YouTube’s First Video Now Featured in a Museum Exhibit

The iconic first video uploaded to YouTube, titled ‘Me at the zoo, ’ is currently being showcased at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, celebrating its significant impact on online culture.

Uploaded on April 23, 2005, this brief clip features YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim standing in front of an elephant enclosure at the San Diego Zoo. Over the past two decades, ‘Me at the zoo’ has amassed an astounding view count of over 382 million, solidifying its status as a cherished artifact in the digital realm.

Recognized as a pivotal piece of internet history, the Victoria and Albert Museum is giving this beloved 19-second video the tribute it deserves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw

Victoria and Albert Museum Showcases ‘Me at the zoo’

On February 18, 2026, the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) unveiled a unique reconstruction of the original YouTube interface as it appeared in 2005 while displaying the video.

This nostalgic recreation showcases a stark contrast to today’s YouTube aesthetic, highlighting the site’s early design elements, including a stark white background, a star rating system, and a prominent description box nestled in the upper corner.

The museum has acquired the video along with its outdated view page to “preserve and document the history and culture of the internet, ” according to a statement from YouTube via an official blog post.

YouTube's recreation of what 'Me at the zoo' looked like on its website in 2006. — YouTube’s retro recreation of the video’s page.

In collaboration with its UX developers and design studio oio, YouTube meticulously crafted this vintage version of its platform for the exhibition. A behind-the-scenes look at this creative process is available for museum-goers at the V&A East Storehouse.

Visitors can view ‘Me at the zoo’ in the Design 1900–Now gallery located at V&A South Kensington.

This isn’t the first time YouTube has celebrated its inaugural video; in April 2025, the platform marked the occasion by temporarily transforming its scroll button into a celebratory cake, a feature reserved for the site’s most cherished and iconic videos as part of its 20th-anniversary festivities.

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