Google TV’s home screen is getting a new feature no one asked for ‣ Diverse Daily

On most streaming devices and smart TVs, the home screen is where you go to quickly launch the app you want or browse recommendations for shows and movies. But later this summer, Google TV wants to turn it into a place where you can doomscroll, too.

Google recently announced plans to bring YouTube Shorts directly to the Google TV home screen, letting you watch Shorts without opening the YouTube app. They’ll appear in a new row called “Short videos for you,” which Google describes as a “personalized feed of snackable videos.”

The update is set to roll out first to Google TV devices in the US later this summer, though Google hasn’t shared an exact launch date yet.

Additionally, Google seems to be leaving the door open for more apps to join its new short-video row. In its blog post, the tech giant says it will “start with YouTube Shorts,” suggesting that other short-form video platforms could eventually appear on your Google TV home screen as well. Instagram and TikTok are two of the biggest short-form video platforms, so perhaps they could appear one day.

Is this really necessary?

More AI features are also being added to Google TV

While short-form video has undeniably exploded in popularity over the past few years — and yes, I’ll admit I spend far too much time scrolling Instagram Reels myself — I can’t help but feel like adding YouTube Shorts to the Google TV home screen is completely unnecessary. More importantly, it raises one big question: who exactly is asking for this?

Personally, if I want to watch short videos, I’m reaching for my phone, where it’s easier to scroll, share clips with friends, and mindlessly kill time. On the other hand, I turn to my TV to escape endless scrolling and get away from my phone. But Google seems increasingly focused on bringing more phone-like experiences to the biggest screen in your house.

Alongside YouTube Shorts, Google also announced its rolling out more Gemini AI features to Google TV, including its Nano Banana image generation tool so you can create images right on your TV, as well as support for generating videos with Google Veo.

…I turn to my TV to escape endless scrolling and get away from my phone.

The tech giant also announced new Google Photos features for Google TV, including the ability to remix your photos using your AI, like turning a selfie you have into an oil painting, and the ability to search for photos you have saved using your voice. So if you’re on your TV and want to randomly pull up photos from a vacation you took, or an event you went to, you can do that just by asking your TV. Additionally, you can now set Google Photos as your screensaver, so when you’re not using your Google TV, it turns into a gallery of personal photos.

While having YouTube Shorts on the home screen, along with image- and video-generation tools coming to Google TV, feels unnecessary and a bit mind-boggling to me, I do see some value in the new Google Photos features, especially the ability to turn your TV’s screensaver into a slideshow of your favorite photos.

For better or worse, Google is now rolling out its new Gemini features to Google TV, with the YouTube Shorts row expected to land on home screens in the US sometime this summer.