You Won’t Believe What the First and Oldest YouTube Video Was!

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Today, almost everyone over the age of two recognizes the name “YouTube” and its distinctive logo. This multibillion-dollar platform boasts billions of users worldwide and is a hub for sharing videos on an extensive range of topics – from educational deep dives to funny clips, major movie trailers, and more. YouTube has significantly influenced pop culture and entertainment by shaping internet trends, changing how we consume news and knowledge, and even launching some individuals into international stardom. It seems like YouTube has been a part of our lives for centuries, but in reality, it was only established in 2005 with a surprisingly short and straightforward video that had an enormous impact on its future development. Let’s delve into the brief history of the first-ever YouTube video and how it set the stage for the platform’s growth.

YouTube’s Strange Origin Story 

Back when YouTube was just a flicker in the minds of three brilliant ex-PayPal employees, long before it became the video-sharing behemoth we know today, it was simply an idea born out of our shared passion for all things cinematic. My comrades Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and myself, Jawed Karim, were driven by a burning desire to create something remarkable after eBay acquired the company where we once worked.

The spark that ignited YouTube came from an event as iconic as it was controversial – the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show incident involving Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake. The unexpected exposure of Ms. Jackson’s breast during that performance left a lasting impression on us, fueling our vision for a platform where anyone could share their stories, ideas, and creative works with the world.

As a movie buff and news enthusiast, I found myself struggling to find footage of that iconic moment that swept the globe, as well as other significant events like the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. It’s puzzling why these two dramatically distinct incidents resonated with me so deeply. However, what is clear is that during those times, there was a striking lack of platforms where we could easily access on-demand video clips of historical milestones like these.

As a devoted cinephile, I’d like to share an intriguing tale about YouTube’s origins. Initially, Chen and Hurley envisioned their platform as a video-based dating service similar to Hot or Not. However, when efforts to persuade attractive women to submit videos in return for compensation fell flat, the idea seemed doomed. Instead, they opted to create a site where users could post any kind of video content. Quite an unusual genesis, you might say.

However, after securing some venture capital funding, they established a humble headquarters in San Mateo, California. YouTube officially went live in February 2005, and the first video was uploaded in April. Despite this peculiar start, it’s safe to say that YouTube has since grown into something much more remarkable.

What Is the First and Oldest YouTube Video?

The initial YouTube video, uploaded on April 23, 2005, was titled “Me at the zoo” and lasts for 19 seconds. This video features YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim standing in front of an elephant enclosure, providing some casual commentary about the elephants’ trunks. Filmed by his friend Yakov Lapitsky, this simple video served as the starting point for what would later evolve into YouTube. Although Karim’s commentary may not have been extensive, it embodies the spirit of user-generated, amateur content that enables creators to shape their own narratives and serve as their own reporters. In essence, Jawed Karim is recognized as the first YouTuber.

Engaging directly with the camera, as if speaking to an invisible crowd, and adopting a straightforward, everyday style is a technique many people have embraced and developed further with improved visual styles over time. For Gen Xers and Millennials, this clip and its vintage appearance stirs nostalgia for less polished social media eras. Remember those carefree party times before everything was about meticulous planning for likes, shares, engagement, and monetization? It was a platform to transform the discussions and viewpoints from sites like LiveJournal into video content to share with others.

The original YouTube clip, featuring me at the zoo, was uploaded first and is the oldest one under Karim’s account. Despite not being the most-watched video on YouTube (that title goes to another unnamed video), it has amassed an impressive 346 million views as of January 2025. Interestingly, all other videos under Karim’s account are no longer accessible for unknown reasons. However, the San Diego Zoo’s comment pinned on the clip, expressing pride in being part of the first YouTube video, has garnered an astonishing 4 million likes and counting. Remarkably, the video continues to inspire conversations with over 10 million comments posted daily, discussing its global influence on the web.

Jawed Karim’s Life After Posting the First and Oldest YouTube Video “Me at the Zoo” 

Right from YouTube’s inception, Jawed Karim chose not to work as an employee of the company but rather concentrate on his studies at Stanford University as a computer science graduate student. Consequently, he took up an advisory role and accepted a smaller stake in the company compared to the other co-founders. This smaller share turned out to be quite significant: when Google acquired the company in 2006, it amounted to over 137K shares of stock, worth approximately $64 million dollars. Subsequently, he established a venture fund company and invested in various businesses such as Airbnb, Reddit, and Eventbrite. In essence, he has amassed a substantial fortune and seems content with managing his own affairs, making him an admirable figure for many.

Karim doesn’t upload videos on YouTube, but he uses “Me at the zoo” as a means to voice his disapproval towards the platform he co-founded by adding critical comments in the video description. In 2013, he modified the video description to “I can no longer comment here since I don’t want a Google+ account.” More recently, in 2021, Karim made similar remarks when dislikes were removed from YouTube with a description that read “When every YouTuber agrees that removing dislikes is a foolish idea, it probably is. Try again, YouTube.” Currently, the video’s description only contains three brief timestamps – Intro, The Cool Thing, and End.

Indeed, YouTube’s past has been marked by various controversies and criticisms, spanning from privacy concerns to the propagation of questionable conspiracy theories, among other issues. However, it’s undeniable that YouTube plays a significant role in our internet usage and creative endeavors. We turn to YouTube for diverse reasons: learning new abilities, watching trailers, catching up with our favorite YouTubers, or even getting lost in an assortment of bizarre yet soothing videos as a means of escaping reality. The transformative impact of a casual YouTube video, such as one showing the founder’s ordinary day at the zoo, cannot be overstated; it shapes our world significantly.

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2025-01-23 03:02