Steve Chen

Who Is Steve Chen?

Steve Chen is a world-renowned internet entrepreneur, best known as one of the co-founders and former Chief Technology Officer of YouTube. His vision and leadership transformed the way we share and consume videos online, turning YouTube into one of the most influential digital platforms in the world.
Born in Taiwan, Chen moved to the United States at the age of eight and grew up in suburban Chicago. His passion for technology led him to graduate in Computer Science from the University of Illinois. Before founding YouTube, he worked as one of the first employees at PayPal and briefly at Facebook, experiences that shaped his innovative approach to technology and entrepreneurship.

What is his Background?

In 2005, while working at PayPal, Steve Chen, alongside Chad Hurley and Jawed Karim, developed a simple and efficient solution for sharing videos online: YouTube. Within less than a year, the platform became a global phenomenon and was acquired by Google for $1.65 billion.
Chen continued to lead YouTube’s growth under Google, overseeing critical areas such as engineering, product design, and operations. He designed the massive data centers that support the platform and introduced features that turned YouTube into a social media and entertainment powerhouse.
In addition to his entrepreneurial success, Chen was honored with an Emmy for lifetime achievement in 2019. For years, he worked with Google Ventures, mentoring startups to refine their business models and scale effectively. Today, he resides in Taiwan, focusing on nurturing the Taiwanese startup ecosystem.