YouTube Plans AV2 Streams on the Web in Early 2027

YouTube has put a rough date on its move to AV2, the next royalty-free video codec. The company says AV2 streams will start on the web "as soon as early 2027". That line comes from Des Keane, an engineering director at YouTube, in an Alliance for Open Media press release from October 22. I noticed it through FlatpanelsHD, which was first to point out the timeline.

What happened

The Alliance for Open Media, the group behind AV1 whose members include Amazon, Apple, Google, Intel, Netflix and Samsung, published the AV2 spec in June 2026. It says AV2 squeezes video roughly 30% better than AV1. In plain terms, you get sharper video at the same data rate, or the same picture while using less data.

In the new release, the alliance says AV2 is already moving into browsers, streaming tests and developer tools. YouTube is the first big streaming service to give a target. Keane also said that over 90% of YouTube's catalogue, weighted by watch time, was already available in AV1 as of March 19, 2026. Google's Chrome engineering VP Jim Bankoski said partners such as YouTube, Netflix and Prime Video are exploring the format. Meta said it plans to adopt it too, but didn't give a date. Netflix, Amazon and Apple haven't announced rollout plans.

Why it matters

Better compression is most useful where bandwidth is tight or costly, so mobile data, crowded home Wi-Fi and slower connections stand to gain the most. YouTube also says AV2 unlocks "multi-video" features, which could mean watching several streams at once without everything stuttering.

The catch is hardware. FlatpanelsHD notes that no TVs support AV2 hardware decoding today, and HDTVTest reports that chips with AV2 decoders for TVs and streaming boxes are expected in late 2027 or early 2028, with phones likely later. So the 2027 start is software decoding in browsers, which means your computer's processor does the work. That's fine on a desktop, but it can cost battery on a laptop.

What to do

• Nothing yet. YouTube picks the codec for you, and it'll keep using AV1 or VP9 where AV2 doesn't make sense.
• Keep your browser updated. AV2 on YouTube will come through browser support first.
• Don't buy a TV for AV2. No set on sale today decodes it in hardware. If you're shopping now, AV1 support is the thing worth checking.

YouTube has been changing a lot lately. It also just moved Subscriptions off the bottom bar in its app.