YouTube Co-founder Warns Short-Form Video Harms Kids’ Attention Spans | Fortune

A co-founder of YouTube has publicly criticized the proliferation of short-form video content, warning of its potential impact on children’s attention spans. Steve Chen, who served as the video platform’s chief technology officer before its 2006 sale to Google, expressed his concerns during a talk at the Stanford Graduate School of Business last year.

“I think TikTok is entertainment, but it’s purely entertainment,” Chen said, according to a recording of the talk published on YouTube. “It’s just for that moment. Just shorter-form content equates to shorter attention spans.”

Chen, who shares two children with his wife, Jamie Chen, stated he would prefer his children not be limited to short-form content, fearing they might struggle to engage with longer-form material. He described a strategy employed by some parents who intentionally expose their children to longer videos lacking the vibrant colors and rapid editing common in platforms like TikTok, with reportedly positive results. “If they don’t get exposure to the short-form content right away, then they’re still happy with that other type of content that they’re watching,” he explained.

The shift towards short-form video, Chen argued, has forced many companies to adapt, but now they face the challenge of balancing user engagement and monetization with the creation of genuinely “useful” content. He also cautioned that platforms distributing short-form video, including his former company, YouTube, could face issues related to addictiveness and suggested implementing safeguards for young users, such as age restrictions and time limits.

Chen’s concerns align with a growing body of research linking short-form video consumption to mental health and attention problems. A plaintiff, aged 20, is currently pursuing legal action against Meta and other social media companies, alleging addiction to their platforms led to mental health issues, according to recent reports.

Chen is not alone in voicing concerns about the impact of social media on children. Tech industry figures like Peter Thiel, an early investor in Facebook, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Tesla’s Elon Musk have also raised alarms. Altman, in a podcast interview, specifically cited the “dopamine hit” of short-form video as potentially disrupting children’s brain development. Thiel reportedly limits his children’s screen time to an hour and a half per week.

Musk, owner of X (formerly Twitter), initially stated he had no restrictions on his children’s social media use but later acknowledged this “might have been a mistake.” He encouraged parents to actively monitor their children’s online activity, expressing concern that they are being “programmed by some social media algorithms.”

The sale of YouTube to Google in 2006 for $1.65 billion saw its co-founders, including Chen, splitting over $650 million in stock shares, according to a 2025 Fortune report. The platform’s current estimated value of $550 billion represents a 333-fold increase since the acquisition.