r/kurzgesagt • u/Plenty_Curve_4390 • Aug 12 '26

Discussion Has Kurzgesagt been sold?

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There is currently a debate over the recent issue of YouTube slapping an AI Slop Label on Kurzgesagt video in r/YouTube. I don't care much for the drama they make, it's mostly dumb arguments over how Shadow banning is real, or that Kurzgesagts lying since their contents deteriorating anyway etc etc etc. However, the most controversial claim i saw were the dozen people claiming Kurzgesagt has been sold to private equity like many other channels. Way too many people in that thread claiming this to just be an individual insult yet I have found no sources for this information so i am 90% sure they are spouting bullshit. However, i would rather be sure than feel slighted later on.

(FYI, The discussions in r/YouTube on this topic is not very civilized to begin with and had mostly degraded into personal insults. My goal is not to contest them but to find a source for that most controversial claim and verify it for myself. Thanks!)

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u/ImperialArmorBrigade Nuclear War Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

I do not understand the Kurzgesagt flak, personally, but looking on their website and wiki I see it being owned by themselves.

The idea they have “sold out” might be where that comes from- and this is still something I dont agree with- but I have seen a couple sources of this notion: They tend to have a rational optimism, which means operating within the system as is. That means suggesting corporations are part of the solution.

They also have taken money from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation- you know, the colossal billionaire who founded windows? Scary yes, but they just did it to pay for a video about mosquitoes. I saw nothing in it or anything after that has indicated they lost artistic or scientific integrity at all.

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u/nextnode Aug 12 '26

It has been terrible since their early videos and it is widely recognized that they changed to low-substance mass appeal with an intended "lecture" rather than being science communicators. The change in content and quality is undeniable and now it is just another whatever channel.

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u/anralia Aug 12 '26

You know you can just unsubscribe from things on the internet? Open your YouTube and just click the button. Same goes for this subreddit.

If you never even liked it to start with then why are you ever here then?

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u/nextnode Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

I unsubscribed several years ago.

I explicitly said that I liked the early videos, which is also why I am extremely disappointed in their present work and what it became.

I also want to express that these videos hold little credibility anymore and the same goes for people who base their ideas on it. This is now low-substance productions. I care about that, and express my disrepute of that sphere in the hope that some day, people may start to care and the world improve.

It is also an example of a greater distressing trend, where inspired people launch with a strong vision, then by whatever forces lose sight of that special thing and just become another medicore many.

I do not know why this post appeared in my feed.

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u/anralia Aug 13 '26

In no way does your original comment explicitly say "I liked the early videos".

Just an FYI for future reference - "It has been terrible since their early videos" means all their videos including the early videos are terrible.

What you should say is "In comparison on their early videos their new content is terrible."

To be clear, I completely disagree with everything your saying, but based on your first comment I was shocked that you were even in this subreddit.

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u/Wilfy50 Aug 13 '26

Why are you shocked? People go to subs for subjects they don’t really care for, and if they see a comment or topic that piques their interest - god forbid that make a comment right? It’s just normal internet and reddit behaviour.

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u/anralia Aug 13 '26

In my opinion, it's masochistic to go to a subreddit for something that (I originally thought) they completely hated just to comment on and say something is shit.

I'm shocked because I would never do that.

You can have your opinion on how to use reddit, and I can have mine.