow original and unconventional works. Other categories include “Wonder Seeker,” “Reacher,” and “Dreamer.”

Users will also be able to see their most-listened-to tracks of the year, with in-depth analytics available through the YouTube Music app as part of a similar feature that began rolling out last week.

YouTube explained that the launch of the feature comes in response to user requests, noting that it tested more than 50 prototypes before finalizing the design. The feature will be available starting today for YouTube users in North America, with a global rollout planned for later this week, accessible via the platform’s homepage or the “You” tab on both mobile devices and computers.

Coinciding with the launch of the Recap feature, YouTube also released its annual list of the top content creators and podcasts for 2025. MrBeast maintained its position at the top of the creators list for the sixth consecutive year, while “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast topped the list of most-streamed podcasts.

YouTube’s move comes on the same day that competing platforms announced similar features, indicating their efforts to secure an early position in the trend of users sharing personal data about their favorite content on social media at the end of each year.

YouTube is retesting direct messaging… a much-requested feature returns after six years.
YouTube has revived its in-app direct messaging feature, in a renewed effort to allow users to share videos and chat without leaving the platform.

According to its official support page, Google has begun testing the feature with users aged 18 and over in Ireland and Poland, enabling them to exchange messages, share long and short videos (shorts), and go live.

While private messaging typically offers users a sense of privacy, Google has stated that conversations “may be subject to review” to ensure compliance with the platform’s community guidelines. The new system also includes additional safeguards, such as opt-in messaging, which only begins after a chat invitation is sent and accepted, and the ability to block users or report messages that violate the platform’s policies.

This marks a second attempt at the feature after its initial launch in 2017, which was subsequently removed in 2019 due to low adoption. At that time, the platform opted to focus on public comments.

Google says that in-app messaging on YouTube has become “one of the most requested” features among users, as audiences increasingly rely on sharing videos within apps like TikTok and Instagram.

Google is betting that the timing is perfect this time, as competing platforms are heavily focused on keeping users engaged for longer periods through integrated sharing and messaging tools. The current test is limited to just two countries, pending an assessment of user engagement before a global rollout is decided.

While the platform is trying to determine whether this second trial will be more successful, the question remains whether YouTube can revive a feature that was previously overlooked, or whether it will simply become another attempt to add social functionality that fails to gain traction.

Google is expected to make its decision regarding the gradual expansion of the feature in the coming months, based on usage metrics in the two countries where it is currently testing. These metrics include the number of conversations created, user engagement, and the volume of reported messages—factors that will directly determine the future of messaging on YouTube.