Steve Chen
Born 1978 · Age 47
Taiwanese‑American software engineer and internet entrepreneur; co‑founder and former CTO of YouTube; co‑founder of AVOS Systems and MixBit; launched Nom.com; later joined Google Ventures and invested in Taiwanese startups.
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Life & Career Timeline
Immigrated to the United States (Prospect Heights, IL)
Chen and his family emigrated from Taiwan to the United States and settled in Prospect Heights, Illinois.
Attended River Trails Middle School (Mount Prospect, IL)
Chen attended River Trails Middle School for his middle school education (exact years implied by biography).
High school freshman at John Hersey High School
Chen attended John Hersey High School in Arlington Heights for his freshman year.
Attended Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA)
Chen attended the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy for his final three years of high school.
Enrolled at University of Illinois at Urbana‑Champaign (CS)
Chen studied computer science at UIUC.
Joined PayPal (employee)
Chen joined PayPal, where he met future YouTube co‑founders Chad Hurley and Jawed Karim.
Left UIUC to go to Silicon Valley
Chen left the University of Illinois in 1999 to move to Silicon Valley to pursue work opportunities.
Early employee at Facebook (brief stint)
Chen was an early employee at Facebook but left after several months to start YouTube.
Co‑founded YouTube (with Chad Hurley and Jawed Karim)
Steve Chen co‑founded the video‑sharing website YouTube and served as its chief technology officer.
YouTube launched with VC financing and first video
YouTube was launched in December 2005 with about $3.5 million in venture capital; first viral clip included 'Me at the zoo.'
YouTube rapid growth milestone (within a year)
Within a year of launch YouTube reached ~34 million unique monthly visitors, ~100 million videos in archive and ~65,000 new videos daily.
Named one of 'The 50 people who matter now' (Business 2.0)
Business 2.0 included Chen on its list of 'The 50 people who matter now' in business.
YouTube acquired by Google for $1.65B
Google purchased YouTube on October 9, 2006 for $1.65 billion. As part of the deal Chen received 625,366 Google shares and an additional 68,721 shares in a trust.
Spoke at All Things Digital conference (photographed)
Steve Chen appeared with co‑founder Chad Hurley at the 2007 All Things Digital conference.
Co‑founded AVOS Systems (with Chad Hurley)
Chen and Chad Hurley started AVOS Systems to build a platform for apps and multimedia sharing.
Reportedly left active leadership at YouTube / transitioned after acquisition
Sources indicate Chen stepped back from YouTube/Google leadership around this period and pursued new ventures (date varies by source).
Married Park Ji‑hyun (Jamie Chen)
Chen married Park Ji‑hyun, a Google Korea product marketing manager (who later used the name Jamie Chen).
AVOS Systems acquired Delicious from Yahoo!
AVOS acquired the social-bookmarking service Delicious from Yahoo! (acquisition reported in sources).
Listed as one of '15 Asian Scientists To Watch' (Asian Scientist)
Steve Chen was included on AsianScientist.com's list of '15 Asian Scientists To Watch.'
Jamie Chen appointed trustee of the Asian Art Museum (San Francisco)
Steve and Jamie Chen were major supporters of the Asian Art Museum; Jamie was appointed a trustee in July 2012.
MixBit product launch (AVOS mobile video app)
AVOS/MixBit (a mobile video‑sharing/editing app associated with the YouTube founders) was launched; Chen was involved in building MixBit.
Grainger College of Engineering Young Alumni Achievement Award
Steve Chen received the Grainger College of Engineering Department of Computer Science’s Young Alumni Achievement Award.
Split between YouTube cofounders; Chen joined Google Ventures
In June 2014 the YouTube co‑founders split roles: Chad Hurley spun out MixBit while Steve Chen joined Google Ventures (entrepreneur‑in‑residence / advisory role).
Launched Nom.com (live‑streaming food network) with $4.7M
Chen co‑launched the foodie live‑stream network Nom.com with Vijay Karunamurthy; launch reported with $4.7 million in funding.
Nom.com shut down (service wound down 2017)
Nom.com was shut down in 2017; social accounts were deactivated/left idle from March 2017.
Invested in Midwest learning/innovation space
Reported investment in a Midwest innovative learning space (reported by ChicagoInno, April 2017).
Awarded Order of Lincoln (Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois)
Chen was inducted as a Laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois and awarded the Order of Lincoln (state's highest honor) in 2018.
Received a Technology & Engineering Emmy (Lifetime Achievement)
Reportedly received an Emmy Award for Lifetime Achievement at the 70th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards (reported March 2019).
Moved residence to Taipei, Taiwan
Steve and Jamie Chen moved to Taipei in August 2019; Chen expressed interest in investing in Taiwan's startup ecosystem.
Reportedly created a fund to help Taiwanese startups expand abroad
Reports indicate Chen created a fund/initiative to help local Taiwanese startups scale internationally (reported March 30, 2020).
Value of Google shares received at YouTube sale reported (~$1.77B, as of Sep 2021)
Wikipedia notes that the Google shares given to Chen as part of the 2006 sale were valued at almost $1.77 billion as of September 2021.
Mentioned visiting UIUC campus (alumni engagement)
Chen has been involved with his alma mater (Grainger/University of Illinois); campus visit referenced in Grainger materials (retrieved 2024).
Reported net worth (2025 estimate)
A 2025 online profile estimated Steve Chen's net worth at $500 million (source: timelapsemagazine.com), a published estimate rather than a verified figure.
Key Achievement Ages
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