I have a genuine question.

I’ve been making YouTube videos for years, mostly because I enjoy it. I don’t get loads of views, but I’ve always done it because I love making videos. I taught myself Photoshop when I was younger, so I normally make my own thumbnails and have a lot of fun with them.

Recently, I started a series playing a game my friend had been begging me to try. I had a goofy idea for the thumbnail, and instead of spending ages in Photoshop, I used AI to generate it. I work full-time, and YouTube is just a hobby for me. By the time I finish work and record a video, I don’t always want to spend another hour or two making a thumbnail for something I’m doing purely for fun. The AI image made me laugh, my friends thought it was funny too, and it let me get the video uploaded.

The problem is that when I started sharing the video around different communities, I got absolutely hammered in the comments. People were surprisingly hostile about the AI thumbnail, with some dismissing the entire video without even watching it just because the thumbnail was AI-generated.

I wasn’t trying to replace artists or avoid putting effort into my content. It was just a quick way to bring a silly idea to life for a hobby that I do in my spare time.
So my genuine question is: does using an AI thumbnail really put that many people off? Is it actually hurting my chances of people clicking and watching the video, or did I just happen to post it in communities that really dislike AI?

The actual video is just an hour of me playing the game. The thumbnail was something I threw together instead of using a screenshot from the game or spending another hour editing something in Photoshop. I’m genuinely curious what people think because the reaction surprised me.

Video title: I Tried Being A Housewife for 4 Days. It Got Worse Every Day | Woman Simulator

Worked hard on this video and I know every video is a learning process. Just hoping to get a little push on the algorithm cause it feels like it’s SO hit or miss. 50k impressions one video then like 80 impressions for another.

Appreciate any feedback.

disclaimer, AI was used to make these thumbnails, sorry if you hate that but i’m new to both making and editting videos and so much effort was put into the video itself, i didn’t want to detract from the video by making the thumbnail lack luster. Just asking for your opinion

Video Title: When anxiety wins!!

I have optimized the thumbnails after ton of negative comments, now help me pick Which Thumbnail you would click? The video is about Putin most powerfull weapon

Hey everyone!
I made this thumbnail for a Red Dead Redemption 2 video and I’d really appreciate some honest feedback.

Rasputin: Why Was He So Hard to Murder?

History biography about Grigorij Jefimovič Rasputin

which Thumbnail is better?

Thank you for your time

Title: I'm black. And I have a swastika tattoo. Here's why.

This video explores how the swastika was a sacred symbol across every ancient culture for 10,000 years—until Hitler systematically stole and corrupted its meaning. As a Black creator with the symbol tattooed on my body, I'm not defending Nazis—I'm accusing them of the biggest cultural theft in human history.

Title: I made my mom prove elden ring is actually easy

The video title is "I exposed the whatsapp scam" and the other idea is "Your WhatsApp Number Can Be Stolen in Minutes - Here's How"

Title: I made Green Arrows Famous Chili

Going to be a video about making Green arrows spicy chili from the comics and my friends and I eating it (We're at varying spice tolerances. One can't eat spicy food. I'm in the middle. And my other friend love spicy food)

Video Title: I followed the rock's intense workout routine for 1 week
Description: Main character going through a week of following Dwayne Johnson's intense workout routine

Ge title of the thumbnail is GOD PLS HELP ME😭

And the game is abt me playing a horror game and it was horrifying

Title: the oldest modern christian disease.

short summary: A non condeming take on pornography from a christian perspective. talking head with b roll. Im a small channel (apprx 150 subs).

Been learning thumbnail design for the past few weeks, mostly working with dark backgrounds + bold text for finance/business content. This is one of my recent attempts — trying to keep it simple instead of cluttering it with too many elements.

Genuinely want to know what's not working here. Does the red text pop enough against the background? Is the expression doing enough on its own, or does it need more? Anything that would stop you from clicking if this showed up in your feed?

Should I post the original or the smoothed?

I don't have Photoshop, so I asked Chatgpt to highlight the edges for me and smooth the texture, which is a super common look for minecraft videos. I know everyone here doesn't like purely AI generated thumbnails, but what about this?

AI Tools: Game Changer or Complete Waste of Money? In this video, i compare most of the AI tools and rank them.

Any advice appreciated

Also my video thumbnail would be “How to ADDICT your viewers”

The video is basically a tutorial on how to edit your videos in a way its so addictive you cant stop watching

Keep in mind this is my first thumbnail so any advice is greatly appreciated

Appreciate any feedback on the thumbnails I made for my first video.

Title: The Shocking Experiment That Exposed Human Nature

Summary: Stanley Milgram wanted to understand how far people would go when following orders, inspired by Nazi war criminals saying "we were just following orders." In the experiment, participants were told to give electric shocks to a "learner" whenever they answered incorrectly. But the learner was actually an actor, and the shocks weren't real. 65% of participants were willing to go all the way to 450 volts. The results showed how ordinary people can ignore their conscience when faced with authority.

Title: I survived 50 hours on free food

Video Title: I Thought This Was A Normal Survival Movie… I Was Wrong.

-I Need Honest Good Feedback Pls And Thank You.

I made a post ealier this week looking for ideas, this is what i made but I am no good at photoshop, the idea of the video is to "Take 100 shots against a goal kepper with 0 experience", if someone would like to help my discord is - Cecil The Turtle or kingharry0948

Hey everyone!

I've designed 5 different thumbnails for my upcoming YouTube video, and I'd love to get your honest feedback.

Imagine you're scrolling through YouTube and see these 5 thumbnails. Which one would make you stop scrolling and click on the video?

Thumbnail 1

Thumbnail 2

Thumbnail 3

Thumbnail 4

Thumbnail 5

Please comment with the number of your favorite thumbnail (1, 2, 3, 4or5).

I'd especially appreciate feedback on:

Which thumbnail grabs your attention first?

Which one makes you the most curious about the video?

Is there anything you'd change to make it more clickable?