AI Quote of Note: MrBeast: "When AI videos are just as good as normal videos...scary times."

"When AI videos are just as good as normal videos, I wonder...how it will impact the millions of creators currently making content for a living...scary times." – MrBeast (posted on his X account, October 5, 2025)

MrBeast (real name: Jimmy Donaldson) is the world's most successful YouTube content creator and influencer. The 27-year-old is also an active entrepreneur and noted philanthropist, having become famous for giving away money, gifts – and sometimes food and medical supplies – throughout the world.

In 2023, Time named him one of the world's 100 most influential people, and in June of this year, Donaldson became the first YouTuber to surpass 400 million subscribers. Just four months later, that number sits at 448 million, and he currently generates billions of views a year.

The Gen Zer's net worth has been recently estimated at more than $1 billion.

Strikingly, he's been losing money on his videos, which are known for their high-production values. Instead, most of his income and wealth has come from his various consumer businesses, which are focused on games, software, and snacks, and all of which are found under the holding company, Beast Industries.

One month ago, Fortune described the mood of MrBeast's investors this way: "Last year, Beast Industries raised money at a roughly $5 billion valuation...signaling immense investor confidence in Donaldson’s blend of viral business and social impact."

It appears that Donaldson has been scrambling to invest more money into these various businesses lately – and to start new ones at a rapid pace. Could that be because of his concerns about what AI video is going to do to the careers of YouTubers and other content creators? He might respond to that question – accurately – by suggesting that it never hurts to diversify.

But given his concerns about AI shaking up the market of human content creators, MrBeast just might be making a boss move.