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It’s Wednesday and Meta is reportedly building an AI Mark Zuckerberg bot to interact with the company’s employees. Because that’s not dystopian at all.

Today’s News

🎤 YouTube covers Eurovision
⚽ Overlap makes an acquisition
🎬 Jacksepticeye adapts Bloodborne
🛑 YouTube limits livestream ads
👨‍🎤 Justin Bieber hits Coachella

SOUND OF MUSIC

Eurovision is coming back to YouTube.

YouTube is joining Peacock with official live coverage of Eurovision in the U.S.

The coverage: The U.S. doesn’t participate in the Eurovision Song Contest, but it now boasts two official distributors for the annual continental festivities.

The European Broadcasting Union Commercial, which organizes Eurovision, has tapped YouTube to offer a free stream of all three nights of competition, beginning May 12. Peacock (which has offered subscriber-only streams of both the semifinals and finals since 2021) will continue to serve as a paywalled alternative.

According to EBU Commercial Director Jurian Van Der Meer, YouTube already streamed Eurovision last year, but the deal was not widely publicized. This time around, the platform’s stream will be available worldwide—with some exceptions. A few regions, including the U.K. and Australia, will not have access to YouTube’s live coverage due to the demands of local broadcasters.

The context: Eurovision is a smart addition to YouTube’s expanding broadcast lineup. Clips of the competition tend to go viral after the contest’s conclusion, and Eurovision’s YouTube numbers have continued to rise in recent years. In 2025, for instance, the competition’s biggest hits helped its official channel add 360,000 new subscribers in the week following the finals.

Deals like this one are also crucial to YouTube’s efforts to increase its already commanding viewership share on TV screens. One of the platform’s go-to tactics for attracting viewers has been to offer live coverage of events that are typically limited to paying customers. That’s what it did with the NFL and what it will likely do with the Oscars.

When it comes to Eurovision, however, that strategy won’t come without complications. Several longtime participants, including Spain, Ireland, and the Netherlands, have chosen to boycott the event due to Israel’s continued inclusion in the Eurovision lineup.

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HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

The soccer world is betting big on YouTube.

The Overlap—aka the media company led by former Manchester United footballer/current pundit Gary Neville—has acquired the YouTube channels run by Mark Goldbridge. (Tubefilter)
In a recent letter to Elon Musk, Senator Elizabeth Warren expressed concerns that X Money could endanger “consumers, our national security, and the stability of the financial system.” (The Verge)
In communications with staff, OpenAI Chief Revenue Officer Denise Dresser reportedly noted that the company’s relationship with Microsoft has “limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are.” (TechRadar)
Anthropic has voiced opposition to a proposed Illinois law that would protect AI labs from being held liable for mass casualties or high-cost property damage committed by users of their products. (Wired)

THE BIZ

Jacksepticeye is the latest creator to bring a video game adaptation to life.

Jacksepticeye is making a Bloodborne movie

The adaptation: Bloodborne is frequently cited as one of the best video games of all time. Inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and done up in FromSoftware’s signature Gothic style, the 2015 RPG is the favorite title of many a gamer—including gaming streamer Jacksepticeye.

But Jacksepticeye isn’t just a Bloodborne superfan. As the creator (aka Seán McLoughlin) announced yesterday, he’s also producing a film adaptation of the game:

“I can’t believe I get to say the words that are gonna come out of my mouth. I get to produce an R-rated Bloodborne animated feature film.”

- Jacksepticeye (aka Seán McLoughlin)

The details: The streamer’s emotional announcement was preceded by an April 13 CinemaCon reveal from Sony Pictures, which is financing and distributing the film. McLoughlin will produce alongside PlayStation Productions and Lyrical Animation.

While he’s not the film’s writer or director, McLoughlin promised he’ll do everything in his power to ensure Bloodborne fans don’t suffer the same fate as Silent Hill enthusiasts. Sony already seems to be on board with that mission; at CinemaCon, Sony Pictures President Sanford Panitch said the adaptation will be “very true” to Bloodborne‘s origins—which is why it’s already rated R.

As Markiplier‘s adaptation of Iron Lung proved, there’s a lot to be gained when creators who are also truly passionate fans helm game-to-screen adaptations. McLoughlin, who has spent years hyping FromSoft games on YouTube, certainly fits that bill. He knows what fans want to see on the big screen, because he knows what he wants to see. Soon, we’ll get to watch that vision come to life in all its animated glory.

AD WORLD

We’re as surprised as you are.

YouTube is actually giving viewers fewer ads on livestreams

The updates: We wouldn’t have predicted a scenario in which YouTube toned down ads…but here we are. According to a company blog post, the platform is rolling out updates for livestreams that will result in fewer ads for viewers.

That might come as a shock, considering YouTube has spent the past couple of years pushing more, longer ads—especially on TV screens. But the platform seems willing to sacrifice a battalion of the Adageddon if it means getting more creators and viewers to engage with livestreams.

The details: The platform hasn’t historically devoted much focus to streaming, which has resulted in competitors like Twitch pulling ahead of its livestream capabilities and traffic. These new features, however, could help sharpen YouTube’s edge. Both updates are fresh entrants to the livestreaming space and revolve around pausing ads in two key scenarios:

When a viewer sends in a Super Chat, Super Sticker, or virtual gift, YouTube will pause ads specifically for that viewer. That way, if the creator says thank you, the viewer won’t miss it because of an ad break.
YouTube’s system will also recognize “when Live Chat engagement is at its peak and automatically holds back ads for everyone.” The platform says the goal here is to help creators “keep the momentum going for the whole community.”

The risk: Those two updates are great for viewers—but we wonder whether creators’ earnings might dip because fewer ads are being shown. That shouldn’t be a problem with update #1, since viewers can only unlock the perk by directly paying a streamer, but update #2 is a different story.

Is it possible that temporary ad pauses could be frequent and/or long enough to result in revenue cuts? We’ll keep an eye out for any indication of creator discontent as these features go live.

WATCH THIS 👀

Coachella gave viewers a glimpse of the old Biebs.

At Coachella, Justin Bieber revisited his YouTube roots

The throwback: Justin Bieber’s Coachella performance has ignited an unexpected controversy. During the middle of his set, the popstar pulled up YouTube on his computer and began playing videos from the early days of his channel, back when he was still known as kidrauhl. As his younger self strummed away on the screen, the Biebs sang along to his old Usher and Chris Brown covers.

That stunt—which also included some random YouTube throwbacks like the “double rainbow” guy—drew polarized reactions online. Critics felt that the YouTube detour failed to fulfill fan expectations or warrant the star’s rumored $10 million performance fee.

Others, however, understood that Bieber was turning the spotlight back on the fans who fueled his early career by consuming his early videos en masse. For a YouTuber’s perspective on the performance, check out Anthony Fantano's take here.

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