Chad Meredith Hurley (born January 24, 1977) is an American
webmaster
A webmaster is a person responsible for maintaining one or more websites. The title may refer to web architects, web developers, site authors, website administrators, website owners, website coordinators, or website publishers.
The duties of ...
and
businessman
A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for th ...
who serves as the advisor and former
chief executive officer
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...
(CEO) of
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...
. He also co-founded
MixBit
MixBit was a video sharing service created by Steve Chen and Chad Hurley, two of the co-founders of YouTube. It was released on August 8, 2013. MixBit let users create dynamic shared videos, and competed with Vine (owned by Twitter) and Instagram ...
.
In June 2006, he was voted 28th on
Business 2.0's "50 People Who Matter Now" list. In October 2006, he and
Steve Chen
Steve Chen (; born August 25, 1978) is a Taiwanese-American Internet entrepreneur who is one of the co-founders and previous chief technology officer of the video-sharing website YouTube. After having co-founded the company AVOS Systems, Inc ...
sold YouTube for $1.65 billion to
Google
Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...
. Hurley worked in
eBay
eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...
's
PayPal
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers, and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper ...
division—one of his tasks involved designing the original PayPal logo—before co-founding YouTube with fellow
PayPal
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers, and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper ...
colleagues
Steve Chen
Steve Chen (; born August 25, 1978) is a Taiwanese-American Internet entrepreneur who is one of the co-founders and previous chief technology officer of the video-sharing website YouTube. After having co-founded the company AVOS Systems, Inc ...
and
Jawed Karim
Jawed Karim (বাংলাঃ জাওয়াদ করিম) (born October 28, 1979) is an American software engineer and Internet entrepreneur of Bangladeshi and German descent. He is a co-founder of YouTube and the first person to u ...
.
Hurley was primarily responsible for the
tagging and video-sharing aspects of YouTube.
Early life and education
Hurley was born in
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Phila ...
, the second child of Don and Joann Hurley, and grew up near
Birdsboro, Pennsylvania
Birdsboro is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located along the Schuylkill River southeast of Reading. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 5,163. Birdsboro's economy had historically been rooted in large ...
. He has an older sister, Heather, and a younger brother, Brent.
Since childhood, Hurley showed interest in the arts, and became interested in computers and electronic media during high school. He was a standout runner for Twin Valley High School's cross-country program, which won two of its PIAA State titles with him as a member in 1992 and 1994. He was also a member of the
Technology Student Association
The Technology Student Association (TSA) is a national student organization created to develop skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) as well as business education. TSA aims to develop leadership, academic, and busines ...
during high school. He graduated from
Twin Valley High School in 1995 and earned a B.A. in
Fine Art
In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwor ...
from
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a public research university in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. As of fall 2021, the university enrolled 7,044 undergraduates and 1,865 postgraduates, for a total enrollment of 9,009 students. The uni ...
in 1999.
Career
YouTube
Hurley founded YouTube in 2005 with
Steve Chen
Steve Chen (; born August 25, 1978) is a Taiwanese-American Internet entrepreneur who is one of the co-founders and previous chief technology officer of the video-sharing website YouTube. After having co-founded the company AVOS Systems, Inc ...
and
Jawed Karim
Jawed Karim (বাংলাঃ জাওয়াদ করিম) (born October 28, 1979) is an American software engineer and Internet entrepreneur of Bangladeshi and German descent. He is a co-founder of YouTube and the first person to u ...
. On October 16, 2006, Chen and Hurley sold YouTube to
Google Inc. for $1.65 billion. It was reported in ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' that Hurley's share was $345.6M at Google's February 7, 2007 closing stock price of $470.01. He received 694,087 Google shares directly and another 41,232 shares in a trust.
YouTube's other two co-founders, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, received 625,366 shares and 137,443 shares, respectively valued at $326.2M and $64.6M. The ''Journal''s report was based on Google's registration statement with
SEC filed on February 7, 2007.
Hurley stepped down as CEO of YouTube in October 2010 and stated he would stay on as an advisor of YouTube, allowing
Salar Kamangar to take over the CEO position.
MixBit
In August 2013, Hurley launched another company called MixBit which does video editing using smartphones.
According to Steve Chen, it was Chad's idea to turn Avos into MixBit even before the inception of YouTube.
The app resembles other famous short-video recording smartphone apps such as
Vine
A vine ( Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners thems ...
,
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
and
Vyclone. Its limit of recording stretches up to 256 clips, and each clip can be maximum 16 seconds long. It also features the editing tools similar to its other competitor apps.
Mixbit
MixBit was a video sharing service created by Steve Chen and Chad Hurley, two of the co-founders of YouTube. It was released on August 8, 2013. MixBit let users create dynamic shared videos, and competed with Vine (owned by Twitter) and Instagram ...
now Zeen was acquired by
BlueJeans
BlueJeans by Verizon is a company that provides an interoperable cloud-based video conferencing service. It is headquartered in the Santana Row district of San Jose, California. Prior to being acquired by Verizon, the company was known as "B ...
in August 2018.
Formula One
Hurley was involved as a major investor with
US F1 Team, one of the new entrants in
Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship ...
automobile racing for the 2010 season. On March 2, 2010, the team's personnel were dismissed from their duties and the team was unofficially shut down. Neither Hurley, team principal Ken Anderson nor sporting director Peter Windsor would comment on the team's failure to make it to the grid.
Investments
Hurley has made several investments. He is a part-owner of the
NBA's
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...
and the
MLS'
Los Angeles Football Club.
On the January 25, 2021, Hurley announced on Twitter that he had become an investor at
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...
, the English
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
football club.
Personal life
Hurley was formerly married to Kathy Clark, the daughter of
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo Count ...
entrepreneur
James H. Clark. They were divorced in 2014. Hurley remarried in 2020 to Elise Walden.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hurley, Chad Meredith
1977 births
American businesspeople in the online media industry
American computer businesspeople
American technology company founders
Formula E people
Google employees
Internet pioneers
Living people
People from Birdsboro, Pennsylvania
People from Palo Alto, California
PayPal people
YouTube
YouTube channels launched in 2005
Indiana University of Pennsylvania alumni