YouTube commits Rs 850 crore to power India’s ‘Creator Nation’, Says CEO Neal Mohan

On Thursday, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan celebrated India's becoming a "Creator Nation," declaring that the video platform has paid over Rs 21,000 crore to Indian creators, artists, and media companies in the past three years.

Speaking at the 'World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit' (WAVES 2025), Mohan declared that YouTube will be investing over Rs 850 crore in the next two years to further grow India's rapidly expanding creator economy.

Mohan referred to India's record-breaking content creation growth as he highlighted that over 100 million Indian channels have published content in the past year alone. Of those, over 15,000 channels have broken the one-million subscriber mark, demonstrating the nation's explosive content creator emergence.

"Through the ability of YouTube to connect creators anywhere with audiences everywhere, it has become a phenomenal force for cultural export, and India has leveraged this platform to great success. Today, India is not only a leader in film and music but is quickly becoming what I am delighted to call a 'Creator Nation,'" Mohan said during his keynote address at the summit, with leading celebrities and industry moguls in attendance.

He also noted that YouTube has also helped Indian creators monetize their passion and build successful businesses as they established loyal global bases. "Content produced in India last year garnered over 45 billion hours of watch time from international audiences," he went on to add.

It was followed by what was said within a short period after Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered his first address at the WAVES summit in which he cited the importance of creative responsibility amid the digital revolution. Modi challenged creators to become emotionally profound as well as rich in culture when technology continues changing at a quick rate.

PM Modi described WAVES as a platform to connect Indian talent with global opportunities, calling on investors and narrators from around the world to tap into India's vibrant creative ecosystem. He called upon India's youth to share the world their "one billion untold stories" and requested them to create a humane and culturally diverse future.