Charred remains of buildings are pictured following the Palisades Fire in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, U.S. Jan. 15, 2025.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Google and YouTube will donate $15 million to support the Los Angeles community and content creators impacted by wildfires, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced in a blog post Wednesday.
The contributions will flow to local relief organizations including Emergency Network Los Angeles, the American Red Cross, the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and the Institute for Nonprofit News, the blog said. When the company’s LA offices can safely reopen, impacted creators will also be able to use YouTube’s production facilities “to recover and rebuild their businesses” as well as access community events.
“To all of our employees, the YouTube creator community, and everyone in LA, please stay safe and know we’re here to support,” Google CEO Sundar Pichai posted on X.
The move comes days before Sunday’s impending TikTok ban that has already seen content creators begin asking fans to follow them on other social platforms. YouTube Shorts, a short-form video platform within YouTube, is a competitor to TikTok, along with Meta’s Instagram Reels and the fast-growing Chinese app Rednote, otherwise known as Xiahongshu.
“In moments like these, we see the power of communities coming together to support each other — and the strength and resilience of the YouTube community is like no other,” Mohan wrote.
YouTube’s contributions are in line with a host of other LA companies pledging multi-million dollar donations aimed at assisting employees and residents impacted by the LA fires. Meta announced a $4 million donation split between CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the company while both Netflix and Comcast pledged $10 million donations to multiple aid groups.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC.
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