What the Tech: See the YouTube videos that no one watches
By JAMIE TUCKER Consumer Technology Reporter
Ever scroll through YouTube and wonder about all the videos that never go viral?
We’re all familiar with the mega-hits, the clips with millions of views that everyone shares. But what about the vast ocean of videos that remain unseen, hidden gems lost in the digital depths?
I decided to dive into this fascinating world of “Deep YouTube” and what I found was a captivating time capsule of life over the past two decades.
Imagine this: roughly eight hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every single second. While some of these videos explode into viral sensations, the majority slip by unnoticed. As YouTube celebrates its 20th birthday, I set out to uncover the least viewed videos, and what I discovered was truly eye-opening.
Two websites in particular act as portals to this hidden realm of YouTube. The first, Astronaut.io, offers a unique and surprisingly simple experience. You hit play, and the globe spins, landing on a random, unedited slice of life. These videos are often brand new, uploaded within the past few days, and many have zero views. It’s like stumbling upon a live feed of the world’s most ordinary moments. If you want to see more, you click again and another random video appears.
The second site, IMG_0001, takes you further back in time, unearthing older videos from 10-15 years ago. These clips often have just a handful of views, or none at all, offering a glimpse into life in a different era.
Many of these videos originate from the “Send to YouTube” feature on older iPhones, which automatically named files starting with “IMG” followed by a number.
Why did these videos never go viral? The truth is, they’re often mundane. They capture the unexciting, everyday moments of life around the world. But that’s precisely what makes them so fascinating. In a world dominated by highly-produced, carefully curated content, these videos offer a raw, unfiltered view of humanity.
You might find a silly fail, a moment of pure joy, or simply a quiet snapshot of someone’s day. It’s a polar opposite to the polished perfection of TikTok and Instagram Reels.
There’s something undeniably entertaining about being the only person who’s ever seen a YouTube video. You become the first witness to a moment in time, a digital time traveler exploring the forgotten corners of the internet. The creators of these websites have curated over 5 million YouTube videos with fewer than 100 views. That’s 5 million glimpses into lives, places,
and moments that would otherwise remain unseen.
These forgotten videos offer an honest look at life over the past two decades. If you truly want to understand what life was like, don’t just watch the highlight reels. Delve into the “Deep YouTube” and discover the humdrum, the ordinary, and the wonderfully real.
You might just find yourself captivated by the simple beauty of it all. Or at least smile because most of the time you see real people in one of their most joyous moments.
