Jawed Karim
Jawed Karim is a German-American software engineer and internet entrepreneur who co-founded YouTube and uploaded its first video, “Me at the zoo.”
Chad Hurley: Chad Hurley is an American internet entrepreneur and designer who co-founded YouTube. Hurley was Karim’s fellow YouTube co-founder and helped shape the site’s early design.
Me at the zoo: “Me at the zoo” is a short video uploaded to YouTube by Jawed Karim on April 23, 2005. Karim uploaded this first video to YouTube, appearing on camera at the San Diego Zoo.
PayPal: PayPal is an online payments company founded in 1998 as Confinity and later merged with X.com. Karim met future YouTube co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen while working at PayPal.
YouTube culture: YouTube culture comprises the practices, communities, genres, and norms that developed around the video-sharing platform. Karim’s first upload became an enduring reference point in the platform’s shared history.
Steve Chen: Steve Chen is a Taiwanese-American internet entrepreneur who co-founded YouTube. Chen worked with Karim at PayPal before they founded YouTube together.
YouTube's first video: YouTube's first video is the platform's earliest known uploaded video, posted on April 23, 2005. The platform’s earliest upload is Karim’s “Me at the zoo.”
YouTube founding: YouTube founding is the creation of the video-sharing service by Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim in 2005. This is the entrepreneurial project Karim co-founded after leaving PayPal.
Internet meme: An internet meme is a cultural item, such as an image, video, or phrase, that spreads and is adapted online. “Me at the zoo” is often treated as an early emblem of user-made online video.
PayPal Mafia: The PayPal Mafia is a group of former PayPal employees who later founded or led influential technology companies. Karim’s PayPal colleagues became a notable network of technology founders.
San Diego Zoo: The San Diego Zoo is a zoological park in Balboa Park, San Diego, California. Karim filmed his first YouTube video in front of the zoo’s elephant exhibit.