Netflix Announces AI Discover Tab for Themed Content Recommendations

What Is New

Netflix announced on Tuesday that it is rolling out a new “AI Discover” tab designed as an experimental “test kitchen” for finding content [1]. This feature uses a new intelligence layer that the company has been building, which responds to user input in real time and continues to learn [1, 2].

The first experimental feature under this tab allows users to receive recommendations based on specific themes or moods [1]. Some of the curated themes include:

• “Something light”
• “Scare me”
• “Family movie night”
• “Quick watches”

These themes use clips from shows and movies to help users navigate the library based on their viewing preferences, how much time they have, or what is currently trending [1]. The company stated in a blog post that this tool joins existing discovery methods, such as “Thumbs Up” ratings and “My List” additions [1].

How to Use It

Users who have access to the feature will see a “Discover” button in the top navigation bar of their TV, marked with a red gem icon and a “New” label [1]. The process for using the tool includes the following steps:

• Select a theme from the curated options provided [1].
• View the matching recommendations that appear [1].
• Refine the search by selecting more specific themes to continue searching [1].
• Use the “something different” option to restart the discovery process [1].
• Use the “Tune Your Recommendations” button, located next to the “Play” and “My List” buttons, to save liked recommendations or exclude specific titles from future suggestions [1].

Limits, Privacy and Academic Integrity

There are specific limitations regarding who can access the AI Discover tab at this stage:

• The rollout is currently starting in the United States [1, 2].
• It is available to members who use Netflix in English [1, 2].
• The feature is limited to users on supported TVs [1, 2].

Netflix plans to bring the tab to additional users in the coming weeks [1]. The company noted that user feedback will be used to decide which experimental features to keep, improve, or move into the main Netflix experience [1]. This announcement follows reports that Netflix recently laid off approximately 1,000 employees due to slowing growth and reports of users watching the service less frequently [2].