YouTube’s chief business executive quits as site fights off TikTok

YouTube’s top business executive is stepping dow💦n from his post as Google’s streaming giant faces an escalating﷽ threat from TikTok. 

Robert Kyncl, a veteran executive who has spent more than 12 years at the company, announced his plans to leave the company late Mond⛄ay.

“After 12 incredible years, I’ve decided to move on to the next challenge soon,” Kyncl wrote on Twitter. “Working alongside creators, artists, media and music companies to transform media has been a privilege.” 

He will be replaced in October by Mary Ellen 🧔Coe, who currently oversees Google’s advertising deals with small and medium busine🍌sses. 

Kyncl’s exit comes as YouTube faces slowing growth and increasing competition from TikTok within the coveted Gen Z demographic. 

A Pew research poll published this month showed that a whopping 95% of US teens said theꦯy use YouTube, making it the most popular app or site in th🥃e survey. But YouTube was followed by TikTok, which was used by 67% of teens, as the Chinese-owned app eats up an increasing share of young people’s time online and threatens Big Tech mainstays like YouTube and Meta’s Instagram. 

Both YouTube and Ins✤tagram have copied TikTok’s short-video scroll interface through features called “Shorts” and “Reels,” respectively, in an effort to hold onto young 💞users. 

Kyncl, who worked at N🗹etflix prior to joining YouTube in 2010, did not immediately reveal w꧃hat he plans to do after leaving the company. 

Google confirmed Kyncl’s ꧒departure to The Post but did n𒉰ot provide further comment.

Kyncl’s departure was , which published a memo 🦹from YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki. 

“Under his leadership, YouTube forged new relationships and partnerships in music, traditional media and tech, and our creator ecosystem — without him, the term ‘YouTuber’ wouldn’t be a mainstream term,” Wojcicki wrote. “Thanks to Robert and his leadership team, we are meaningfully contributing to the media industry, having paid more than $30B to creators, artists and media companies in the last 3 years.” 

Wojcicki added that Kyncl wi🐭ll stay with the company through early 2023 in order to help “ensure a smooth🔥 transition of leadership.”