YouTube has recently unveiled an innovative experiment for Android devices that could potentially outshine Apple’s renowned music recognition application, Shazam. This development marks a significant advancement in music search capabilities.
According to information shared on YouTube’s support page, the video-sharing giant is in the process of testing a novel song-search feature within its Android app. This feature empowers users to identify songs on YouTube by either humming, singing, or recording a portion of the song.
Those who have been granted access to this experimental feature can effortlessly switch from YouTube’s voice search to the novel song-search option. By humming, singing, or recording a segment of a song lasting three seconds or more, users enable the platform to pinpoint the melody. Subsequently, the platform guides the user to pertinent YouTube videos that showcase the sought-after song. This could include the official music video, user-generated content, or even Shorts.
It’s worth noting that the song-search capability is currently only accessible to a limited group of Android users. However, if the feature is eventually rolled out on a broader scale, it has the potential to benefit a wide array of users. YouTube remains a favored destination for song discovery, making this innovation even more appealing.
Interestingly, YouTube’s latest experiment might sound familiar to some individuals. Back in 2020, YouTube’s parent company, Google, introduced a similar feature on its Google app, Google Search widget, and Google Assistant. This feature permitted users to identify a song by humming, whistling, or singing into the microphone icon. Nonetheless, a key distinction lies in the fact that Google’s feature mandates users to hum for a duration of 10 to 15 seconds in order to successfully identify the song.
As previously clarified by Google, their feature relies on advanced machine learning models capable of matching a person’s humming with a song’s unique “fingerprint” or signature melody. It’s noteworthy that YouTube’s current experiment employs the same technology as Google’s, as confirmed by the company to TechCrunch.
Although there are other music recognition applications like SoundHound and MusixMatch that can also identify songs through sung or hummed renditions, they haven’t garnered the same level of popularity as YouTube and Google. (Nevertheless, it’s advisable to explore these alternatives as well.)
