Netflix Reportedly Turns To Generative AI To Boost Engagement As YouTube Emerges As A Bigger Rival

• Bloomberg said that the company’s chief product and technology officer, Elizabeth Stone, said that the company is also testing a voice user interface, among other experiments, to improve tailored recommendations. 
• Meanwhile, The Guardian reported that across 20 international markets, average daily viewing per YouTube account increased in 2025, while it decreased for Netflix.
• The report also noted that Netflix has a vast viewership on YouTube, with its official channel having the highest reach of any channel last year.

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) is reportedly leveraging generative artificial intelligence capabilities to help its users navigate its content and find better recommendations.

According to a report from Bloomberg, the streaming service’s chief product and technology officer, Elizabeth Stone, said at the Bloomberg Tech conference in San Francisco on Wednesday that its generative AI capabilities will provide customers “the more personalized, the more interactive, the more immersive” experience of choosing their picks.

This announcement comes even as other reports suggest that Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOG, GOOGL) YouTube has surpassed the streaming giant in average daily viewing among users around the world.

Netflix’s AI Push

Netflix has started using generative AI and natural language processing to help viewers choose the best watches based on mood. The company is also testing a voice user interface, among other experiments to improve tailored recommendation, Stone said, as per the report.

“That helps to solve a consumer frustration that’s brewing, which is, there’s so much content. How do I make sense of it, and what’s right for me, and what’s right for me in this moment?” Stone said.

YouTube Is ‘TV’

Netflix's AI experiment comes as YouTube is becoming the preferred entertainment platform among users. A report from The Guardian noted that analysis from Digital i across 20 international markets showed that the average daily viewing per YouTube account increased to 99.1 minutes in 2025 from 87.2 minutes in 2024, while Netflix saw the average daily viewing decline to 93.4 minutes from 100.5 minutes over the same period.

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos reportedly recently acknowledged the changing landscape, saying, "YouTube is not just cat videos anymore. YouTube is TV."

YouTube’s pivot from laptops and smartphones to television has accelerated, contributing to the rise in viewership. According to The Guardian, TV’s share of YouTube viewing time increased from 28% to 35% from Jan. 2024 to Dec. 2025.

It is also worth noting that Netflix has a vast viewership on YouTube, with its official channel having the highest reach of any channel last year, reaching 78.2 million unique accounts.

Retail Stance On Netflix

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around NFLX has stayed ‘bullish’ amid ‘high’ message volumes even as the stock has clocked eight consecutive sessions in the red territory.

One bullish user said “NFLX is the best safe haven now,” saying that the stock’s decline was an overreaction that “will adjust.”

Another user commented, “Perhaps this will start getting some love with this AI sell-off. AI has blinded people's eyes to even notice cheap non-AI stocks.”

NFLX stock has declined more than 34% in the past year, weighed down by softer subscriber growth and higher content spending, even as a proposed deal for acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery’s (WBD) streaming and film assets fell through.

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

Also Read: NFLX Stock Reverses Course Overnight: Retail Shrugs Off Outgoing Chairman’s Sale As ‘Routine’