The man who made the first-ever YouTube video and then never posted again is Jawed Karim, one of YouTube’s co-founders. The video, titled “Me at the zoo,” was uploaded on April 23, 2005, and has since become an iconic moment in the history of the internet. It shows Karim, who was an early employee at PayPal, standing in front of elephants at the San Diego Zoo. In the video, he casually talks about the elephants, saying, “The cool thing about these guys is that they have really, really long trunks. And that’s cool. I mean, like, look at that thing.” The video is only 18 seconds long, but it marked the beginning of a platform that would eventually change the way people consume and create content on the internet.
Despite this monumental contribution to YouTube’s creation, Karim did not continue posting videos to the platform. Instead, he faded into the background of the YouTube story, focusing on other ventures and business opportunities. His decision to step away from being a public content creator is often attributed to his focus on his work behind the scenes.
Karim co-founded YouTube with Steve Chen and Chad Hurley, former PayPal employees, in February 2005. They saw the potential for a video-sharing platform that would allow users to upload, share, and view videos online. By the time the first video was uploaded, Karim and his co-founders were already working on improving and expanding the site, which had grown rapidly. YouTube quickly gained traction, and within a year, it was attracting millions of users and videos. In November 2006, Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion in stock, making it a part of the tech giant’s expansive ecosystem.
After the success of YouTube, Karim didn’t continue making videos, focusing instead on other business ventures. He went on to earn a master’s degree in computer science at Stanford University, where he continued to contribute to the tech world. He also took a step back from the limelight, preferring a private life away from the constant public attention that often comes with fame.
Interestingly, Karim’s stake in YouTube made him a multimillionaire after the Google acquisition, even though he wasn’t involved in the day-to-day operations of the company in the years following its purchase. He received a significant amount of stock as part of the acquisition, which contributed to his wealth.
Over the years, Karim has remained relatively quiet about his reasons for not continuing his YouTube career. He has occasionally spoken about his involvement in the founding of YouTube, but he has never expressed much interest in being a social media influencer or building a personal brand on the platform. Instead, his legacy has remained largely tied to the groundbreaking video he uploaded in 2005, which will always hold a special place in the history of the internet.
In summary, Jawed Karim’s brief foray into video creation resulted in the first YouTube video ever, but he quickly distanced himself from the platform’s public-facing side. His focus shifted to education and private business ventures, cementing his place as an important figure in the tech world, even though he didn’t continue posting content on YouTube. The man who made YouTube’s first video did so with minimal fanfare and chose to live a life outside the spotlight.
