In a major push to India’s booming creator economy, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced an investment of over Rs 850 crore over the next two years to accelerate the growth of Indian creators, artists, and media companies. The announcement was made at the inaugural Wave Summit, a first-of-its-kind gathering of Indian business leaders, entertainers, producers, and cultural contributors from across the country and globe.
Speaking at the event, Mohan highlighted India’s rapid rise as a global content powerhouse, calling it a “creator nation.” He praised the country’s vibrant creator economy and YouTube’s role in enabling that growth, sharing that more than 100 million channels in India uploaded content to the platform in the past year alone. Of those, over 15,000 channels have crossed the 1 million subscriber mark — up from 11,000 just a few months ago.
“In the last three years alone, we’ve paid more than Rs 21,000 crore to creators, artists, and media companies across India,” said Mohan, adding that the upcoming investment will have “tangible impact, forging countless career and business pathways for a vibrant new India.”
Reflecting on YouTube’s journey as the platform marked 20 years since its first-ever video upload on April 23rd, Mohan said that India has uniquely leveraged YouTube as a global cultural export engine. “Last year alone, Indian content generated 45 billion hours of watch time from audiences outside the country,” he noted.
The keynote concluded with an on-stage interaction featuring creators Gautami Kawale of Slayy Point and educational content creator Mark Rober, who shared how YouTube helped them build a global fan base. The session was moderated by Gautam Anand, YouTube’s Vice President for the APAC region.
Mark Rohde talked about how one of the great features of YouTube is the ability to dub videos. Currently, their content is available in 32 languages — 12 of them voiced by real actors and the remaining 20 powered by AI. “So, if someone browses primarily in Japanese, for example, YouTube will automatically show them a version of the video in that language. That’s exactly what many creators here aspire to — reaching a global audience,” he added.
Gautami Kawale noted that India’s biggest strength lies in its sheer scale — with widespread smartphone usage, the world’s cheapest internet, and a massive, growing audience for both English and regional content. With a young, digitally native population, the country is primed to produce some of the world’s top creators. “The key is balancing global reach with regional relevance through multilingual content. There's a strong sense of optimism and innovation in India, making it a powerful force in the global creator ecosystem.” she added.
