YouTube seems to have finally listened to your collective WTFs on ads that randomly appear during videos

At long last, YouTube has finally heard our collective WTFs about those obnoxious mid-roll ads that crash your binge-watching sessions. Starting May 12, 2025, the video giant is rolling out a revamped mid-roll ad system designed to be less intrusive and more in tune with the natural rhythm of your favorite content.

Gone are the days when an ad would pop up right when you’re at the cliffhanger moment in a thrilling documentary or smack in the middle of an important sentence. Instead, YouTube will be smartly inserting ads during natural pauses and transitions — think of them as well-timed intermissions that won’t derail your viewing experience. Now you can enjoy uninterrupted moments of suspense or laughter without an ad rudely cutting in.

The update is a two-pronged approach aimed at both improving viewer experience and potentially boosting creator revenue. For creators who rely on automatic mid-roll ad placements, there’s nothing extra to do. The system will automatically scan your video for natural breaks and insert ads where they’re least disruptive. In fact, a July 2024 experiment revealed that channels combining manual and automatic ad slots saw an average revenue boost of over 5% compared to those using manual placements alone.

For those who have been carefully placing their own mid-roll ads, the new YouTube Studio feedback tool is here to help. It flags ad slots that might feel interruptive, offering suggestions to shift them into genuine natural pauses. And if you prefer your own timing, you can opt out of the automatic additions via the Earn tab in YouTube Studio — though ads placed in interruptive spots might see a revenue dip post-May 12.

Don’t fret if your older videos still sport manual mid-rolls. YouTube plans to update these too, adding extra automatic ad slots at natural break points. The goal? To balance ad revenue opportunities without piling on the annoyance.

But mid-roll changes aren’t the only trick up YouTube’s sleeve. Last year, YouTube was also testing picture-in-picture (PiP) ads for live streams. This means if you’re watching a live event, you might soon see ads that slide into a small window, letting you keep your eye on the action without a full-screen interruption.

In a similar bid to enhance the viewer experience, YouTube also rolled out pause ads such that when you hit pause, an ad might appear during that natural break instead of suddenly interrupting the content flow. It’s all about fitting ads into moments that feel organic rather than invasive.

YouTube is also rethinking the classic “skip-timer” moment. The platform now wants you to focus on the content — and even the ads — as part of the overall experience, rather than obsessing over how quickly you can skip. And for those concerned about ad spam, YouTube’s changes aim to reduce the barrage of ads that some have likened to spam, ensuring a cleaner, more considerate ad experience.

YouTube’s overhaul is a win for both creators and viewers. Whether you’re looking to optimize your ad strategy or just enjoy your videos without constant interruptions, these updates promise a smoother, more harmonious viewing experience. Fewer WTF moments, more of the content you love — now that’s a future worth watching.