James Donaldson
Born 1998 · Age 27
American YouTuber, media personality and entrepreneur known as MrBeast — creator of high-budget challenge and philanthropic videos; founder of MrBeast Burger, Feastables, Lunchly; cofounder of Team Trees and Team Seas; creator of Beast Games.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Wichita, Kansas
James Stephen "Jimmy" Donaldson was born in Wichita, Kansas.
Parents divorced
Donaldson's parents divorced; he was primarily raised by his mother thereafter.
Uploaded first YouTube video (MrBeast6000)
Donaldson uploaded his first YouTube video under the handle MrBeast6000, beginning his channel focused on gaming and commentary.
Gained popularity with "Worst Intros on YouTube" series
Donaldson's 'Worst Intros' series (2015–2016) began to grow his audience beyond gaming videos.
Reached ~30,000 subscribers (mid-2016)
By mid-2016 Donaldson had roughly 30,000 subscribers as his channel continued to grow.
Graduated Greenville Christian Academy
Donaldson graduated from Greenville Christian Academy (private evangelical high school).
Enrolled at East Carolina University; soon dropped out
Donaldson briefly attended East Carolina University and dropped out after a short time to pursue YouTube full-time; his mother forced him to leave the family home after the decision.
Viral video: counted to 100,000
Donaldson uploaded an endurance video counting to 100,000 (~40 hours of footage; breakthrough viral hit).
Reached 1 million subscribers
Milestone: MrBeast reached ~1,000,000 subscribers as his viral format gained traction.
Had given away $1 million via stunts by 2018
By 2018 Donaldson had given away around $1,000,000 through his videos and stunts, building a philanthropic reputation.
Supported PewDiePie during 2018 subscriber rivalry
Donaldson ran billboard, TV, radio campaigns and even purchased seats at Super Bowl LIII to support PewDiePie in the PewDiePie vs T-Series rivalry.
Organized Apex Legends real-life battle royale ($200k prizes)
Donaldson organized a Los Angeles battle-royale event in collaboration with Apex Legends/Electronic Arts with a $200,000 prize pool (two $100,000 games).
Announced Team Trees
Donaldson and Mark Rober announced #TeamTrees, a fundraiser aiming to raise $20M for the Arbor Day Foundation (plant one tree per $1 donated).
Team Trees surpassed $20M goal
The #TeamTrees fundraiser passed the $20,000,000 goal and began planting; major donors included Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey and others.
Created Beast Philanthropy channel
On September 17, 2020 Donaldson launched Beast Philanthropy, a channel dedicated to charity; the channel donates ad revenue, sponsorships and merch proceeds to charity.
Record YouTube live event: Rock Paper Scissors stream
April 2020: livestreamed a 32-influencer rock-paper-scissors tournament with $250,000 grand prize; became YouTube's most-watched live Original at the time with 662,000 concurrent viewers.
Released Finger on the App (with MSCHF)
June 2020: multiplayer mobile game where last finger wins $25,000; multiple winners ultimately won $20,000 each after long play.
Launched MrBeast Burger (virtual restaurant) and app
MrBeast announced and launched MrBeast Burger, a delivery-only virtual restaurant concept; mobile app for ordering released December 19, 2020.
Organized $1,000,000 influencer tournament (Dec 2021)
December 2021: hosted an influencer tournament with a $1,000,000 grand prize.
Released "YouTube Rewind 2020, Thank God It's Over"
Donaldson produced his own YouTube Rewind-style video on Jan 1, 2021 featuring many creators and commentary on the year 2020.
Signed content distribution deal with Jellysmack
February 2021: Donaldson signed a content distribution deal to expand distribution to platforms via Jellysmack.
Launched Juice Funds (partnered with Creative Juice)
March 2021: Donaldson helped introduce Juice Funds, a $2 million investment fund for content creators.
Became long-term investor & partner of Current
April 2021: Donaldson invested in/partnered with fintech company Current; also faced backlash over a promoted crypto scheme.
Uploaded "$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!"
November 2021: recreated Squid Game with 456 contestants competing for $456,000; one of 2021's most-watched YouTube videos (130M+ views in a week).
Achieved one billion video views over 30 days (Nov 2022)
In November 2022 Donaldson's main channel reached one billion video views in 30 days.
Launched Feastables (Feastables / MrBeast Bar)
January 2022: announced Feastables, launching MrBeast chocolate bars (three initial flavors) and a sweepstakes with over $1M in prizes.
Signed partnership with East Carolina University for course
November 2022: partnered with East Carolina University to create a course centered on YouTube content creation.
Feastables reported ~$10M in early months
Feastables reportedly made about $10 million in its first few months of operation (2022).
Surpassed 100 million YouTube subscribers
July 28, 2022: MrBeast's main channel surpassed 100 million subscribers, making him the fifth channel and second individual YouTuber to do so.
Guinness World Record: Most Subscribers for an Individual Male
November 17, 2022: achieved Guinness World Record for 'Most Subscribers for an Individual Male on YouTube' (112M at the time).
Reportedly employed over 250 people (as of 2023)
By 2023 MrBeast's operation had grown into a sizable production company employing writers, editors, producers and more.
Built 100 wells in Africa (Beast Philanthropy)
Donaldson funded and documented a project building 100 wells across African countries to improve clean-water access; widely publicized in 2023.
Announced collaboration with James Patterson (novel to be published 2026)
Donaldson announced he is collaborating with James Patterson on a thriller to be published by HarperCollins in 2026.
Guest judge on Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars
May 2023: Donaldson appeared as a guest judge on Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars show.
Expressed desire to shut down MrBeast Burger; legal dispute begins
June 17, 2023: Donaldson said he wanted to shut down MrBeast Burger due to quality issues and a 'bad deal' with Virtual Dining Concepts; litigation followed.
Sued Virtual Dining Concepts to end MrBeast Burger partnership
July 31, 2023: Donaldson sued Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC) alleging reputation damage and non-payment in their partnership.
VDC countersued MrBeast for >$100M in damages
August 7, 2023: Virtual Dining Concepts and subsidiary filed a countersuit accusing Donaldson of breaching agreements and alleging damages exceeding $100 million.
Feastables partnership with Charlotte Hornets (jersey insignia)
October 2, 2023: Feastables partnered with the Charlotte Hornets to include MrBeast insignia on jerseys for the 2023–24 NBA season (later ended).
Surpassed 200 million subscribers
October 15, 2023: MrBeast's main channel passed 200 million subscribers.
Announced Beast Games with Amazon MGM Studios
March 2024: Donaldson and Amazon MGM Studios announced Beast Games, a large reality competition with 1,000 contestants and a $5 million prize (largest single TV/streaming prize announced).
Became most subscribed channel on YouTube (surpassed T-Series)
June 2, 2024: MrBeast surpassed India-based T-Series to become the most subscribed channel on YouTube.
First YouTuber to surpass 300 million subscribers
July 10, 2024: MrBeast became the first YouTuber to reach 300 million subscribers.
Removed Ava Kris Tyson from MrBeast brand amid allegations
July 24, 2024: Donaldson removed Ava Kris Tyson from the MrBeast brand following allegations of sexual misconduct; investigation later concluded.
Class action lawsuit filed over Beast Games (Sept 2024)
September 2024: a class action lawsuit was filed alleging contestant mistreatment, sexual harassment, and unpaid expenses and wages related to Beast Games production.
Independent investigation cleared allegations against Ava Kris Tyson
November 1, 2024: law firm Quinn Emanuel concluded allegations against Tyson were without basis after extensive review and interviews.
Released Beast Games on Amazon Prime Video
December 19, 2024: Beast Games premiered on Prime Video; became Prime Video's most watched unscripted series and set multiple Guinness World Records.
Proposed to partner Thea Booysen
Donaldson proposed to Thea Booysen on December 25, 2024 (proposal).
Team Seas and Team Trees fundraising totals (ongoing legacy)
By mid-2025 TeamTrees had planted over ~24.8 million trees; TeamSeas had raised over $34M. Both remain major collaborative philanthropic initiatives co-founded by Donaldson.
Publicly announced engagement to Thea Booysen
January 1, 2025: Donaldson announced his engagement to Thea Booysen.
Controversy over unauthorized tour of Chichén Itzá
May 2025: Mexican authorities threatened legal action over a MrBeast video filmed at Chichén Itzá that allegedly violated rules; claims MrBeast had permits were disputed and investigated.
First YouTuber to surpass 400 million subscribers
June 1, 2025: MrBeast became the first YouTuber to surpass 400 million subscribers on his main channel.
AI thumbnail generator announced and quickly removed after backlash
June 2025: announced an AI-powered thumbnail generator (via Viewstats) that could clone styles and faces; removed the tool after creators criticized it for enabling plagiarism.
Named one of world's 100 most influential digital creators by Time
July 2025: Time included Donaldson in its list of the world's 100 most influential digital creators.
Ranked third-most-followed creator on TikTok (as of Aug 2, 2025)
As of August 2, 2025 he had over 119 million TikTok followers and was the third-most-followed creator on TikTok.
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