In 2026, TikTok expects a decrease in passive consumption and an increase in active creation.

Audiences are craving content with themes of honesty, community, and shared experience. TikTok dubbed this Reali-Tea (Reality and Tea). The platform expects more users to consume unfiltered storytime content, behind-the-scenes moments, and less curated perfection.

The theme for this year is Irreplaceable Instinct. What does that mean? TikTok defines it as the instinct to capture changes in consumer behavior and the ability to shift and keep up with new trend signals.

TikTok recently outlined this and more trends to watch this year in the company’s annual TikTok Next 2026 trend forecast. The report breaks down cultural shifts and evolving trends that the company predicts will impact user behavior and brand campaigns in 2026.

Brands, this one is for you. Audiences are resonating more with campaigns that show the process and people, rather than a structured highlight reel. They value honesty and emotion.

Here’s how this is already playing out on TikTok:

Creators and brands are also expressing themselves through second accounts created for content that’s less curated, where they can show a different side of their personality.

Have you left a comment lately? Audiences are interacting with creators and brands in the comments by leaving a photo reaction. Brands and creators shouldn’t overlook the comment section. Instead, they should view it as a way to interact creatively through memes and other playful responses.

Curiosity will become the new currency in 2026. TikTok says audiences will come to TikTok with more intention and will leave curious. This curiosity is leading trends like #whattowear, which features creators asking their audiences for real-time fashion advice. Other ways curiosity is unfolding on TikTok is through sharing cooking hacks and makeup advice.

In a tougher economy, consumers are looking for reasons to justify spending. How is this impacting content? Pricey treats and expensive lattes are fueling demand for content on how to make favorites at home.

The report suggests brands should create campaigns that highlight humor, humanity, and imperfection. Experiment with different formats and consider creating a second account to showcase a different side of your brand.

For brands, find adjacent spaces to build on new niche communities and attract new audiences, leverage fan content, and bet on smaller communities.

Scaling YouTube creator partnerships can be unclear to advertisers. Brands may see the potential value, but many are unsure where to start, how to build partnerships, or how to evaluate whether their efforts are working.

AI-native creator marketing platform Agentio analyzed over 10,000 YouTube Creator integrations on its platform and created a 2026 marketing playbook with the findings.

The playbook breaks down strategies that drive marketing results on YouTube, including how to measure, fund, and scale these programs.

YouTube recently announced a few updates for teen viewers.

These updates include a control to set the amount of time spent scrolling through Shorts. Parents can set the Shorts feed limit to zero when they want their teen to use YouTube to focus on homework, and change it to 60 minutes during a long car ride.

Parents of supervised accounts can now also set custom Bedtime and Take a Break reminders for teens.

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