Susan Wojcicki stood at the helm of YouTube from 2014-23.
Wojcicki‘s death following a two-year battle with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) was announced by her partner, Dennis Troper, who shared the news on Facebook.
“It is with profound sadness that I share the news of Susan Wojcicki passing,” he wrote. “My beloved wife of 26 years and mother to our five children left us today [August 9, 2024] after 2 years of living with non small cell lung cancer. Susan was not just my best friend and partner in life, but a brilliant mind, a loving mother, and a dear friend to many. Her impact on our family and the world is immeasurable.
“We are heartbroken, but grateful for the time we had with her. Please keep our family in your thoughts as we navigate this difficult time,” his statement concluded.
So sad about the loss of Susan Wojcicki.
She had the thankless job trying to steer YouTube through some of its toughest years as advertisers bailed, governments regulated, and creators were unhappy about the platform “growing up.” Were all the decisions perfect? No. But the fact… pic.twitter.com/9HNa6XyTyX
— MatPat (@MatPatGT) August 12, 2024
Wojcicki was a long-time face at Google, serving as the company’s first marketing manager in 1999, and later going on to lead its online advertising business. She was also involved in original video and was the one to suggest the company purchase YouTube, after seeing how quickly the video platform was growing.
This suggestion led Google to buy YouTube in 2006 for $1.65 billion USD. Several years later, in 2014, Wojcicki became the platform’s CEO, a position that led TIME magazine to dub her “the most powerful woman on the internet” in the mid-2010s.
Along with increasing the number of females employed at YouTube, Wojcicki implemented a number of notable projects and initiatives, including YouTube Premium, several creator monetization avenues and YouTube Shorts. She also better defined the platform’s guidelines regarding hate speech, a move many have compared to censorship.
In February 2023, Wojcicki announced she would be stepping down from her position to focus on “family, health, and personal projects”, while still holding an advisory role at Google’s parent company, Alphabet. She added at the time that she was “so proud of everything we’ve achieved” and that “it’s been exhilarating, meaningful, and all-consuming.”
Really sad hearing the news of Susan Wojcicki’s passing. She was always incredibly sweet and kind whenever I met her. She always listened to the concerns of Youtubers for the platform and really seemed to care about it.
— Jacksepticeye (@Jacksepticeye) August 10, 2024
Several big-name individuals and creators have spoken out about Wojcicki’s passing, including Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who wrote on X (formerly Twitter):
“Unbelievably saddened by the loss of my dear friend @SusanWojcicki after two years of living with cancer. She is as core to the history of Google as anyone, and it’s hard to imagine the world without her. She was an incredible person, leader and friend who had a tremendous impact on the world and I’m one of the countless Googlers who is better for knowing her. We will miss her dearly. Our thoughts with her family. RIP Susan.”
Matthew Patrick took to X to comment on the immense impact Wojcicki had on YouTube, regardless of how “unhappy” creators were about it “growing up”, saying, “Were all the decisions perfect? No. But the fact that YouTube still exists today for creators is a testament to her threading an impossible needle.”
Séan McLoughlin echoed these sentiments, saying, “She was always incredibly sweet and kind whenever I met her. She always listened to the concerns of Youtubers for the platform and really seemed to care about it.”
TenEighty sends our condolences to Susan Wojcicki’s loved ones during this difficult time.
Featured Image Credit: Anthony Quitano / Wikimedia Commons CC BY 2.0
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