It's Coming: YouTube Launches GIF Tool on Limited Channels

There's a new tool that lets you make GIFs directly from YouTube.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

Prepare yourself to be crushed under an avalanche of those hypnotizing little loops of video that nobody seems to know how to pronounce out loud, because YouTube is testing a tool to let you easily create GIFs directly from videos. 

Right now the tool is only available on a small fraction of videos on certain YouTube channels, such as the PBS Idea Channel and asapSCIENCE, where the tool allows you to create five-second snippets, but if this thing becomes available on all of YouTube's videos, you know what's going to happen:


YouTube doesn't appear to have commented to anyone about the new GIF tool, and they didn't even announce that it was being rolled out in a limited capacity. Instead, you'll have to find it quietly hidden under the "share" option on one of the channels mentioned above. 

It's pretty simple to use: click "share" and you'll see the GIF option come up. Move the blue sliders to select your snippet, enter some top and bottom text if you want, and click "create GIF." You'll get a direct link and an embed code, but you can also right click and "save image as" on the little preview it creates. Here's one I just made in about 10 seconds: 


Prepare yourself. 

[Via Daily Dot]

Latest in Pop Culture