• Creator economy vet Ben Grubbs has launched Visional Pop.
• The startup will invest in animation creators in hopes of developing global product franchises.
• Visional Pop has acquired kid-focused YouTube network YoBoHo to help fuel its mission.

An early architect of YouTube Kids has launched a new startup aiming to turn animated characters born on social media into global franchises.

Visional Pop will invest in and partner with animation creators, including those making comic-style and short-form videos on X and Instagram. It plans to help creators cultivate a presence on YouTube and other platforms and monetize mostly via consumer products, including toys and apparel.

Visional Pop was founded by Ben Grubbs, a YouTube and Turner Broadcasting alum and longtime investor in the creator economy. A firm he cofounded, Creator Sports Capital, recently led a $45 million investment into Good Good Golf.

Shortly after Visional Pop was founded late last year, it acquired YoBoHo — a 15-year-old, Mumbai-headquartered YouTube network that owns and operates over 150 channels in the kids' space.

Grubbs declined to share the acquisition price, but said YoBoHo will play a key role in the company's mission.

Visional Pop will harness YoBoHo's content distribution and audience development expertise, as well as its production infrastructure, to build YouTube channels for the creators it's working with.

YoBoHo reaches more than 200 million unique viewers monthly. In addition to incubating its own channels, it has developed YouTube channels for third parties, said founder and CEO Hitendra Merchant.

Selling products is one way creators can turn their content into a big business. Many influencers make money from the sales of items like T-shirts, keychains, and chocolate bars. However, Trump's tariffs have squeezed some pockets of the creator merch industry, such as plushies, and they have had to adapt.

Visional Pop will be based in Los Angeles, but Grubbs said he's assembling a team in Japan focused on product design and manufacturing.

Visional Pop will announce the first slate of creators it's investing in in the coming months. Grubbs said it's seeking family-friendly characters that appeal to children and adults alike.

Grubbs said he's been particularly inspired by the animated character IP market in Japan. One example is Chiikawa — a character that originated on X and has spawned dedicated retail stores in Tokyo.

"Our aspiration is to have IP that we develop and that we partner with and invest in that's going to be recognized by our grandkids," he said.

• YouTube is stepping up its efforts to help its creators win an Emmy.
• The platform hosted its first "For Your Consideration" event for awards voters on Sunday.
• YouTubers like Sean Evans and Michelle Khare are vying for nominations this year.

From "Beast Games" to "Paul American" to Ms. Rachel, Hollywood wants a piece of YouTube.

But the video giant, which stopped making its own original content in 2022, isn't sitting idly by while streamers like Amazon Prime, HBO Max, and Netflix court its creators. Behind the scenes, the company is working to elevate its native content within Hollywood and prove its creators are worthy of the industry's highest honors.

One key component is YouTube's Emmys push. A creator has never won a Primetime Emmy — TV's most prestigious award — in a main, televised category for their show, a YouTube spokesperson said.

While creators have nabbed nominations and wins in the past, the company is pulling out all the PR and marketing stops for a different outcome.

In addition to the cultural cache, a win could sway more ad budgets reserved for premium TV in YouTube's direction, as The Wall Street Journal reported.

For the first time this year, YouTube hosted a "For Your Consideration" event in Los Angeles, escalating its efforts to nab an Emmy for its creators. It's not alone; earlier this month, Amazon pushed YouTube's most popular creator, MrBeast, for Emmy consideration at its own FYC event.

These events convene awards voters — in this case, members of the Television Academy — to screen content and introduce them to prospective nominees. Emmy nominations are set to be announced on July 15.

This year, YouTube is backing three creators who self-submitted for Primetime nominations, including Sean Evans' "Hot Ones" in the Outstanding Talk Series category; Rhett and Link's "Good Mythical Morning" for Outstanding Short Form Comedy, Drama or Variety Series; and Michelle Khare's "Challenge Accepted" for Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special.

YouTube's event, held on Sunday, featured screenings and conversations with each of the creators. There were also themed food trucks — such as the "be your mythical best" bean burger and "Challenge Accepted" fuel bowls — and recreations of each creator's sets for guests to take photos at and tag on social media.

YouTube does not fund individual creators' Emmy submissions or FYC campaigns in their entirety, a spokesperson told Business Insider.

It's providing PR and marketing support, as it did last year. In addition to the event, this support includes drumming up press for the shows, and running billboards timed to the Upfronts and Cannes Lions advertising events, as well as across Los Angeles this summer.

A win for the creator economy at large

Khare, who has 5 million YouTube subscribers, told BI she isn't sure whether her series "Challenge Accepted" would have been greenlit in the traditional studio system. The show sees her try out difficult jobs like FBI hostage negotiation and joining the traveling circus. The challenges can be dangerous and the shoots long.

That's why she said an Emmy nomination would mark a win for the creator economy writ large.

"Anytime a creator in the digital landscape does something, it's paving a new way for everybody exterior to the traditional Hollywood system," she said.

YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said in a Hollywood Reporter op-ed that YouTubers deserve Emmys and the Television Academy should consider expanding its categories.

The Emmys "should reflect what viewers are actually watching on their TV screens," he said — a nod to YouTube's growing dominance in the living room.

Many creators "operate as full-fledged studios with writers' rooms, production teams, and genre-defining formats," Angela Courtin, YouTube's VP of marketing for connected TV and creative studio, told BI in a statement. "It is only fitting that their creative achievements be honored alongside Hollywood's most celebrated figures."

In addition to its FYC efforts, YouTube has helped creators get into film festivals, the spokesperson said. Khare had a screening at the Montclair Film Festival last year, and Evans and "Good Mythical Morning" were both at Sundance and SXSW this year.

YouTube's efforts to position its content alongside traditional TV don't stop there. YouTube is also readying a "Shows" feature for its TV app to give episodic content more of a polish. First announced in September and touted at YouTube's Brandcast advertising event, Shows organizes YouTube series into seasons and episodes on dynamic landing pages.

• Wendy McMahon is quitting CBS News, citing disagreement with Paramount's direction.
• Her exit follows that of the "60 Minutes" vet Bill Owens and raises concerns about the show's future.
• CBS is facing legal issues with Trump, which could affect its merger plans with Skydance.

The prestigious news program "60 Minutes" is left without another key ally as CBS News' head, Wendy McMahon, has quit, citing disagreement with the company's path forward.

Her exit is the latest shocking turn of events in the face-off between CBS's parent company, Paramount, and President Donald Trump.

"It's become clear that the company and I do not agree on the path forward," McMahon, the president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures, wrote in a memo obtained by Business Insider. "It's time for me to move on and for this organization to move forward with new leadership."

Her departure comes a month after the longtime "60 Minutes" executive producer Bill Owens quit the show, saying he could no longer run the program independently.

At the time, Owens said McMahon had the show's back, while McMahon praised Owens as having "unwavering integrity, curiosity, and a deep commitment to the truth." She said then that CBS remained committed to "60 Minutes" and would ensure that its mission and the work remain a priority.

"It is not a good sign," a "60 Minutes" employee told BI. "She and Bill were very close. Feels like he was the first target and they wanted her gone, too. But they spread it out. Also, they waited until the '60 Minutes' season was over, by hours."

The employee expressed concern that McMahon's promises to preserve the work of "60 Minutes" and promote from within to replace Owens could fall by the wayside.

CBS is in talks to settle a $20 billion legal battle with Trump. Last year, he sued the network over its "60 Minutes" preelection interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris.

The legal trouble has cast a shadow over Paramount's long-standing plan to sell to the Hollywood production company Skydance, which requires Federal Communications Commission approval.

Trump and his allies have repeatedly targeted the mainstream press.

George Cheeks, a co-CEO of Paramount and the CEO of the broader CBS organization, praised McMahon in a memo that was also seen by BI, saying her contributions improved the network's local news, competitiveness, and streaming operations. He said Tom Cibrowski, who oversees CBS News, and Jennifer Mitchell, who leads CBS Stations, would report directly to him going forward.

For CBS Media Ventures, which McMahon also oversaw, Cheeks said Scott Trupchak, who heads advertising sales, and John Budkins, who oversees programming and production, would report to Bryon Rubin, CBS's chief operating officer and CFO.

Here's the text of McMahon's full memo to staff:

Hi everyone,

Today, I am stepping down from my position as president and CEO of CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures.

This has been one of the most meaningful chapters in my career. Leading this extraordinary organization has been the honor of a lifetime because I got to work alongside all of you. Your commitment to truth, fairness and the highest standards is unassailable.

Championing and supporting the journalism produced by the most amazing stations and bureaus in the world, celebrating the successes of our shows and our brands, elevating our stories and our people ... It has been a privilege and joy.

At the same time, the past few months have been challenging. It's become clear that the company and I do not agree on the path forward. It's time for me to move on and for this organization to move forward with new leadership.

I have spent the last few months shoring up our businesses and making sure the right leaders are in place; and I have no doubt they will continue to set the standard.

You are in incredibly good hands with Tom, Jennifer, John, Matt and Robert. They are phenomenal leaders and people who will continue to protect and celebrate your work. I am sure of it.

To George: Thank you for this opportunity.

To our viewers: Thank you for your trust. You hold us accountable, and you remind us why this work matters.

To the CBS News and Stations and CMV teams: Thank you for your passion, your professionalism and your partnership. It has been a privilege to walk this path with you.

Wendy

• MrBeast's latest video, in which he visits ancient Mayan temples, is causing a stir in Mexico.
• A government agency said it's filing suit against a production company that worked with the YouTuber.
• "It is unfortunate that this has turned into a political issue," a person close to MrBeast told BI.

MrBeast's latest video has captured the attention of the Mexican government, and even President Claudia Sheinbaum has weighed in.

Earlier this week, the YouTube star — whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson — posted a video exploring several ancient Mayan temples, including Chichen Itza.

"Can't believe the government's letting us do this," the 27-year-old says in the video, after which he reiterates in a voiceover, "Not even archaeologists are allowed to go back here."

In the description of the video, which has 60 million views and counting, Donaldson wrote that the video was filmed "in collaboration with the Mexican Tourism Board," and he thanked the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), a government agency that works to preserve Mexico's cultural heritage.

CNN reported there was initially controversy around Donaldson's access to the sites. On Monday, the INAH said in a statement that the necessary permits had been processed and that INAH personnel were supervising the recordings at all times.

The INAH added that the video seemed to involve extensive post-production work and allude to events that never occurred, including a helicopter descent onto one of the temples and the handling of an ancient mask.

On Wednesday, Sheinbaum spoke publicly about the video. CNN reported that she asked the INAH to report the conditions under which the production permit had been granted. If the permit was violated, she added, then sanctions must be determined.

'It is unfortunate that this has turned into a political issue'

On Thursday, the INAH said in a thread on X that it was bringing a lawsuit against a production company called Full Circle Media that worked with Donaldson on the video. Donaldson himself isn't facing any legal action.

The thread alludes to a moment near the end of the video, when Donaldson is enjoying a traditional Mayan feast. After dinner, he brings out a box of Feastables peanut butter cups for dessert, joking that it's the "only Mayan-approved snack on the planet."

The INAH on X said that while it is open to collaboration to disseminate Mexico's cultural heritage, it condemned those who detract from the value of archaeological sites for commercial gain.

It said the permit granted to Full Circle Media did not authorize the publication of false information or the use of the sites for advertising. The INAH is demanding compensation for damages and a public retraction.

Full Circle Media didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

"This video, similar to the one of the pyramids in Egypt, was meant to highlight these treasured Mayan sites in Mexico," a person close to MrBeast told Business Insider. "No advertisement material was shot on any archaeological sites overseen by INAH so it is unfortunate that this has turned into a political issue — hopefully it can lead to a productive dialogue and encourages people to visit these unique historical treasures."

• Natalie Jasmine Harris says a Nike ad directed by Malia Obama has similarities to her short film.
• Harris says she wants to spark a broader conversation about how indie creators get overlooked.
• She's had success as a young filmmaker, but she says it's still tough for artists to break through.

This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Natalie Jasmine Harris, a 27-year-old filmmaker. It has been edited for length and clarity. Reps for Malia Obama, Nike, the ad agency Wieden+Kennedy, and the production company Iconoclast didn't respond to requests for comment.

Earlier this month, at the Denver airport on the way home from a TV directing mentorship program, I was scrolling on Instagram when Malia Obama's Nike ad with the basketball star A'ja Wilson appeared on my feed.

At first, I was confused, wondering whether it was real. It featured two people playing pat-a-cake in a way that echoed an early scene from my 14-minute short film "Grace," which is a Black Southern Gothic short about a girl who's being baptized and questioning her feelings for her best friend.

I'd met Malia at Sundance in 2024, when "Grace" and her short film "The Heart" were both in competition. We saw each other at the director's brunch and a couple other events.

Initially, I was disappointed and hurt — not just for myself but for my entire team. I sent the commercial to friends who had the same reaction I did. One put together a shot-by-shot photo comparison.

Since posting about the issue online, there have been a lot of people who don't understand my disappointment. They're like, "You didn't invent pat-a-cake." And that's very true. But it's not about the game, it's about the cinematic tools used to depict it.

My cinematographer, Tehillah De Castro, noted a lot of similarities from a technical perspective, from the camera angles to the shots to the framing composition and the color palette.

Over time, I've moved through that initial shock into a deeper frustration around how instances like this are very common — and need to change.

It speaks to a larger issue of brands not supporting independent artists and opting for folks who already have name recognition, which doesn't breed innovative films or original storytelling. If they wanted these shots that were similar to my shots, why not hire me to direct?

The route that used to work for the Spike Lees and Steven Spielbergs of the world feels less viable today. If we're continuously overlooked, how is the next generation of filmmakers going to exist?

Despite early success, being a young director has been a struggle

I knew I wanted to be a director from a young age.

I started making documentaries in high school about social justice during the Black Lives Matter movement. A lot of my work centers joy in coming-of-age experiences, black women, and queer stories — things that are personal to me.

Despite graduating from New York University in 2020 at the height of the pandemic, I've had a lot of success so far. My thesis film, "Pure," ended up getting bought by HBO shortly after I graduated, and it won the DGA Student Film Award. I also won a contest to direct a commercial for Hyundai and did a commercial for Verizon.

In addition to going to Sundance in 2024, "Grace" is also a Vimeo Staff Pick and will be on Criterion in June.

Still, being a young director has been a struggle. Festivals are great, but they don't pay the bills. I've taken on other full-time and freelance jobs.

Right now, I'm working on my first feature, which I've spent the last several years writing and pitching.

But I've often run into roadblocks with production companies and financiers saying, in so many words, that no one wants to be the first person to bet on me — coupled with the fact that I'm young and don't have an established name.

I would like there to be some acknowledgment

I haven't heard from Malia Obama or Nike since speaking out, but I would like for there to be some acknowledgment.

I was initially hesitant to speak out, since it involves a former president's daughter and a beloved brand like Nike. Criticizing something involving the WNBA was also hard because it means a lot to me personally, and it already gets such a lack of a spotlight.

But I've poured too much into my work to just sit by and watch.

Sometimes it can feel like filmmaking is something that's supposed to be a hobby for the wealthy rather than something that can actually be a career.

But I don't want to give up. I have a beautiful community of friends and family and colleagues fighting the same fight, and there's hope in that. I still have a lot of stories I want to tell. And I want to be a name someday, too.

• Amazon has re-upped MrBeast's "Beast Games" for two more seasons despite controversies.
• The hit show became a tipping point in Hollywood, with streamers seeking more creator-led shows.
• Donaldson said creators haven't always had "a good rep" with streamers.

Amazon can't get enough of Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson.

The streamer has renewed his competition series "Beast Games" for two more seasons, undeterred by the controversies surrounding the hit show.

It illuminates the power of YouTube's biggest star — and the growing influence digital creators are amassing in Hollywood.

The renewal isn't entirely surprising given the show's success. "Beast Games" drew 50 million views in 25 days and is Amazon's most-watched unscripted series of all time.

However, the show was also poorly reviewed by critics and spurred complaints about the filming conditions and injuries. Donaldson is being sued by former contestants as well.

Business Insider previously reported that before "Beast Games" aired, there were worries inside Amazon. The show was meant to kick-start the streamer's efforts to sell ads on Prime, and some insiders were concerned the controversies could hamper negotiations. The two-season renewal suggests those fears were unfounded.

"Beast Games" was also expensive to make. Amazon paid Donaldson $100 million for season one, according to a pitch deck obtained by BI. But the YouTuber said he went over budget and lost tens of millions of dollars, which came out of his pocket.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon had made at least $100 million in profit on the first season, and that Donaldson asked for more than $150 million for each of the two subsequent installments.

An Amazon rep declined to comment, and one for Donaldson didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

'Beast Games' was a tipping point in Hollywood

Going into business with a creator can be risky, but Amazon's re-up shows it ultimately paid off.

And in this case, it's looking like a win for the creator economy at large. "Beast Games" emerged as a tipping point in Hollywood, as streamers and studios subsequently ramped up the search for more influencer-led programming.

That interest is piquing as creators solidify their status as a dominant cultural force and YouTube reigns supreme on TV screens.

Netflix has licensed content from kid-focused YouTube creators like Ms. Rachel. It's also eyeing video podcasts, as BI exclusively reported, and the company confirmed on its latest earnings call.

Some of Netflix's talks have been for potential unscripted shows involving creators, with the streamer considering riffs on reality competition giants like "Survivor" and "The Bachelor," BI previously reported.

Max has also jumped into the creator game, and is currently airing "Paul American," a reality show starring fraternal YouTube duo Logan and Jake Paul.

Before "Beast Games," a few past efforts to bridge the gap between Hollywood and the creator economy had faltered. Donaldson himself said he saw "Beast Games" as a bellwether test.

"Creators don't have a good rep when it comes to doing stuff on streaming platforms," he said earlier this year on the "Diary of a CEO" podcast. "If I fail, it's over; no streaming platform is ever going to touch a YouTuber ever again."

This latest Amazon news suggests Donaldson passed the test with flying colors.

• Jeff Bezos sold one of his several Washington properties after moving to Miami in 2023.
• He snapped up three mansions on Indian Creek Island, leaving behind eight properties in Washington.
• He closed the reported deal for $63 million on a Hunts Point estate.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has amassed a real estate portfolio that rivals some of America's biggest property owners. He's the 23rd-largest landowner in the US, according to the 2025 Land Report, with at least 420,000 acres to his name.

Bezos' Seattle-area real estate empire, which was worth as much as $190 million in 2023 based on Zillow estimates, is getting smaller. Almost two years after moving south, Bezos sold one of his several Seattle properties for a big profit.

He sold his 9,420-square-foot home in Hunts Point, Washington, for a record $63 million, Puget Sound Business Journal reported in April. The estate was acquired by Cayan Investments LLC, Business Insider confirmed Thursday.

His collection also includes three properties in Indian Creek Village, an island off the coast of Miami, where he announced in 2023 he'd be relocating with his fiancée Lauren Sánchez.

Bezos, worth $211 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, purchased several properties with his former wife MacKenzie Scott. Their divorce was finalized in 2019, and it's unclear which of these properties Bezos still owns, as divorce records were not made public.

From two neighboring Beverly Hills mansions to multiple estates in exclusive Seattle suburbs, here are Bezos' residential properties in the US.

Caroline Cakebread, Katie Warren, Dominic-Madori Davis, and Libertina Brandt contributed to an earlier version of this article.

Jeff Bezos has spent millions of dollars amassing a collection of residential properties over the years.

A 2025 Land Report named Bezos the country's 23rd-largest landowner, with 420,000 acres to his name.

Over the years, he's picked up several New York City apartments, a ranch in Texas, and homes in Washington state, California, and Washington, DC.

 

For years, Bezos' home base was a nearly 24,000-square-foot estate in Medina, Washington.

In 1998, Bezos paid $10 million for a 5.3-acre property in the wealthy suburb on the shores of Lake Washington.

Twelve years later, in 2010, he spent $45 million on an estate nextdoor, the Puget Sound Business Journal reported.

One home is a 20,600-square-foot, five-bedroom, four-bathroom house with a basement spanning over 5,000-square-feet and five fireplaces. The other is an 8,300-square-foot, five-bedroom, four-bathroom home built in 1940.

The Wall Street Journal reported that he purchased the property next door in 2010 under Aspen Ventures LLC. That lot has a 24,000-square-foot Tudor-style, six-bedroom, six-bathroom mansion, which was listed for $53 million. 

Finally, in 2015, he purchased a $3.9 million property across the street from the Medina compound, Business Insider previously reported. The comparatively smaller property was purchased through a trust managed by the same law firm, and with the same property tax address, as the other Medina properties Bezos and Scott purchased before their divorce.

Medina is an exclusive suburb that is home to Bill Gates, Microsoft bigwigs, tech entrepreneurs, and telecom magnates.

Many of the neighborhood's mansions are hidden away behind gates and protected by elaborate security systems.

Bezos' first big New York purchases were three apartments, which he bought for $7.65 million on Central Park West in Manhattan.

The three units in The Century building on Manhattan's Upper West Side were purchased in 1999 from the former Sony Music head Tommy Mottola, The Observer reported at the time. 

More than a decade later, in 2012, Bezos bought an additional unit in the building, valued at $5.3 million in 2012, making him the owner of four condos in the building.

The Art Deco building was built in the 1930s, boasts a concierge, elevator attendants, and three separate entrances.

His next big buy was a massive ranch near the town of Van Horn, Texas.

In 2004, Bezos purchased Corn Ranch, a 165,000-acre stretch of land outside Van Horn, Texas.

He told the local paper he bought the property so his family would get the chance to live on a ranch like he did when he visited his grandfather as a child. The land is also the most productive launch site for his aerospace company Blue Origin.

Three years after buying The Washington Post in 2013, Bezos bought a former textile museum in DC's Kalorama.

He spent $23 million on the property, which dates back to 1912 and has a spot on the National Register of Historic Places, The Washington Post reported.

The neighborhood is a hot spot for Washington bigwigs.

The Obamas purchased an $8.1 million property nearby in 2017, which marked the second-most expensive transaction in the neighborhood, after Bezos' — The Washington Post reported.

The two joint structures on Bezos' property have nearly 27,000 square feet of living space, making it the largest home in Washington, DC.

It's been reported that Bezos may have also purchased the home across the street in January 2020 for $5 million, though BI could not confirm he owns the property.

In the months following his 2019 divorce, Bezos spent $45 million on four properties in other exclusive Seattle enclaves.

The largest property of the 2019 spending spree was a $37.5 million waterfront estate in Hunts Point, an exclusive neighborhood with fewer than 400 residents. The home has 300 feet of coastline, a rooftop deck with a fireplace, and a glass bridge connecting to a two-story guesthouse.

He purchased two more modest homes in Hunts Point around the same time, which his neighbors said are used for security and other staff, including a chef.

When he offloaded the $37.5 million estate in April, he got $25 million more than he purchased it for in 2019, Puget Sound Business Journal reported.

Around the same time, he purchased a home nearby in Yarrow Point.

He also purchased a staff home in the nearby Yarrow Point. The home sold for $4.2 million in January 2024, according to its listing on Compass.

Two months after Bezos and MacKenzie Scott finalized their divorce, he reportedly dropped about $80 million on three New York City apartments.

In 2019, he dropped about $80 million on three adjacent New York City apartments in the priciest-ever real-estate deal south of Manhattan's 42nd Street.

The spread included a three-story penthouse and two units directly below it.  It was the priciest real estate deal south of Manhattan's 42nd Street, appraiser Jonathan Miller told The Wall Street Journal at the time.

Renderings of the inside of the apartment from the creative agency VisualHouse show the opulence of the penthouse.

Bezos has since purchased two more units inside the prewar building. In 2020, he spent $16 million on an additional unit, and purchased a $23 million apartment in the building in 2021.

The purchases brought his grand total to $119 million of real estate in the one building, which has a fitness center, golf simulator, game room, and movie-screening room, according to the property's website.

 

Bezos also owns property in Beverly Hills, California, one of the most expensive neighborhoods in Los Angeles.

He first bought property in the cushy neighborhood in 2007, shelling out $24.45 million for a mansion that had tennis courts, a guesthouse, a six-car garage, and a pool, the Los Angeles Times reported at the time. In 2017, he bought the house next door for $12.9 million.

In 2022, Scott donated the two mansions to a housing charity.

 

After his divorce, he broke California records when he purchased the Warner Estate in 2020.

Bezos purchased the nine-acre Warner Estate in Beverly Hills for $165 million from billionaire David Geffen.

The estate was designed for Jack Warner — the former president of Warner Bros. Studios — in the 1930s. 

The most expensive home sale in California's history at the time, Bezos purchased the house for $165 million from David Geffen, who bought it in 1990 for $47.5 million. The mansion has guest homes, a tennis court, a swimming pool, and a nine-hole golf course.

Like many of his other homes, privacy is key at the Warner Estate. Hedges surround the nine acres on which the 13,600-square-foot home sits.

In 2021, Bezos and his now-fiancée Lauren Sánchez bought a home in Hawaii.

Bezos paid about $78 million for the Maui home, according to The New York Times.

In the weeks leading up to the purchase, Bezos made several donations to local organizations — including Hawaii Land Trust and Mālama Family Recovery Center, local news site Maui Now reported.

Sánchez announced that she and Bezos would donate $100 million to help Maui after neighborhoods on the island were devastated by fires.

"Jeff and I are heartbroken by what's happening in Maui. We are thinking of all the families that have lost so much and a community that has been left devastated," Sánchez wrote on Instagram. 

Their notable island neighbors include fellow billionaires Oprah Winfrey, Paul Thiel, and Oracle executive Larry Ellison, according to the Times.

Bezos purchased a home in Indian Creek in 2023, another billionaire hotspot.

In August 2023, he added a $68 million mansion on Miami's "billionaire bunker" island, Indian Creek Village, to his portfolio. 

The home reportedly spans 9,300 square feet, and the entire property is about 2.8 acres. The exclusive island has been home to Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Tom Brady, and billionaire investor Carl Icahn.

While announcing his relocation, Bezos said that he wanted to be closer to his parents and space company Blue Origin's operations in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

He reportedly also snapped up the home next door.

Bezos bought the seven-bedroom Indian Creek mansion for $79 million in October, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources.

The nearly two-acre mansion was built in 2000 and boasts features like a home theater, library, pool, and wine cellar.

But he wasn't done yet with his Indian Creek shopping spree. People representing Bezos reportedly contacted at least three other island homeowners to discuss purchasing their properties, Bloomberg reported in early January.

Bezos snapped up a third mansion on Indian Creek for $90 million

In April 2024, Bezos made his third purchase on the island known as the "billionaire bunker," Bloomberg reported. He paid $90 million for the six-bedroom home in an off-market transaction.

The house last sold for $2.5 million in 1998, according to the outlet, which noted that Bezos plans to live there while tearing down the other two properties he'd purchased on the island.

Indian Creek, located on Biscayne Bay and home to fewer than 100 residents, has its own mayor and police force, and is accessible only via a gated bridge.

• OnlyFans cofounder Tim Stokely is launching another creator platform.
• Subs is pitching a mix of adult and non-adult content.
• "Creators need more than just a paywall," Stokely told Business Insider.

OnlyFans cofounder Tim Stokely is unveiling his next act.

Stokely is launching a rival subscription platform called Subs that will house both safe-for-work and adult content under one roof.

So, how will Subs be different from OnlyFans? The company is focused on helping creators build audiences more easily and making it simple for users to move from free to paid content.

Stokely said those efforts include an Instagram-like Explore feed and a YouTube-like Shows feature. These will be ad-free and designed to direct viewers to paid options like subscriptions, private messages, and one-on-one calls. One knock on OnlyFans has been that it's hard for creators to build an audience on the platform, and they often have to rely on platforms like X and Reddit to drive traffic.

While one-on-one calls are available on platforms like Cameo, they don't exist on OnlyFans. Stokely called it a "lucrative new revenue stream" that can garner "premium rates."

'I never really left the space'

Stokely founded OnlyFans with his brother Thomas and father Guy in 2016. They sold the company to the entrepreneur Leo Radvinsky two years later. Stokely, who formerly served as OnlyFans' CEO, stepped down in 2021.

The site, which boomed during the pandemic, has remained a money-making machine and earned Radvinsky more than $1 billion. It has also spawned a number of rivals like Fansly and FanVue.

Stokely said that after leaving OnlyFans, he took some time to recharge.

"I caught up with mates, went to football with my Dad, and travelled a bit. But I never really left the space," he said. "I get messages every day from creators, and so it wasn't long before I got pulled back in."

In the meantime, he's tried his hand at other ventures. Stokely joined an airline startup as a director in 2024, and in April, another creator app startup he cofounded, called Zoop, partnered with a cryptocurrency foundation to submit a bid to buy TikTok, Reuters reported.

'Giving creators everything they need in one place'

Subs faces challenges by featuring both adult and non-adult content. Pornography isn't allowed in either the Apple or Google app stores, so the company has to run a web app instead.

Stokely contended that using a web platform helps creators avoid in-app fees.

However, Subs will have to compete with other platforms like Patreon, Substack, Passes, and Fanfix, which don't allow pornography, and can use web-based billing to avoid fees while still having their own apps. This could limit the platform's appeal to non-adult creators.

Creators take an 80% cut of earnings on Subs — the same revenue split as on OnlyFans — and can also earn referral fees.

Stokely said the company is currently working with agencies and creators on onboarding. He said the platform is built for a wide variety of creators, including podcasters, athletes, musicians, and adult stars. Some early arrivers on the platform include self-described lingerie expert Saterra St. Jean and podcaster Alex Chisnall.

Stokely is betting the platform's mixture of free and paid content will appeal to creators. He called Subs' Shows feature a "game changer" because it places a creator's paid profile directly behind their free content.

"Creators need more than just a paywall," he said. "It's about giving creators everything they need in one place."

• New York Times photographer Doug Mills won the Pulitzer for capturing Trump's assassination attempt.
• He said his experience as a sports photographer helped him meet the moment.
• Mills said Trump marveled at his work, and even suggested it was award-worthy.

Veteran New York Times photographer Doug Mills said it was a combination of "longevity" and "luck" that led him to capture the assassination attempt against President Donald Trump in a series of Pulitzer-winning photos.

"This is by far the most dangerous situation I've ever been in," said Mills, who has photographed every president since 1983. He added that it was also the most historic set of pictures he'd ever taken.

The sequence of winning photos includes the moment a bullet whizzed by Trump's head. Mills also captured the aftermath, as Trump pumped a fist and was escorted off the podium by Secret Service, blood streaking across his face.

Mills remembers being six to eight feet away when the shots rang out, and his news instincts jumping in. He didn't know what the sounds were at first, but already had his finger on the shutter, as he was attempting to capture a photo of Trump gesturing at a chart.

"I didn't take my finger off the shutter. I didn't flinch," he said, adding his experience as a sports photographer probably came into play. "I didn't stop to look to see where the shots were coming from, but I just kept my finger on the button."

"My instincts for shooting sports really came through because it's so fast and you're waiting for that one peak moment," he said.

In the wake of the shooting, there was misinformation floating around about what had transpired. He remembers a call with New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, helping her to debunk claims that glass fragments from a teleprompter had hit Trump's ear.

Mills said he was "stunned" after he sent his photos back to the office, when editor Jennifer Mosbrucker called to say that one of the pictures had captured the bullet midair.

"I just couldn't believe it," he said.

'You're going to win awards with that photo'

Mills said that Trump — who has long been complimentary of his work — "marveled" at the photo on several occasions, including days after the assassination attempt backstage at the Republican National Convention.

"You're going to win awards with that photo," Mills said he remembers Trump telling him.

Trump has complimented the work of others that day, too.

"A lot of people say it's the most iconic photo they've ever seen," Trump previously said of a different picture by Associated Press photographer Evan Vucci. "They're right, and I didn't die. Usually, you have to die to have an iconic picture."

Mills said that while the work done by his colleagues that day was "equally great," he believes he received the Pulitzer because no one else captured evidence of the shooting as it was happening.

"That is what I think brought it into a new level of journalism," he said.

'Photographing Biden was far more challenging'

As a senior photographer for the Times who has covered presidents and campaigns since Ronald Reagan, Mills has previously won two Pulitzers for his coverage of the Clinton/Gore campaign and the Monica Lewinsky affair.

He also captured the moment former President George W. Bush was informed about the September 11 attacks in a Florida elementary school classroom.

In addition to his Pulitzers, Mills was honored for his work covering former President Joe Biden, including with a White House Correspondents' Association award.

But Mills said the difference between photographing Biden and Trump was like "night and day." As a career politician, Biden was a lot less outgoing during photo ops and less interested in his imagery, Mills said. It made him less dynamic and photogenic than Trump.

"Photographing Biden was far more challenging," he said, "but it kept you on your toes."

• A judge dealt Apple a potential blow in its ongoing legal battle over App Store fees.
• Patreon and other players across the subscription creator economy are cheering it as a win.
• One exec called the court ruling "a shift toward a more equitable digital marketplace for creators."

Apple was issued a potentially crushing setback in its ongoing legal battle over App Store fees — but players across the subscription creator economy are cheering it as a win.

"This is a huge moment for creators and their businesses," a Patreon spokesperson told Business Insider in a statement. "The iOS app is the No. 1 platform for fan engagement on Patreon, and we believe this ruling allows creators to get paid without giving Apple 30%."

Patreon is a platform where creators can build subscription businesses and charge fans for paywalled content, such as podcasts or videos, and other perks.

A judge on Wednesday found Apple had violated a 2021 injunction in its legal fight with Epic Games. The dispute started over the 30% fee Apple collects on in-app purchases.

The 2021 injunction largely favored Apple, but it said the company needed to let developers inform users in their apps about purchase options outside the Apple App Store. Wednesday's ruling said the company failed to do that. It also said Apple violated the court's order by charging a 27% fee when links guide users to off-app purchases.

An Apple spokesperson previously told BI that the company "strongly" disagrees with the court's decision and plans to both comply and appeal — a sentiment echoed by CEO Tim Cook on the company's earnings call. Apple did not respond to a request for further comment.

Apps that help creators make money from subscriptions, like Patreon, Passes, Kajabi, and Mighty Networks, rejoiced at the changes. If more subscriptions are transacted outside Apple's ecosystem, it could mean more money for creators and platforms alike.

Patreon said it's submitting an app update for review that will enable payment options outside of in-app purchases so creators can keep more money.

Last year, the company said it was removing all other billing systems from its iOS app, and advised creators that they could either raise their in-app prices to cover Apple's fees or eat the fees themselves. Subscribers could also avoid the fees by signing up on Patreon's website.

While "the dust has yet to settle," given Apple's plans to appeal, "this is a good day for creative people," Patreon CEO Jack Conte said on Instagram.

Passes founder and CEO Lucy Guo told BI in a statement that "companies have had to charge more to creators because of these commissions, so this will put more money in creators' pockets."

Mighty Networks CEO Gina Bianchini said, "We are celebrating over here at Mighty Networks."

'A more equitable digital marketplace for creators'

The ruling could threaten Apple's App Store revenue, which is a major money maker for the company.

Last quarter, the company's services business, which includes its App Store, accounted for $26.6 billion in net sales.

While it's unclear how many prospective subscribers will forego the convenience of in-app purchases, Kajabi CEO Ahad Khan said the ruling points to a shift toward more creator ownership.

"Creators have long relied on social platforms and tech giants to earn money, and it cuts into their earnings and even limits how they engage with their audiences," he told BI. "This ruling is another proof point of this shift toward a more equitable digital marketplace for creators."

• Alex Costa quit his dream job at YouTube for another dream: becoming a full-time content creator.
• As a men's lifestyle vlogger, brand deals made him a millionaire.
• Now, Costa's own grooming brand Forte Series is on track to do $10 million in revenue this year.

This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with the former YouTube employee Alex Costa, who left the company to become a full-time content creator and men's hair care entrepreneur. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

When I was first hired at YouTube to work in the gaming division after six rounds of interviews, it was the happiest moment of my life. But I joined with another dream in mind: being a full-time content creator.

I've always been entrepreneurial. I'd started a channel before I got hired, and held various jobs in the online gaming industry.

When I joined YouTube, I already had about 130,000 subscribers, which still didn't feel like enough to branch out on my own. But the company was supportive as I continued building the channel while I worked there.

In the summer of 2017, there was a transition in my content. I was getting sick of gaming, and pivoted to men's grooming and fashion videos. Viewers were asking questions about what I was wearing and how I styled my hair. I didn't have any training or even a passion for it, but the concept of self-improvement as a whole has always resonated with me.

Those videos outperformed anything I had ever posted, and I started to gain traction with brands.

I'd set a goal. I told myself that once I'd saved $100,000, I could quit. I achieved that by the end of 2017, and in early 2018, after almost three years at the company, I walked into my director's office and told him I was taking a leap of faith. He said he knew it was coming, but didn't realize it would be so soon.

Quitting YouTube was the toughest, scariest, and best career decision I've made in my life. I was scared, but there was no plan B.

I landed one of my first 6-figure brand deals a year after I left

I became a millionaire as an influencer before starting my own brand.

There weren't many men's lifestyle influencers when I started — now it's almost the norm. But I was the top dog at the time and it was very profitable. In 2018, the year after I quit, I made five or six times my YouTube salary. I landed one of my first six-figure brand deals with Old Spice roughly a year after I left YouTube. There were others, including with Whoop and Amazon.

Hair has always been my No. 1 topic, and reviewing products that sometimes had more feminine packaging or scents gave me the idea to develop my own brand. There was space for something that speaks directly to men, and I knew my audience, which is mostly male, could serve as the best feedback loop in developing it.

Forte Series was completely bootstrapped, and I've never taken any money out of the company. We sold out of our first launch in October 2019 — about $50,000 worth of product in a month and a half. Today, it has eight full-time employees, in addition to myself and my cofounder, Brian Yang.

And we're growing. The company drove $3.8 million in sales in one year starting April 1 on Amazon in the US. That's not counting other sales channels like Shopify, Amazon International, and the roughly 100 barbershops where it's available worldwide.

The brand is on track to do $10 million in revenue in 2025.

A costly mistake

There have been stumbles along the way. One of the biggest was trying to launch separate brands for skincare and clothing, Apricus and Aetos. The skincare has now been folded under Forte, and the clothing line has stopped production.

It was a costly mistake because the same team was working on multiple brands, which created resource constraints because everyone's focus was split. We were also taking money from Forte to pay for purchase orders from the other brands, rather than reinvesting that money back into Forte, which was the real winner.

I was initially embarrassed about having to tell my audience that I'd failed as a businessman, including everyone who had supported me by buying the products. Thankfully, they were understanding, and as much as it hurt, it was also a huge weight off my shoulders.

As I look to the future, the scariest thing for a content creator is to be irrelevant. I get bored easily, and I've become good at being a chameleon. And I have a lot more to offer than just being the fashion and hair guy on YouTube. Recently, I started a new YouTube channel sharing more about my journey as an entrepreneur.

At the end of the day, I just want to give guys confidence. That's been my entire purpose. I see what I do as not just entertainment, but about building confidence through value.

• Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson went from growing up in a small city to becoming the king of YouTube.
• The 26-year-old is gunning for a Disney-style content empire and building multiple consumer brands.
• It hasn't been easy. Donaldson has weathered scandals and lawsuits along the way.

MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, is the biggest YouTuber on earth. For an influencer, the 26-year-old keeps some personal details close to the vest.

Donaldson's unlikely rise started in Greenville, North Carolina — the small city where he still resides, and where his burgeoning company, Beast Industries, is headquartered.

Beyond online stardom, Donaldson has taken Hollywood by storm with his hit streaming show, "Beast Games." He's also building a slew of consumer brands and plans to proliferate his IP in the vein of Disney.

Donaldson has also made charity work a key part of his career and personal mission, and has de-emphasized his own personal wealth despite his vast ambitions.

Here's everything you need to know about who MrBeast is and how he's built his career.

Early life and background

MrBeast was born James Stephen Donaldson on May 7, 1998, and grew up in Greenville, North Carolina. After Donaldson's parents separated, his mother, Sue, raised Donaldson and his older brother CJ as a single parent, he said on "The Diary of a CEO" podcast. Donaldson has said he prefers not to speak about his dad.

Donaldson was an extremely quiet child growing up and didn't have many friends, he said on the "Dhar & Jay Show."

From an early age, Donaldson was obsessed with YouTube and uploaded his first video under the username MrBeast6000. Initially, Donaldson tried to game the YouTube algorithm with different types of videos — from "let's play" gaming streams to commentary videos about other YouTubers. At the time, he was mostly off-camera.

In 2016, Donaldson briefly enrolled at East Carolina University but dropped out within weeks to pursue a YouTube career, he said on Instagram.

Unlike some other creators who are an open book, Donaldson keeps mum about many personal details, including his political beliefs.

That said, he frequently discusses living with Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel disease.

On the relationships front, Donaldson proposed to his fiancée Thea Booysen, the content creator and novelist, on Christmas in 2024.

MrBeast's rise on YouTube

After experimenting with different kinds of videos, Donaldson went viral in 2017 for a video in which he counted from zero to 100,000, a feat he said took more than 40 hours. That year, he surpassed 1 million subscribers.

Other early stunts included reading every word in the dictionary and spinning a fidget spinner for 24 hours. Endurance and last-person-to-leave challenges are still his bread and butter, even as the productions have grown in budget and scope.

In 2020, the average MrBeast video cost $300,000 to make, Bloomberg reported. By 2024, that figure was roughly $3.5 million, he told the creators of "The Colin and Samir Show."

Over time, Donaldson started enacting big-budget stunts with an altruistic bent, such as tipping thousands of dollars to lesser-known Twitch streamers, waitresses, and Uber drivers. By 2018, he said he'd given away $1 million.

Donaldson is also known for fastidiously fine-tuning his thumbnails and video titles to maximize engagement.

Donaldson surpassed the Indian production company T-Series as the most-subscribed-to YouTube channel in June 2024. His main MrBeast channel is approaching 400 million subscribers. His most popular video, "$456,000 Squid Game In Real Life!" has over 780 million views.

He's also the third most-followed creator on TikTok, with over 115 million followers.

As his channel grew, Donaldson worked on videos with several of his childhood friends, such as Ava Kris Tyson, Chandler Hallow, and Jake Franklin — though Tyson and Franklin are no longer associated with the company.

MrBeast's business ventures

While brand deals helped fuel Donaldson's ambitious early videos, over time, he came to build his own brands.

His company, Beast Industries, generated $473 million in revenue in 2024, according to a pitch deck obtained by Business Insider. The company expects that figure to roughly double in 2025.

Still, Donaldson said in February 2025 that he had less than $1 million in his bank account, as he prefers to reinvest profits back into the company. Because of this, Donaldson's net worth is largely comprised of his stake in Beast Industries.

Some of Beast Industries' businesses include the candy brand Feastables, packaged food brand Lunchly, a collectible action figure line dubbed MrBeast Lab, and Viewstats, an analytics platform for creators.

Donaldson is embroiled in a legal battle with Virtual Dining Concepts, his former partner in the ghost kitchen business, MrBeast Burger. He sued the company for making "terrible quality" burgers under his name, and Virtual Dining Concepts fired back with a breach-of-contract suit.

On the media front, Donaldson has grown his content operation beyond YouTube. He had a $100 million deal for the Amazon Prime show, "Beast Games." While it drove record viewership for Amazon, Donaldson said he lost tens of millions on the first season.

MrBeast's philanthropy and social impact

Over the years, Donaldson has incorporated his knack for virality into various charity efforts, including a 2019 campaign to plant 20 million trees, which Elon Musk contributed to.

Donaldson's philanthropic work includes his own charity organization, Beast Philanthropy. However, at times, some of this work has backfired, such as when he was accused of gifting eye surgeries for clout. Donaldson has shrugged off the criticism and said he plans to give away "every penny" he makes to help people before he dies.

Despite his success, Donaldson has often discussed how he prefers to eschew the finer things in life.

"No matter how big I get I'll never own a mansion, yacht, Lamborghini etc," he tweeted in 2022. "All I want is to make the best videos possible and help as many people as I can while doing it."

MrBeast allegations, criticism, controversy, and lawsuits

With great visibility comes great scrutiny. Donaldson has been no stranger to controversy over the years. In 2024, he was involved in multiple scandals.

In July 2024, Donaldson's childhood friend and coworker Ava Kris Tyson was accused of inappropriately messaging a 13-year-old. Tyson apologized for "bad edgy jokes" on X but said she'd never groomed anyone. She said that she and Donaldson had "mutually decided" to cut ties.

Donaldson said on X that he was "disgusted" by the allegations and had hired a third party to investigate. The investigation into various issues at the company ultimately concluded that claims of sexual misconduct between employees and minors were "without basis." The alleged victim also said on X that the grooming claims were false.

Donaldson's "Beast Games" series was also beset by controversies.

Contestants on the show alleged a number of safety concerns, including a lack of access to food and medical care, and injuries during a preliminary shoot. News of the allegations was first reported by The New York Times.

A rep for MrBeast previously told BI that the shoot "was unfortunately complicated by the CrowdStrike incident, extreme weather, and other unexpected logistical and communications issues."

One former "Beast Games" crew member also told BI he was nearly crushed by a concrete-like structure on set in Toronto. After BI contacted Donaldson's team for comment, the crew member said a production rep had contacted him, saying they were "here to support me and provided me some things I can't share."

Five of the contestants on the show filed a class-action lawsuit in September 2024, alleging sexual harassment and dangerous conditions.

In November, Donaldson addressed some of the allegations around the show on X, saying they were "blown out of proportion."

Around the same time as the "Beast Games" controversy, Donaldson also acknowledged an old clip that resurfaced on social media in which he could be seen making homophobic and racist comments. A spokesperson said in a statement to multiple outlets at the time that Donaldson "repeatedly apologized and has learned that increasing influence comes with increased responsibility."

• The first YouTube video went live 20 years ago Wednesday.
• Business Insider spoke with former top execs about navigating pivotal moments.
• From building a new copyright paradigm to frustrations around Originals, here's what they remember.

Many former YouTube employees have a special connection to their alma mater, and a long-standing pride about having shaped the revolutionary platform, which turned 20 this year.

That was on full display last month when a reunion event for YouTube alums made it out of the LinkedIn group chat.

What was initially planned as a backyard party snowballed into a gathering of hundreds — including cofounder Chad Hurley — with some flying in from as far as Australia to attend, said Ben Relles, former head of innovation at YouTube Originals, who helped organize the event. (YouTube itself wasn't involved.)

"It had that vibe of a high school reunion," Relles said. "Looking back on it, it feels like this was a group of people that got to witness and have a small part in the way that the history of media was shaped."

YouTube was founded on Valentine's Day in 2005 by a trio of PayPal alums and acquired by Google the following year. The first video on the platform, "Me at the zoo," was uploaded exactly 20 years ago Wednesday.

To mark the milestone, we spoke with seven former YouTube execs about navigating pivotal moments in the platform's history.

At first, YouTube was seen as 'Google's first failed acquisition.'

Shishir Mehrotra, formerly YouTube's chief product officer — and now CEO of Grammarly — said the company faced adversity early on, initially perceived as "Google's first failed acquisition" following the companies that would become Google Maps and Android.

"Grainy videos didn't really make sense in the Google ecosystem," Mehrotra said. He likened early employees to "pirates" who believed deeply in their mission.

One idea that helped Mehrotra land the job was a pitch for "skippable ads" — a pricier format where advertisers would only pay when an ad wasn't skipped. But the sales team hated the idea because of the name, and it didn't ship for years — until a product manager suggested the name TrueView.

"It went from zero to a billion dollars in about 18 months," Mehrotra said — "one of the fastest-growing products in Google history."

Another one of his proudest leadership moments came at a company offsite in 2012, when he said YouTube was struggling for relevance and purpose. To combat the stagnation, he set a lofty goal of 1 billion hours of daily watch-time, which "reverberated through Google" until it was surpassed in 2017.

Now-defunct YouTube Originals was like 'a square peg in a round hole.'

Susanne Daniels, YouTube's former global head of original content, looks back proudly at the content output during her tenure — from Doug Liman's "Impulse" and "Cobra Kai" to collaborating with YouTubers Liza Koshy and Joey Graceffa on original series.

YouTube Originals went through several strategies — including subscription and ad-based models, and a pivot from scripted to unscripted programming in 2019, Variety reported — before dissolving in 2022.

Daniels said she found the number of pivots frustrating, and said the biggest challenge was that YouTube operates as a technology company rather than a media business. Its success as a distribution platform for user-generated content meant it didn't necessarily need to play the long game of original content.

"YouTube Originals was a square peg in a round hole — constantly having to pave roads where there already should have been — from production issues to business deal issues and everything in between," she said. "We never had the support system internally nor the resources we needed to succeed — not to mention a crushingly limited budget for production and marketing."

But Daniels said she was inspired by her team and felt she could have made YouTube Originals a valuable asset with more support.

"It was definitely a unique and rewarding experience in many ways," she said.

A YouTube spokesperson said that while Originals served to turbocharge its content ecosystem, the creator community has now evolved to produce increasingly sophisticated content.

The company is still in the business of original content, the spokesperson argued, by investing directly in its community of creators and artists.

The late CEO Susan Wojcicki was 'the definition of calm in the storm.'

Malik Ducard — currently the chief content officer at Pinterest — last served as YouTube's global head of learning, social impact, health, family, and film & TV.

During his time, he also spearheaded initiatives for underrepresented communities, like the $100 million #YouTubeBlack Voices Fund, which gave seed funding and other resources to Black creators.

Ducard said that during his time at YouTube, he felt lucky to be in the orbit of late CEO Susan Wojcicki.

She was "the definition of calm in the storm," Ducard said, given that there were many "heightened moments at YouTube and there was never a heightened Susan."

"She was always steady on the wheel and someone that people sought out for guidance," he added.

And YouTube's investment in educational and family content — including YouTube Kids, which Ducard's then-five-year-old son was one of the first users to test — was part of Wojcicki's "push to really see that YouTube has a responsible place in the world."

YouTube's copyright tools seemed counterintuitive, but became the norm.

Entrepreneur and investor Hunter Walk served as director of product management at parent company Google.

At YouTube, his proudest achievement was "nailing the shift to mobile," he told BI, which required overstaffing the mobile division ahead of its maturity and contending with the fact that "some notable executives at Google tried to kill our deal to be a default app on the iPhone."

One of the biggest challenges was building YouTube's copyright tools. Rather than removing copyrighted content, Content ID lets rights holders choose to keep it up and monetize. It was a counterintuitive strategy at the time that took some convincing.

"If they understood this was basically fans doing their distribution work for them, we could leave it up, monetize it, and everyone would profit," Walk said. "Fortunately, over time, it came to be viewed this way by the majority of media companies."

Serving as YouTube's first creator liaison could feel like flying too close to the sun.

Matt Koval was an early YouTuber hired by Google in 2012 to compile best practices for creators that the company could use as scalable resources.

"Back then, it sounded crazy that YouTube creators would become Google employees," he said.

Eventually, Koval was named YouTube's first creator liaison, serving as a conduit between those inside and outside the company. The idea came from Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, inspired by the success of search liaison Danny Sullivan, Koval said.

In navigating various controversies, Koval felt he was able to "land" his explanations. But it could be a tricky line. The biggest backlash came when he sought to explain YouTube's decision to eliminate the dislike counter, which trolls were using to target marginalized groups.

"Google security got involved" in the face of personal threats, Koval said. And while the fervor eventually subsided, he said the role could occasionally feel like flying too close to the sun.

Early struggles to moderate children's content led to one employee's departure.

As the mother of a 10-year-old who dreams of becoming a content creator, Rachel Melby said she's been reflecting on her time at YouTube amid a slew of documentaries about the perils of family vlogging.

"It's kind of radical to think that there was a time when people were not incentivized by money to create content and put it out into the world," she said.

Melby, the former global lead for influencer and celebrity partnerships, said struggles around kids' content moderation led to her departure. At the time, YouTube was contending with controversial family vloggers accused of exploiting their children for profit, she said.

"It just became too hard for me to sit and have these conversations about kids," she said.

Melby recently helped her son post his first YouTube video, but she's ensuring he proceeds with caution.

"It's just one part of our life," she said. "I don't want it to be all-consuming."

A YouTube spokesperson said the company has always tried to ensure the safety of children and families and has adjusted its products and policies accordingly.

YouTube Spaces helped 'humanize' its scale, but probably don't make sense today.

Kathleen Grace arrived at YouTube through its acquisition of Next New Networks, along with Relles and former TikTok COO V Pappas. She said the company felt like a startup at the time, like "Google's punk rock little brother."

During her tenure, Grace helped open YouTube's first Spaces: free production facilities and networking hubs across the globe. The aim was to "humanize the scale of the company," and seed a community in Los Angeles, New York, London, and Tokyo.

YouTube shuttered the Spaces during the pandemic, and Grace said she's not sure they make sense in today's world, where social video has become increasingly lightweight, and the need for community has shifted as more people want to be creators.

"It's just a different era," she said. "You don't feel as lonely."

• YouTube is rolling out a 4x playback speed option as a perk for Premium subscribers.
• I tried watching popular creators and couldn't decipher a word.
• Given YouTube's breadth, there are probably some edge cases where it makes sense.

At the ripe age of 20, YouTube is looking to speed up time — when it comes to video playback, that is.

As part of its 20th anniversary festivities, the video giant announced a slew of product tweaks, including one curious addition: a 4x speed option. YouTube first teased the feature in January and said in a blog post Tuesday it was "rolling out" for all Premium subscribers.

Non-Premium users can watch YouTube at a max speed of 2x, whereas subscribers — who pay $13.99 a month — can adjust their video speeds in 0.05 increments, ranging from 0.25 to 4.

Playback acceleration feels like an inevitability in a world of shrinking attention spans and strides toward productivity and peak performance. And on the surface, some speedier options make a lot of sense on YouTube, where creators can be prone to a sponsored preamble and are incentivized to make longer videos.

But are there really many use cases for 4x? I'm skeptical.

YouTube didn't respond to a request for comment.

As a Premium subscriber with access to the feature, I tried watching MrBeast's most recent video, and the latest episode of Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast at 4x. To be fair, Donaldson is known for his jaunty narration and jumping straight into the action, while Cooper has a quicker delivery than many of her podcasting compatriots.

Still, both videos were completely incomprehensible. At 3x, it was still possible to make out sentences, but after 3.5x, everything started turning into a giant jumble.

Given that YouTube is a repository for all kinds of strange formats, there are probably some edge cases where 4x makes sense. Perhaps for extremely long videos without any talking, like timelapses or videogame walkthroughs? I could understand some ASMR slow-talkers at 4x, though speeding those up probably defeats the purpose.

Elsewhere, podcasts and audiobooks are common formats for altering playback speeds. But data from Spotify — which offers a max speed of 3.5x for audio podcasts — showed that 98.5% of listeners stuck with the standard 1x.

And Netflix offers a 1.5x option, which could be a boon for shows with little action like "Love Is Blind," per my colleague Katie Notopoulos.

• One category of creator merch is feeling the pinch of Trump's tariffs more than others: plushies.
• Some merch companies are seeking to transition their plushies business away from China.
• Creators are worried they could upset their fans if they have to raise prices.

Rachel Reichenbach is stressed out about tariffs.

The artist and content creator sells frog pins, plush toys, and other amphibian-themed items to fans.

Her plushies are made in China, which means they could soon become much more expensive to sell in the US due to recent tariffs and rule changes instituted by the Trump administration. If she raises the cost of her green and blue plush frogs to cover tariff fees, they may become too pricey for her audience.

"No matter how cute they are, people are only going to be willing to pay a certain amount for things," said Reichenbach, who has around 117,000 Instagram followers and 670 Patreon subscribers. "My products, they're not a staple. It's going to be the first to be cut from most people's budget."

The US-China trade war is hitting the influencer economy unevenly. Influencers sell a variety of items to make money off their fame, whether that's sweatpants, keychains, or chocolate bars. Some products, like T-shirts or food, can be easily manufactured in the US, which could shield them from tariffs. Plushies, however, tend to be made in China, where tariffs on toy imports are now set at 145%.

The increase hasn't hit for some creators yet, but they're bracing for higher costs.

Plushies can sell for anywhere from $15 to upward of $30, several creators and suppliers told Business Insider. Creators are worried they could upset fans if added fees force them to raise prices. The market for influencer plushies, popular among anime illustrators, YouTube channels with animated characters, and VTubers, could crash in the coming months if creators back away from selling stuffed toys in favor of lower-tariffed items.

"For some creators, plushies are far and away the bestseller," said Walker Williams, cofounder at the creator e-commerce platform Fourthwall. "They're really collectible, they're fun, they're unique, and so for a good number of creators, plushies are 90% plus of their sales."

Warren James CEO Saurabh Shah told BI that plushie sales are a "close second" to apparel for the creator merch company, which works with creators like Hasan Piker and Tana Mongeau.

Why finding plushies outside China is challenging

Influencers and their business partners lean heavily on China for plushies because of the country's manufacturing efficiencies, executives at creator merch companies told BI.

China became a plushies hub because its factories are colocated and can easily work together, said Ronak Trivedi, CEO of the product manufacturing platform Pietra. He said cities like Dongguan and Yiwu have "extremely robust economies around plushie production."

There are other places for plush toy manufacturing outside China, including Vietnam. Companies make plushies in the US and Australia, for example, but they can be expensive due to labor costs. Factories outside China or Vietnam are also less equipped to work with influencers on small batch orders, and creators tend to release products in limited drops.

"If you don't want to produce 20,000 of them, basically you have to go to China or Vietnam," Williams said.

Being price conscious is a must for influencers who want to avoid upsetting fans

Some creators are worried about setting high prices on plushies because they think it will come off as greedy to their fans.

"When things are crazy in the world, I think creators are a little more reluctant to go and sell something directly to their fans," Williams said. "They don't want to put their audience under pressure to buy things."

Warren James is raising prices — to the tune of less than 10% across most categories — meaning a $35 plushie would now be about $38, Shah said. The company and creators are also eating some of the costs, as are its suppliers and shipping partners.

"We're being surgical about it," he said of the increases. "For us, merch is about fan connection — it should still feel accessible."

Other merch companies like anime creator product company Noir are anticipating much steeper price increases tied to tariffs that could more than double the cost of plushies for their customers.

Noir isn't shying away from letting customers know why prices are going up. The company plans to list price increases for plushies as a Trump tariff fee in the checkout cart.

Other creators have been shouting out potential price hikes in posts on platforms like Instagram and X.

"Transparency is really important for the fans to feel like they know why we're doing what we're doing," Cary Huang from the YouTube channel Jack n Jellify told BI.

Influencers and their partners are racing to find workarounds

The plushie price apocalypse hasn't fully hit. Some creators are still benefiting from the de minimis loophole that exempts from tariffs smaller orders shipped from China. But the administration is stripping that exemption away beginning on May 2.

Still, influencers and their suppliers aren't sitting idle. Some are rushing to get as many shipments into the US as possible before the exemption is removed. Others are considering sourcing their plushies from Vietnam if Chinese suppliers become unviable.

Shah said Warren James began exploring factories there across all categories after the Biden administration signaled tariff increases last year, and it's now doing test production runs. It is modeling plans to bring about half of its business in China to Vietnam.

Other merch companies are thinking on their feet.

Killer Merch COO Mark Bubb said more partnerships could help more players in the relatively nascent space succeed. One example could include various entities coming together "to give a decent amount of business to a small manufacturer that would help them scale."

Other creators may eventually move away from plushies if they become too expensive to produce.

"I do think that creators are going to go for products that are more made in the USA," Williams said. "A lot of creators are going to say, 'Hey, I'm not looking to pay 2.5 times the price on a plushie.'"

Oliver Gilpin, CEO of Telos Media, which runs animated YouTube channels like Solarballs and MrSpherical, said the company may prioritize playing cards over plushies because it has a smaller price markup on its plush toys.

"With tariffs starting, it really hits low markup businesses and products," Gilpin said.

Of course, abandoning plushies isn't an option for everyone.

"The type of product really matters," Jack n Jellify's Huang said. "You can't just swap out a plushie for a jigsaw puzzle."

• Netflix is interested in competition shows starring creators on the heels of Amazon's "Beast Games."
• The streaming giant is entertaining riffs on "Survivor" and "The Bachelor," BI was told.
• It's the latest example of media giants trying to borrow from YouTube's success.

In the wake of Amazon's hit "Beast Games," starring MrBeast, Netflix has been soliciting ideas for competition shows involving digital creators.

The streamer has name-checked the long-running franchises "Survivor" and "The Bachelor" as inspirations, four people familiar with the discussions told Business Insider.

Netflix is still in the early stages of its efforts, and while it mentioned those shows by name, it also asked prospective creator partners to riff on the formats, one person said.

"They have mentioned that 'Beast Games' is good and has done well," this person added.

One criticism of big media companies' earlier forays into leveraging the popularity of social media creators was that they tried to shoehorn influencers into old-school TV formats, with sometimes awkward results. Netflix seems to be flexible on the format and wants the creator to be active in developing it, three people said.

Netflix already streams some competition shows, including "Squid Game: The Challenge." On the romance front, it's garnered massive success with shows such as "Love Is Blind."

Two people familiar with Netflix's outreach in the creator space said the streamer was also interested in live concepts.

Its most recent foray into the live space, "Pop the Balloon" — an adaptation of a YouTube dating series — was met with lukewarm reviews. Its host, Yvonne Orji, told "Today" that future installments would be "refined and renewed."

Hollywood is awakening to YouTube's impact

Netflix and other media giants have ramped up efforts to bring YouTubers onto their platforms. Netflix has been making the rounds with creator reps and done deals with the Sidemen and the preschool educator Ms. Rachel. Earlier this month, it premiered the docuseries "Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing," centered on the controversial vlogger Piper Rockelle.

At the same time, top execs at Netflix have been making the case — as recently as on Thursday's earnings call — that it can be a better platform for creators than YouTube because it pays talent up front and can amplify their reach.

"We're looking for the next generation of great creators, and we're looking everywhere," Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on the Thursday call.

The charm offensive comes as Hollywood is waking up to the fact that young people are increasingly turning to YouTubers over more traditional fare.

The Google-owned platform has led the pack in TV viewership, doubling its share to 12% in March this year from 2021, the year Nielsen started measuring the whole TV-watching pie, including streaming. During the same time period, Netflix's share has increased to about 8% from 6%.

Netflix needs to keep experimenting with new types of shows as its member growth in the US and Canada slows, said Alejandro Rojas, the vice president of applied analytics at the data firm Parrot Analytics. Competition shows are good at retaining viewers and attracting advertisers thanks to dramatic storylines, repeated formats, and the ability to integrate products.

He added that having a well-known creator at the helm could help bring in and retain new audiences. And if a show is successful in one market, like "Love Is Blind," the format can be imported globally.

"Competition shows can be as successful as a major scripted show," Rojas said.

• Netflix says it hasn't been affected by economic headwinds and isn't changing its forecasts.
• A UBS report found the streamer is cheaper than its peers in terms of cost per hour viewed.
• That gives Netflix an edge amid market turbulence.

As economic anxieties mount, Netflix is looking like quite the bargain in a crowded streaming market.

During its earnings call Thursday, the streamer said it hadn't seen any major changes amid emerging economic headwinds — and it isn't adjusting its forecasts.

Co-CEO Greg Peters said subscriber retention was stable, consumers weren't shifting significantly to lower-priced plans, and the price increases unveiled in January had rolled out as expected. He added the company's cheaper, ad-supported plan — starting at $7.99 — would only add to its resilience.

"Historically, in tougher economies, home entertainment value is really important to consumer households, and Netflix is a tremendous value in absolute terms — and certainly in competitive terms," co-CEO Ted Sarandos added.

A recent report by UBS analysts lends credence to Sarandos' comments about Netflix's value.

In fact, the analysts found that, in terms of cost per hour of viewership, Netflix is cheaper than its peers.

Ad-free subscribers pay 39 cents an hour to stream Netflix, according to UBS. And ad-supported subscribers pay a mere 18 cents an hour, making the service cheaper than traditional TV.

UBS wrote that the low ratio is being driven by how much people watch Netflix. One sign of strong engagement? Viewing hours on Netflix's Top 10 lists was up 5% year-over-year in the first quarter, driven by titles like "Squid Game" and "The Night Agent," per the report.

Netflix declined to comment.

The streaming giant crushed its earnings Thursday — the first time it did so without disclosing subscriber figures — reaffirming why it has been trading like a "recession-resistant" stock. Shares are up nearly 10% year-to-date.

Beyond Netflix, streaming has generally been considered a recession-resistant sector. One financial influencer interviewed recently by Business Insider advised consumers to make use of their streaming services in lieu of going out as a budgeting hack. Other areas of entertainment may fare less well, though live music is well-positioned.

• The CEO of MrBeast's company has compared it to Disney in pitching prospective investors.
• Like Disney, Beast Industries is looking to proliferate its IP into different categories.
• MrBeast isn't pitching a theme park yet — but other YouTubers have.

MrBeast wants to build a Disney for the next generation.

The CEO of the YouTuber's company, Beast Industries, has explicitly made the comparison when pitching prospective investors interested in its latest funding round, two people familiar with the discussions told Business Insider.

Jeffrey Housenbold, who joined the company in May, is presiding over Beast Industries as it looks to raise hundreds of millions in funding at a $5 billion valuation, Bloomberg reported in February.

A representative for MrBeast did not respond to a request for comment.

Disney built its empire by proliferating its storied intellectual property into different categories. While its entertainment division — comprising its movie studios, TV networks, and streaming services — drove $41.2 billion in revenue last year, its experiences division, including parks, cruises, and consumer products, was close behind at $34.2 billion.

A February Beast Industries pitch deck obtained by BI illuminates how the kid-friendly creator and YouTube's top star, with over 380 million followers, is similarly looking to move beyond his roots.

"Beast Industries is the next generation diversified media, consumer product goods and services conglomerate," the first slide in the deck said.

The deck added that Beast Industries was exploring ways to "diversify away from MrBeast being on camera" via new IP within the "Beast Universe." It said that in the first quarter of this year, an in-house writers' room would begin to create IP for toys, gaming, animation, comics, and merch.

Simon Owens, an independent journalist, wrote in his Media Newsletter that MrBeast often costars with longtime friends in his YouTube videos, who could be ripe for picking in terms of fresh IP.

On the consumer products front, MrBeast's portfolio is dominated by food — namely, his chocolate brand, Feastables, which the deck said drove $215 million in net revenue last year — but his toy brand, MrBeast Lab, drove $65 million in sales in its first six months.

MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, isn't pitching a theme park yet, but other YouTubers have. The popular trick shot channel Dude Perfect, which raised more than $100 million in venture capital funding last year, previously teased a theme park project called Dude Perfect World and just unveiled its new Texas headquarters — complete with a putting course, basketball court, and production facilities.

The comparisons between Beast Industries and Disney come as the House of Mouse is losing its monopoly on kids amid YouTube's ascension.

The MoffettNathanson analyst Michael Nathanson recently projected that YouTube was on track to eclipse Disney — minus its parks business — this year as the biggest media company in the world.

• MrBeast said Trump's tariffs are "pretty brutal" for his chocolate brand, Feastables.
• He said because of the tariffs, it would be "way cheaper" to make the candy bars outside the US.
• Feastables is the predominant profit driver of the YouTuber's company, Beast Industries.

MrBeast's ethically sourced chocolate brand, Feastables, is feeling the pain of President Donald Trump's tariffs.

"Ironically because of all the new tariffs it is now way cheaper to make our chocolate bars we sell globally NOT in America," the YouTube star — whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson — said Tuesday on X.

According to the brand's website, Feastables products are "designed" in Donaldson's hometown of Greenville, North Carolina, and produced in Peru and the US. But in a recent interview on the "Diary of a CEO" podcast, Donaldson said that while Feastables used to source from Peru, the company began to explore West African supply chains as it grew.

Donaldson said Tuesday it would be cheaper to produce and sell the candy bars from abroad because "other countries don't have a 20%+ tariff on our cogs," using the acronym for the cost of goods sold.

Côte d'Ivoire, for instance — the world's largest exporter of cocoa — was hit with a 21% tariff. The tariffs are set to go into effect on Wednesday.

Trump has said part of the goal for the levies is to bring manufacturing back to the US (which is an exporter of chocolate and cocoa products). But Donaldson's comments show that tariffs on certain parts of a product — in this case, cocoa and other ingredients — could drive some businesses that sell across the world to move their operations outside the US.

The Feastables brand is available in most of North America and much of Europe, as well as in India and Malaysia.

Donaldson added that because he already spends a lot on cocoa to ensure it's ethically sourced — including a living wage for farmers — the "random price hike" precipitated by the tariffs was "pretty brutal."

"We'll figure it out. I feel for small businesses though," he wrote. "Could really be a nail in the coffin for them."

A representative for Donaldson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Feastables makes up a significant portion of Donaldson's revenue at his company, Beast Industries. It drove roughly half of the company's revenue in 2024, to the tune of $215 million, a pitch deck obtained by Business Insider said.

And it's far more profitable than his media business, which includes his YouTube channel and Amazon Prime show. That accounted for roughly as much revenue but lost money because of high production costs, Bloomberg reported.

Trump announced wide-ranging global tariffs on Wednesday, which he referred to as "Liberation Day," sending markets into a free fall. Several companies have said they're raising prices to offset costs. MrBeast didn't comment on the impact tariffs could have on Feastables pricing.

• YouTuber Rebecca Zamolo is launching a fertility brand at Walmart inspired by her own struggles.
• The supplement category has become a playground for influencers.
• Zamolo says Molo's key selling point is in the way it's consumed.

Top YouTuber Rebecca Zamolo went through fertility struggles, including multiple rounds of IVF and miscarriages. She says this was part of the inspiration for her new supplement brand for hopeful mothers, Molo.

The name is both a play on her surname and short for "Mother's Love." Zamolo said its key selling point is a powder delivery system rather than the "horse pills" she took while trying to conceive her daughter, Zadie.

The supplements arrive Wednesday at Walmart stores nationwide as well as online.

"I realized there was definitely a problem when I was taking 14 giant pills a day to get pregnant," Zamolo told Business Insider. "I was like, how can we make this easier?"

In addition to Molo, other players in the fertility supplement market, including Needed and Perelel, offer powder formulas. Other brands like Olly offer gummies.

Influencers including Kourtney Kardashian and Andrew Huberman are active in the supplement category, via Lemme and curations with the brand Momentous, respectively. At the same time, companies like AG1, Bloom Nutrition, and Sugarbear Pro have relied on influencers as a key marketing channel.

All told, the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a lobbying group, pegged the size of the supplement business at $158.6 billion in 2023.

Forty-year-old Zamolo, for her part, has a massive digital footprint, including roughly 18 million followers on both YouTube and TikTok. She creates kid-friendly content with her family, including challenges and games.

Zamolo said that after she struggled for years to get pregnant, her fertility nurse, Christina Westbrook — a Molo cofounder, who also runs an IVF clinic in Los Angeles — recommended a vitamin regimen. Zamolo credits it with helping her conceive.

She is currently expecting her second child, a boy, via surrogate.

The products will be accompanied by a digital hub

While Westbrook developed Molo's formulas, Zamolo's other cofounders include Eyal Baumel — whose company, Flywheel, collaborates with influencers on product launches and other ventures — and Adam Ross at the investment firm Three Leaf Clover, who oversees manufacturing and product development.

Molo will comprise four products at launch: a prenatal mix, a hormone balance mix, a conception mix, and an ovulation and pregnancy test kit. An ovulation mix is coming down the line, and Zamolo said she eventually envisions creating postpartum products and supplements for men.

Molo boxes comprise 30 sachets, which are vegetarian, gluten-free, and non-GMO. All of the products in the line are priced at $29.99 apiece.

The efficacy of different supplements — which aren't regulated by the FDA as drugs — is a topic often debated in the medical community. An evaluation of studies on prenatal supplements in 2023 concluded that they "can play an important role in supporting a healthy pregnancy." The authors, however, noted some concerns surrounding regulation, dosages, and safety, and recommended pregnant women discuss any use of them with their healthcare provider.

In addition to Molo's physical products, a digital hub is in the works where fertility experts, OB-GYNs, and nutritionists will lead discussions, and women — including Zamolo — will be able to share their experiences with the goal of reducing stigma.

"It's giving that opportunity for women all over to take back control of their fertility," she said.