What YouTube feature for temporary posts was discontinued in 2023?

The temporary-post feature discontinued in 2023 was YouTube Stories.

YouTube introduced the feature after testing a format first known as YouTube Reels. It was designed around short-lived, vertical updates that disappeared after a limited period, following the model popularized by Snapchat and Instagram. Unlike ordinary YouTube videos, Stories were primarily a mobile feature and were aimed at creator updates and informal audience interaction.

YouTube Stories had a relatively restricted entry point: the feature was available to creators with more than 10,000 subscribers. YouTube announced on May 25, 2023, that Stories would be shut down, with the feature ending on June 26, 2023.

Stories are easy to confuse with YouTube Shorts, but they served different purposes. Shorts are persistent short-form videos intended for discovery, while Stories were temporary posts. YouTube continued developing Shorts even as it retired Stories, making Shorts the enduring short-video format on the platform.