YouTube generated $40 billion in sales in the past year, CEO says

Google’s YouTube has generated nearly $40 billion in revenue over the past 12 months, according to YouTube Chief Executive Officer Neal Mohan.

“Monetization for us, first and foremost, is driven by advertising,” said Mohan, who gave an overview of the video platform’s business at the MoffettNathanson technology conference on Thursday. He added that YouTube would remain focused on the advertising opportunities across its fastest growing products, including Shorts — the company’s answer to the massive popularity of ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok — and connected TVs.

Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., recently reported that YouTube revenue had declined for the third straight quarter as the company continued to grapple with a broad slowdown in demand for digital advertising.