YouTube confirms your half-dark, half-light viewing experience is a test

Recently, YouTube viewers have been noticing something weird with the mobile app. As we reported earlier today, the affected users are seeing half the screen appear in dark mode and the other half in light mode. While this was initially thought to be a bug, it turns out that the change is actually intentional.

A YouTube spokesperson has confirmed to Android Authority that it is currently running an experiment. This experiment is being used to test a new design for the watch page. In this experiment, the user will see the video player and comments section in Ambient mode. If you scroll down, recommended videos will appear in light or dark mode. Which mode recommended videos appear in will depend on which mode you have selected.

YouTube says it has been testing this change on a small group of users. This includes users on both Android and iOS. We’re told the goal of this experiment is to make watching videos more immersive. So if you’re seeing this change, you can rest easy knowing this isn’t a bug. You’re just part of an ongoing experiment.