I’ve seen how channels and videos have progressed over the years, and it has been amazing to see the progress in general, but the last year or two, I’ve been running into more and more so unrealistic personal lab scenarios, that… IDK, I have a feeling that most of this stuff is fake… or I really have no idea where they get the funds for the equipment they say they have in the videos.

Like I was watching this video about growing human neurons 🤨… like WTF, is that a thing now? I mean, I go in the store, buy a bunch of neurons and off I am to growing them? What are they, sea monkeys 🤨. Next, the equipment. One light microscopes and another UV based, not the cheapest ones on the market I might add. Those two easily add up to over 150K. I mean… really, where do people even buy those, it’s not something an idividual owns.

I’ve seen this with other channels as well, like the restoration chanels. A big ass 3D printer, an expensive lathe, all sorts of high precision milling equipment, laser cutters… I mean… where do these people get the money to buy these things, these are not cheap, sure, they’re not as expensive as a microscope, but they’re still pretty darn expensive, we’re still talking about at least 10s of thousands of dollars.

Am I missing something? Cuz I watch these clips and I feel more and more like a looser, like why don’t I have that, how much money do these people actually make from YT 🤨.

  • treadful@lemmy.zipEnglish
    29·
    2 years ago

    Some might make money off their content through YT payouts or more likely sponsorships. Some might just have access to money (like rich parents, crippling debt, or a good day job you’re not aware of). Some might have access to cheap second-hand equipment or equipment they can borrow. Some people just prioritize their work over things like cars.

    I could speculate all day and never give you a satisfactory answer. Why not ask them? Drop a DM and see if they reply. Maybe they have some secret they can share. Content creators, especially the more niche ones are pretty likely to respond and be open about that kind of thing.

  • zerbey@lemmy.worldEnglish
    12·
    2 years ago

    Looking at the Patreons alone for one channel I watch, he makes $38,000 a month. Just from Patreons. Which is $456,000 a year. That’s before you get into YouTube ad revenue, sponsor spots and merchandising. This is a channel with less than 2 million subscribers. I suspect he makes 3-4 times that from the rest. So yes, $150K for equipment seems perfectly reasonable.

  • NateSwift@beehaw.orgEnglish
    12·
    2 years ago

    A lot of these channels start by using equipment from their job, or losing money on a youtube channel as a hobby while doing other work. If you already have/work at a wood shop, there isn’t a startup cost to use a lathe. If you work in a lab, you can often use tools when they aren’t being used for work projects.

    The vast majority of youtube channels don’t make any money. The majority of channels that do make money don’t make enough to live off of. The few that do usually make most of their money from brand deals, donations, and merch.

      • NateSwift@beehaw.orgEnglish
        6·
        2 years ago

        The channel you linked is in the top 2.5% youtube channels, uploaded a video a couple years ago that hit 9.5 million views, and had an ongoing sponsorship deal with square space and other large companies.

        The person behind the channel also appears to work at a college doing this kind of thing as their job. The way you get access to neuron cultures is by having a job where you work with them, being passionate about teaching and sharing that with other people, and asking nicely.

        In this particular case, the youtube channel seems to be a hobby. A side thing. It’s not the driving force behind the availability of their tools and equipment.

  • EuroNutellaMan@lemmy.worldEnglish
    9·
    2 years ago

    This is just a guess but I think the Thought Emporium, which is probably the guy you watched for the neuron stuff, may also do these as actual research and publish papers about this and therefore gets funding from institutions or companies. It could also be he built it with money from other jobs or hot a loan to invest in this at the start then as the YT channel grew and people donated to him he expanded. Or maybe the lab is shared with others. Tbh idk but it’s not as unreasonable as you think for a single person to own a lab like that.

  • exterstellar@lemmy.worldEnglish
    5·
    2 years ago

    I don’t think of it as “how much does this person make”. Each channel is a business, and the YouTuber is a business owner. The things they buy for videos are business expenses. Only part of the channel’s income goes towards the YouTuber personally (like a salary). Some channels have actual employees they have to pay such as editors, event organizers, managers, which in turn work to make the channel bigger and earn more money.

    If you think of them as businesses (companies), the fact that they’re buying expensive equipment for their business makes much more sense.

  • CeruleanRuin@lemmy.worldEnglish
    13·
    2 years ago

    Same place young privileged people traditionally get money from: their parents.

    Now, instead of paying for film school or acting lessons, wealthy parents can now just finance their brood’s YouTube channel.