Is an unedited AI clip original enough for Shorts?
A raw AI clip posted as-is: what YouTube's pages say, what they skip, and a short list of cheap edits that add your own voice. Costs from Sume docs.
No YouTube help page we read on October 5, 2026 says that a single AI-generated clip, uploaded untouched, is banned or protected. The monetization page asks whether content is mass-produced or template-driven without original insight. A raw clip with no script, voice or structure sits close to that risk, and the page does allow AI that expresses your unique creative voice.
Two questions, two pages
Originality: governed by the inauthentic content section of the monetization policies. It calls out slideshows, templated storylines and scrolling text with minimal narrative.
Disclosure: governed by YouTube's synthetic content page. Realistic generated scenes that did not occur need a label. Fantasy scenes and beauty filters do not. A raw photorealistic clip may need both.
Five cheap edits that add your own work
- Cut it to the best 4 to 6 seconds with video trim, priced at $0.02 per job in our public pricing.
- Chain two or three clips under one line of narration so a story exists.
- Put your own voice on the audio spine rather than leaving the model's audio.
- Burn captions that carry your wording. Sume captions cost $0.20 per job for clips up to 60 seconds.
- Open on a question or claim in text, not on the generated image.
| Step | Sume surface | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Trim one clip | Video trim | $0.02 per job |
| Assemble a 30 s Short | Timeline 1.0 | $0.10 per output minute, so $0.10 |
| Burn captions | Video captions | $0.20 per job, up to 60 s |
What a raw clip lacks
A single generated clip usually has no claim. It shows something, but it does not argue, teach or joke. That is the gap the monetization page describes with its phrase about minimal narrative, commentary or educational substance. The fix is not a longer clip. It is a reason for the viewer to watch that is yours.
Think of the generated footage as raw material, the way stock footage is. Nobody calls a stock clip a finished video. The same standard is a sensible way to read YouTube's wording for AI footage, though YouTube has not said so in those words.
That is about $0.32 per 30-second Short before the clip itself. The point is not the price but the habit: every Short should carry at least one decision that a generic template would not make.
If you cannot name that decision, do not publish the clip yet.
Sources
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Written by Sume