It’s hard to overestimate how popular Michael Stevens is. His YouTube channel, Vsauce, currently has over 18.1 million subscribers. He also has over half a million Instagram followers, giving him a fanbase larger than the entire population of Ecuador. What does his content involve to make him so famous? Well, he deals with questions of science and philosophy, but in an accessible and illuminating way. For example, some of the most popular videos on Stevens’ channel include explorations of the power of suggestion, the Banach-Tarski Paradox (you’ll have to watch his video if you don’t know what that is), whether we all see the same colour red, what would happen if everybody on earth jumped at the same time, and many other fascinating topics. Little surprise then that Vsauce’s videos have been watched a jaw-dropping 2.4 billion times.

Stevens was born in Kansas City in January 1986. Growing up, he developed a range of interests, from knowledge to comedy and performance to video editing. These all coalesced perfectly when he discovered YouTube. He uploaded his first content to the platform back in 2007, and his initial efforts were featured by the likes of CollegeHumor. After a spell playing a bearded nun with comedy group Barely Political, Stevens launched a new channel, Vsauce, in 2010. After initially focusing on gaming content, Stevens found that his educational content was a view-winner.

By 2012, Stevens was working as a content strategist for Google, putting him at the forefront of information sharing and educational content. He began delivering TED Talks and developed a strong reputation for public speaking, all of which helped Vsauce to grow the reputation it enjoys today.