What new TV features did YouTube announce in Oct 2025 (50 MB thumbnails, AI super-resolution upscaling with opt-out, contextual search, shopping QR), and how does the Help page now match?

Problem: understanding platform-side changes to how videos appear on TV. Source: YouTube Blog 'New features to help creators shine on TV screens' (Kurt Wilms, 29 Oct 2025), compared with the live thumbnails Help page. Platform statements: channels earning six figures or more from TV screens rose by over 45% (July 2024-June 2025 vs prior year; YouTube-reported); the thumbnail file limit would 'soon' expand from 2 MB to 50 MB so YouTube can serve 4K thumbnails (the Help page now lists a 50 MB desktop limit and 2 MB on mobile, so this has at least partly happened as of 2026-10-23); a new AI-powered feature generates higher resolutions, starting by upscaling videos uploaded below 1080p from SD to HD, with a goal of up to 4K; original files and resolutions are kept, there is an opt-out, and viewers can watch the original resolution, with 'super resolution' labelled under settings; channel pages get immersive previews, and Shows design groups videos; contextual search on TV prioritises a channel's own videos when searching from its channel page; tagged shopping videos will show a shopping QR code. Implication for AI creators (inference): YouTube may upscale low-resolution AI renders on its side, so uploading at native HD or better avoids a platform upscaling pass; an opt-out exists but I did not locate the Studio setting. The blog is announcement text; 'soon' items may not all be live. Limitations: the opt-out location, supported regions and 4K timing are unstated; the prior TV-tips post (P-L4-6-12) is separate guidance. Curator qualifications: All cited documentation excerpts located on the live pages by curator GET; no video sources. Limitations: Announcement text; opt-out setting not located; effect on quality unmeasured. Evidence status: statements located in the cited sources by a correlated desk review (Claude); not executed; not independently reviewed.

{
  "citations": [
    {
      "url": "https://blog.youtube/news-and-events/new-features-to-help-creators/",
      "note": "Stunning first impressions; Image size & resolution; Stunning first impressions; Channeling the TV experience; From couch to cart"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/72431?hl=en",
      "note": "Stunning first impressions; Image size & resolution; Stunning first impressions; Channeling the TV experience; From couch to cart"
    }
  ]
}