Neal Mohan

Neal Mohan
Born	14 7, 1973
Birthplace	Lafayette, Indiana, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	CEO of YouTube (2023–present)
Known for	CEO of YouTube
Education	Stanford University (BS, MBA)
Awards	TIME CEO of the Year (2025)
Website	[[blog.youtube blog.youtube] Official site]

Neal Mohan (born July 14, 1973) is an American business executive serving as the chief executive officer of YouTube, the global online video sharing and social media platform owned by Alphabet Inc. He assumed the role in February 2023, succeeding Susan Wojcicki, who had led the platform for nearly a decade. Born in Lafayette, Indiana, Mohan spent parts of his childhood in India before returning to the United States to attend Stanford University, where he earned degrees in electrical engineering and business administration. Before joining YouTube, Mohan built his career in digital advertising, playing central roles at the startup NetGravity, at DoubleClick, and subsequently at Google following its acquisition of DoubleClick in 2007. As YouTube's chief product officer from 2015 onward, he oversaw the development and launch of several major product lines, including YouTube TV, YouTube Music, YouTube Premium, and YouTube Shorts. In December 2025, TIME named Mohan its CEO of the Year for 2025.

Early Life

Neal Mohan was born on July 14, 1973, in Lafayette, Indiana. He spent most of his early childhood growing up in the United States before his family relocated to India in 1985, when he was approximately twelve years old. Mohan is of Indian descent, and his family's move to India provided him with formative years spent in the country before he returned to the United States to pursue higher education.

In 1992, Mohan moved back to the United States to begin his undergraduate studies. The experience of living in both countries during his formative years shaped Mohan's perspective. His background as an Indian American has been widely noted in media coverage, particularly following his appointment as YouTube CEO.

Education

Mohan attended Stanford University, located in Stanford, California, where he pursued a degree in electrical engineering. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1996. He later returned to Stanford in 2003 to pursue a Master of Business Administration (MBA), which he completed before re-entering the technology industry. His dual academic background in engineering and business provided a foundation for his subsequent career spanning both the technical and commercial aspects of the digital advertising and online media industries.

Career

Early career and NetGravity

After graduating from Stanford with his undergraduate degree in 1996, Mohan began his career at Accenture, the global management consulting and professional services firm. He subsequently left Accenture to join NetGravity, an early-stage startup focused on online advertising technology. At NetGravity, Mohan quickly established himself as a notable contributor within the company. NetGravity operated in the nascent digital advertising space during the late 1990s, a period of rapid growth and experimentation in internet-based commerce and media.

NetGravity was acquired by DoubleClick in 1999, bringing Mohan into one of the most prominent companies in the online advertising industry at the time.

DoubleClick

DoubleClick, which had acquired NetGravity, subsequently faced significant challenges. In 1999, DoubleClick had also acquired Abacus Direct, a data-driven direct marketing company. The Abacus acquisition triggered privacy concerns and public backlash, which contributed to serious operational and reputational issues for the company. The fallout from the merger was substantial enough that the integration was effectively unwound.

In 2003, Mohan returned to Stanford to pursue his MBA. During this period, DoubleClick underwent a leadership change, with David Rosenblatt becoming the company's new CEO in the wake of the company's difficulties. In 2005, after completing his MBA, Mohan was recruited by Rosenblatt to return to DoubleClick. Together, Mohan and Rosenblatt undertook a reorientation of the company, developing a strategic plan that focused DoubleClick's operations and business model. This plan was later reported to still have an influence on Google's advertising operations years after the acquisition.

Google and the DoubleClick acquisition

In 2007, Google acquired DoubleClick for $3.1 billion, a landmark transaction that significantly expanded Google's display advertising capabilities. The acquisition was largely driven by Susan Wojcicki, who was at that time a senior executive at Google responsible for the company's advertising products. Mohan transitioned to Google as part of the DoubleClick acquisition and became a senior executive within Google's advertising division.

At Google, Mohan rose to become a key figure in the company's display advertising business. His role was significant enough that in 2013, Business Insider reported that Google had offered Mohan a retention package valued at approximately $100 million in stock to prevent him from leaving for Twitter, which had been attempting to recruit him. The size of the retention offer underscored Mohan's perceived value to Google's advertising operations and his centrality to the company's revenue-generating capabilities. The episode drew attention across the technology industry and cemented Mohan's reputation as one of the most sought-after executives in digital media.

During his years at Google, Mohan worked closely with Wojcicki, a professional relationship that would span approximately fifteen years. Their collaboration began during the DoubleClick integration and continued as both executives took on increasingly prominent roles within Google's ecosystem.

Chief Product Officer of YouTube

In 2015, Mohan transitioned from Google's advertising division to YouTube, assuming the role of chief product officer (CPO). Wojcicki had become CEO of YouTube in 2014, and she brought Mohan over to lead the platform's product strategy. In this capacity, Mohan was responsible for overseeing the development and launch of several of YouTube's most significant product initiatives during the latter half of the 2010s and into the early 2020s.

Among the products developed and expanded under Mohan's leadership as CPO were YouTube TV, a live television streaming service; YouTube Music, a music streaming platform; YouTube Premium, a paid subscription service offering ad-free viewing and exclusive content; and YouTube Shorts, a short-form video feature introduced to compete with platforms such as TikTok. These product launches represented YouTube's strategic effort to diversify beyond its core ad-supported video platform and establish footholds in adjacent markets including live television, music streaming, and short-form content.

In a 2022 interview on The Vergecast, Mohan discussed YouTube's evolving product strategy, including the platform's approach to emerging technologies such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse, signaling YouTube's interest in exploring new digital media formats and creator monetization tools.

Throughout his tenure as CPO, Mohan was widely seen within the company and the technology industry as Wojcicki's closest lieutenant and a likely successor. His deep involvement in virtually every major product decision at YouTube positioned him as the natural choice to lead the platform.

CEO of YouTube

On February 16, 2023, Susan Wojcicki announced that she was stepping down as CEO of YouTube, citing a desire to "start a new chapter focused on my family, health, and personal projects." In her announcement, Wojcicki named Mohan as her successor, and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai confirmed the appointment. The transition was effective immediately, making Mohan the new head of one of the world's largest media platforms.

Mohan's appointment was covered extensively in both technology and mainstream media. Reports highlighted his long tenure within Google and YouTube, his background in digital advertising, and his role in shaping YouTube's product portfolio over the preceding eight years. His Indian American background was also noted prominently in international coverage, particularly in Indian media outlets.

Strategic direction under Mohan

As CEO, Mohan has emphasized the central role of creators in YouTube's ecosystem. In a January 2026 letter outlining YouTube's priorities for the year, Mohan described creators as "the new stars and studios," framing YouTube's creator community as a force that is overtaking traditional Hollywood entertainment models. The letter laid out several key areas of focus, including the continued expansion of YouTube's presence in connected television, investments in artificial intelligence safeguards, enhanced parental controls, and greater transparency around content moderation.

Mohan has also addressed growing concerns about AI-generated content on the platform. In his 2026 annual letter, he discussed YouTube's approach to combating what has been colloquially termed "AI slop"—low-quality content generated through artificial intelligence tools—signaling the platform's intention to prioritize transparency and quality in its content ecosystem.

YouTube's expansion into the television space has been a notable area of emphasis under Mohan's leadership. The platform has positioned itself as a competitor to traditional television networks and other streaming services, leveraging its vast library of creator content and its YouTube TV live television product. In a September 2025 interview with Stratechery, Mohan discussed YouTube's strategy of building a "stage for creators," emphasizing the platform's role in enabling individual creators to reach audiences at a scale previously available only through traditional media companies.

Under Mohan's stewardship, YouTube has also continued to develop its advertising business, which remains the platform's primary revenue source. The integration of AI tools into YouTube's advertising and content recommendation systems has been an ongoing initiative, building on Mohan's extensive background in digital advertising from his years at DoubleClick and Google.

Personal Life

Neal Mohan is an Indian American. He was born in Lafayette, Indiana, and spent part of his childhood in India after his family moved there in 1985. He returned to the United States in 1992 to attend Stanford University. Mohan has maintained a relatively private personal life compared to his public professional profile. Media coverage following his appointment as YouTube CEO focused primarily on his professional background and career trajectory rather than personal details.

Recognition

In December 2025, TIME named Mohan its CEO of the Year for 2025. The recognition cited Mohan's leadership in guiding YouTube into what the publication described as "a new era of TV and video domination." The award was also reported by Variety and other major media outlets, reflecting the significance of the recognition within both the technology and entertainment industries.

Earlier in his career, Mohan's status as one of Google's most valued executives was underscored by the reported $100 million retention package offered to him in 2013 to prevent his departure to Twitter. While not a formal award, the episode was widely reported and served as a public marker of his standing within the technology industry.

In January 2026, a reconstruction of YouTube's original watch page was acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London, an acquisition that took place during Mohan's tenure as CEO and reflected the cultural significance YouTube had achieved as a platform.

Legacy

Neal Mohan's career has spanned the development of the modern digital advertising and online media industries. His early work at NetGravity and DoubleClick placed him at the center of the online advertising ecosystem during its formative years in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The strategic plan he developed with David Rosenblatt at DoubleClick reportedly continued to influence Google's advertising operations long after the 2007 acquisition.

At YouTube, Mohan's contributions as chief product officer from 2015 to 2023 helped transform the platform from a primarily ad-supported video hosting site into a diversified media company with products spanning live television, music streaming, subscription services, and short-form video. YouTube TV, YouTube Music, YouTube Premium, and YouTube Shorts each represented significant strategic bets that expanded YouTube's addressable market and competitive positioning.

As CEO, Mohan has articulated a vision for YouTube centered on the empowerment of individual creators, the expansion into connected television, and the responsible deployment of artificial intelligence. His framing of creators as "the new stars and studios" represents a continuation and intensification of YouTube's long-standing strategy of positioning itself as a platform for creator-driven content, in contrast to the traditional studio model that has historically dominated the entertainment industry.

The TIME CEO of the Year recognition in 2025 reflected an assessment within the media industry that YouTube under Mohan had consolidated its position as one of the dominant platforms in global media consumption.