YouTube, Google, Meta and Snap are pitching in to help L.A. recover from the wildfires that have caused devastation across the region and forced thousands to evacuate in the past week.
Google and YouTube are contributing $15 million to L.A.-area relief organizations. Meta, CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are making a combined $4 million donation.
On Monday, Snap CEO and co-founder Evan Spiegel said that he, co-founder and CTO Bobby Murphy and the company have already distributed $5 million in “immediate aid” to L.A. relief organizations and plan to donate more.
The tech companies join others that are giving money to L.A. organizations assisting in the recovery efforts. Those include Disney, Paramount, CAA, Comcast and NBCUniversal, Netflix, Amazon and Warner Bros. Discovery.
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YouTube and Google’s donations, made together with the tech giant’s Google.org philanthropic arm, will go to organizations providing immediate relief in L.A., including Emergency Network Los Angeles, American Red Cross and the Center for Disaster Philanthropy.
“Los Angeles is the heart of entertainment and storytelling and has an impact on culture all over the world,” YouTube CEO Neal Mohan wrote in a blog post Wednesday. “It’s also where many YouTube creators, artists, partners and our employees call home. Like so many, we’ve been heartbroken by the devastation from the wildfires and want to do our part to support the community as it rebuilds.”
In addition, YouTube will offer production facilities to “impacted creators and artists as they begin to recover and rebuild their businesses,” once it’s safe to reopen its L.A. offices, according to Mohan. In the coming months, YouTube also plans to host events to “bring the YouTube creative community together.”
“On the long road ahead, we’ll continue to support recovery and rebuilding efforts alongside our partners across the industry,” Mohan wrote. “In moments like these, we see the power of communities coming together to support each other — and the strength and resilience of the YouTube community is like no other.”
Meta has committed to donating $2 million in cash and advertising credits. Beneficiaries include the American Red Cross, Direct Relief, International Rescue Committee, Los Angeles Regional Food Bank and Pasadena Humane Society. Meta’s ad credits will support PSA messaging to affected communities and to support fundraising appeals on Facebook and Instagram. Zuckerberg and Chan are donating an additional $2 million to organizations that are providing on-the-ground relief.
Meta has activated its Safety Check feature for the Los Angeles-area fires. In addition, multiple emergency response organizations are using the company’s Data for Good at Meta tools to support response efforts, including its mobility data (which is being used to map movement and evacuation patterns caused by the fires). Direct Relief and Harvard University have used Meta’s mobility data to report population changes from the Palisades and Eaton fires and have been working with the California Governor’s Office for Emergency Services to inform their response.
Last Thursday, Zuckerberg said he and Chan as well as Meta would be donating toward L.A. wildfire relief.
“Praying for everyone in LA. Really tough to see all the videos and photos of the devastation,” he wrote in a Jan. 9 Facebook post. “Priscilla and I are giving to the relief efforts, and Meta is as well. Meta also activated Safety Check and so far more than 400k people have used it to let family and friends know they’re safe. I hope you all stay safe out there ❤️”
According to Santa Monica-based Snap, organizations that have received funding from the company, Spiegel and Murphy are: After the Fire USA, American Red Cross, California Fire Foundation, CCF Wildlife Recovery Fund, Direct Relief, Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, Team Rubicon, United Way Wildlife Response Fund, Watch Duty and World Central Kitchen.
“Los Angeles, we are here for the long haul. For the rebuild and whatever comes after,” Spiegel wrote in an open letter titled “Dear Los Angeles, I Love You.” “And we are here to help. Snap, Bobby, and I have already disbursed $5 million in immediate aid and we will do more. We are feeding evacuees and first responders and offering free space. We’re listening to experts on megafire recovery and learning every day what more we can do and how we can rise to the challenge. We want to collaborate and build together with you.”