YouTube says it has paid creators more than $100 billion over last 4 years

In this articleGOOGL your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNTA Youtube podcast microphone is seen at the Variety Podcasting Brunch Presented By YouTube at Austin per Hotel in Austin, Texas, on March 8, 2025.Mat Hayward | Variety | Getty ImagesYouTube said on Tuesday it has paid out over $100 billion to creators, artists and media companies since 2021.The surge has been fueled in part by growing viewership on connected TVs. The number of channels making more than $100,000 from TV screens jumped 45% year over year, the company said.YouTube Chief duct Officer Johanna Voolich praised the power of creators to "shape culture and entertainment in ways we never thought possible" in a release announcing the benchmark and a series of other new features.The milestone comes as the Google-owned platform marks its 20th year and pushes to cement itself as one of the world's most lucrative media es.YouTube unveiled the d payout figure and a slate of new creator tools at its annual Made on YouTube event in New York City.Read more CNBC newsMeta Connect 2025: AI-powered smart glasses take center stageTesla's stock erases loss for the year, soaring 85% from April lowBessent: TikTok deal 'framework' reached with China, Trump and Xi will finalize it FridayChina says Nvidia violated anti-monopoly law after preliminary beThe company announced new artificial intelligence tools for YouTube Shorts, its short-form vertical duct. Creators will be able to turn raw footage into edited clips with AI and can add music, transitions and voiceover.New features also include the ability to turn dialogue from eligible s into a song to be used in the Short.Google's AI generator, Veo 3, will also be integrated into Shorts, YouTube said.Google uses a subset of YouTube s to train Veo 3, to the surprise of many YouTube creators, CNBC reported in June.YouTube turned 20 years old in April and announced it hosted over 20 billion s on the platform, including music, Shorts, and more.Last year, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said the company had paid $70 billion to creators between 2021 and 2024.