HBO Max has begun testing a vertical short-form video feed and an AI conversational search function with some users in the United States. TechCrunch reported on July 28 that Warner Bros is strengthening discovery features to help users more easily find what to watch from its vast catalogue.

Tapping a new “Shorts” icon added to the bottom menu of the HBO Max app shows trailers, scene clips and bonus videos in a vertical feed. The videos shown are tailored to each user’s preferences based on viewing history. Users who find a video they like can start the film or TV programme immediately or save it to a watch-later list.

AI is also used to select clips. An AI tool that uses scene-level metadata analyses thousands of hours of films and TV programmes to identify scenes suited for discovery, and HBO Max’s editorial team chooses the final clips.

The vertical video feed is being tested first with some iOS users in the United States. The company plans to expand it to more devices and markets. Netflix, Disney+ and Peacock also run short vertical clip feeds.

The conversational search feature introduced alongside it recommends films and TV programmes based on natural language understanding. Users can search using full sentences such as “in the mood for comedy,” “a troubled family drama” or “a movie that’s good to watch with friends.”

The feature is being offered experimentally to some Android users in the United States. HBO Max plans to expand it soon to more devices and markets as well. Netflix launched a similar AI search feature last year, and Amazon offers AI voice search on Fire TV that answers open-ended questions about films and TV programmes.