Alan Chikin Chow
American YouTuber (born 1998)
Alan Chikin Chow (born November 15, 1998) is an American actor, digital creator, producer, writer, and influencer. He is the highest-ranking YouTube shorts creator with almost 102 million subscribers and the creator of the YouTube series Alan's Universe. As of May 2025, he has the 17th most subscribed channel on YouTube, placing him in the top 50 most-subscribed YouTube channels and among the most viewed YouTube channels in the world. Chow has appeared in TV series and films that include Grey's Anatomy, Mean Girls, I Didn't Do It, and Into the Dark.
Alan has been ranked in multiple top creator lists, including Forbes Top Creators, Forbes 30 Under 30, and TIME100 Creators. YouTube CEO Neal Mohan has referred to his impact as a “powerful symbol of the broader shift happening in the entertainment industry”.
Bloomberg has described Alan’s content as having the “DNA in classic American tween series such as Boy Meets World, a coming-of-age ’90s sitcom [and] the South Korean high school drama Boys Over Flowers” and compares it to the Disney Channel or Nickelodeon of the new age.
01Early life
Alan was born and raised in Plano, Texas. His father is an engineer at NASA and his mother is the owner of a preschool. His brother Alvan Chow is an investor and a cast-member of the Netflix documentary Eat the Rich.
Alan earned his Bachelors Degree from USC studying screenwriting and business administration. His career in content creation also started during his time at USC as a way to make his family laugh.
02Career
Chow began as a model for JC Penney, then booked acting roles on I Didn’t Do It, Grey’s Anatomy, and Into the Dark. He also voiced characters in anime series including One Piece.
He started uploading YouTube videos, quickly becoming the most-watched Shorts creator in the United States.
Chow launched Alan’s Universe, a high-school drama about love and friendship, which has over 1 billion views and has been featured on Good Morning America and CBS News.
In 2024, his channel entered YouTube’s global Top 50. He signed with CAA and opened a 10,000 square-foot production studio in Burbank, California, which was attended by YouTube CEO Neal Mohan. Alan’s Universe was also made available on Roku TV, Amazon Prime Video and Tubi.
In 2025, he announced a joint venture with HYBE Corporation to create and star in a new pop group and streaming series. Alan serves as executive producer and star for HYBE AMERICA x AU alongside Scooter Braun and James Shin.
In August 2025, he premiered a vertical drama series titled Beauty and the Beat sponsored by the skincare company Laneige in partnership with e-commerce company Superordinary. The series garnered over 200M views across its 25 vertical episodes.
In 2026, Netflix picked up Alan and HYBE America’s scripted k-pop TV series. Jingu Jang, former Vice President of BIGHIT Music, joined the project as an executive producer. The series is described to follow a misfit crew of aspiring pop idols enrolled in an arts academy who come together to form a co-ed band.
In July 2026, Alan’s Universe was also picked up to Netflix. Under the collaboration, the Alan’s Universe library will be available on the platform, with future episodes airing on YouTube and Netflix simultaneously.
03Filmography
Feature films and television
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | I Didn't Do It | DeeJay |
| One Piece | Orenami (voice) | |
| Soul Eater Not | Voice | |
| Ping Pong the Animation | Kong "Chine" Wenge (voice) | |
| 2015 | Absolute Duo | Ethnarch |
| 2016 | Internet Famous | Prank-A-Lank |
| 2017 | Tales of Titans | Pissbaby |
| 2018 | Grey's Anatomy | Henry |
| 13 Reasons Why | Mikey Chan | |
| Mr. Student Body President | Brandon Wu | |
| Millenial Mafia | Sal Dang | |
| The Thinning: New World Order | Ryland | |
| 2020 | Into the Dark | Trevor |
| 2022 | Home Economics | Male Host |
| The Casagrandes | Han (voice) | |
| 2024 | Mean Girls | Social Media Friend (as himself) |
| Afraid | Himself |
04Philanthropy
He works with Act to Change, a non-profit against bullying for AAPI youth. He donated to the organization during TikTok's #GivingSzn.
05Awards and recognition
| Ceremony | Year | Category | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fortune Magazine | 2023 | #1 YouTube Shorts Creator | |
| YouTube Newfronts | 2023 | #1 YouTube Shorts Creator | |
| Forbes Top Creators | 2023 | Honoree | |
| Forbes Top Creators | 2024 | Honoree | |
| Forbes 30 Under 30 | 2024 | Honoree | |
| Rolling Stones Top 25 Most Influential Creators | 2024 | Honoree | |
| The Hollywood Reporter Creator Class | 2024 | Honoree | |
| Gold House A100 List | 2024 | Honoree | |
| The Webby Awards | 2024 |
|
|
| Forbes Top Creators | 2025 | Honoree | |
| Time100 Creators | 2025 | Honoree | |
| Mashable 101 Top Creators | 2025 | Honoree | |
| Forbes Top Creators | 2026 | Honoree | |
| Time100 Creators | 2026 | Honoree | |
| Mashable 101 Top Creators | 2026 | Honoree |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Alan Chikin Chow”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Alan Chow.jpg by DonnieFlowers, CC BY-SA 4.0
Fathomly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Wikimedia Foundation. Spotted a problem? Tell us.