In YouTube’s early days, the odds seemed good that the platform would be destroyed—not by a competitor, but by its own popularity.

How could any young video startup ever cover the cost of streaming so much content across the internet? Or avoid the fate of Napster, another media-sharing startup of the era that was sued out of business for rampant copyright infringement? Even being acquired by Google in 2006 posed a risk: YouTube could have been mismanaged into irrelevance, as often happens after tech giants acquire shiny new toys.

But over its first 20 years, YouTube didn’t just survive—it revolutionized media, redefining what TV could be. By letting anyone upload video for free, it empowered a new generation of creators to cater to every imaginable audience and attract fan bases in the m

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