YouTube CEO Neal Mohan.
Credit: LinkedIn/@Neal Mohan
Neal Mohan, the Chief Executive Officer of online video-sharing platform YouTube, has been named the CEO of the year by the Time magazine. He does not "dismantle a government agency" or even have "medals in Brazilian jiujitsu." He is someone who "just runs YouTube," the magazine said.
Mohan succeeded his predecessor Susan Wojcicki in 2023. He joined the team and continues to maintain its position in the market, their place in viewers' habits, and over 2 billion people visiting the platform every day.
Neal Mohan was born in Indiana, and spent most of his early years in the US. He moved to Lucknow with his parents in 1985 at the age of 12.
Under his management, in September 2025, YouTube settled a lawsuit case filed by US President Donald Trump and other figures over Trump's channel being suspended after the Capitol attack.
"The entire dynamics of the entire media industry are changing before our eyes,” he said to Time. “It’s incredibly disruptive, and if you don’t adapt, you can be left by the wayside."
The magazine compared him to a farmer, an individual who cultivates the content we consume. "YouTube provides the soil, and everyone comes and plants whatever nourishing or noxious plants they care to," the piece read.
As YouTube's position continues to be termed as irreplaceable by many, the magazine described the man behind it as "surprisingly mellow."
"He’s quiet-spoken, deliberative, hard to ruffle. He likes watching sports, going to his daughters’ dance recitals, and open white shirts, just normal stuff."
When YouTube was looking to amplify content monetisation, Mohan stated he does not look at it in terms of living wage.
“I don’t really look at it in terms of living wage vs not,” he said. “The way I look at it is that, if they want to establish themselves professionally, from a career standpoint, is the funnel moving—are people actually becoming successful? And is that number of people that are successful growing year on year?”
2025 has been a memorable year for the platform. Some of the more noticeable moments of the year was listed on the article. From Mr Beast signing a deal with Amazon Prime for two more seasons of Beast Games, to fans tuning in to Jason and Travis Kelce's podcast, YouTube has become prime platform for content creators.