The Victoria and Albert Museum has added a piece of internet history to its collection: the earliest video ever uploaded to YouTube.
Now on display in the museum’s Design 1900–Now gallery, the acquisition includes a reconstructed early YouTube webpage alongside the platform’s first upload, “Me at the zoo,” created by co-founder Jawed Karim.
Originally posted on April 23, 2005, the 19-second clip shows Karim, then 25, standing in front of elephants at the San Diego Zoo. In the video, he remarks: “The cool thing about these guys is that they have really really really long trunks.” The short recording has since amassed more than 382 million views and over 18 million likes.
According to a museum spokesperson, the V&A’s digital conservation team spent 18 months recreating the design and user experience of YouTube as it appeared on December 8, 2006 — the earliest fully documented version of the site. The project was carried out in collaboration with YouTube’s user experience team and London-based interaction design studio oio.
The reconstructed watch page is currently exhibited at V&A South Kensington, while a companion display at V&A East Storehouse in Stratford explores the technical process behind rebuilding the early interface.
Neal Mohan, YouTube’s chief executive, said the reconstruction allows visitors to revisit the platform’s beginnings and reflect on its cultural impact. Corinna Gardner, senior curator of design and digital at the V&A, described the exhibit as a significant marker in the history of web 2.0 and digital design.
More than two decades after its launch, YouTube remains a dominant force in online culture, with museums and galleries frequently using the platform to reach global audiences and share original content.
