Susan Wojcicki, the former CEO of YouTube, has passed away at the age of 56. She was a prominent figure in technology and business.

The sad news was shared by Wojcicki’s husband, Dennis Troper, on Facebook. She had been fighting lung cancer.

“With deep sadness, I announce the passing of Susan Wojcicki,” he expressed. “My dear wife of 26 years and mother of our five children left us today following a two-year struggle with non-small cell lung cancer.”

Wojcicki is survived by her husband and four children. Unfortunately, one of their sons, Marco Troper, passed away earlier this year.

“Susan was not only my best friend and life partner but also a brilliant mind, loving mother, and a cherished friend to many. Her contributions to our family and the world were immeasurable,” Troper shared. “While we are heartbroken, we are grateful for the memories we have with her. Please keep us in your thoughts during this challenging time.”

Career Highlights of Susan Wojcicki

Susan Wojcicki attended Harvard University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Literature in 1990. She later obtained a Master of Science in Economics from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1993, followed by an MBA from UCLA in 1998.

Wojcicki joined Google in 1999 and was among its earliest employees, long before YouTube was acquired.

YouTube became part of Google in 2006 for $1.65 billion.

She took on the role of YouTube CEO in 2014 after serving as Google’s senior vice president for ad products.

After nearly a decade in charge, she resigned from her YouTube position in 2023 to prioritize “family, health, and personal projects.” Neal Mohan, her deputy since 2008, took over as CEO. At that time, Wojcicki intended to transition to an advisory role at Alphabet, Google’s parent organization.

“Making the choice to join a couple of Stanford graduates who were developing a new search engine—Larry and Sergey—25 years ago was among the best decisions I’ve ever made,” Wojcicki reflected in a blog post announcing her departure, referring to Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

The Recent Tragedy in Wojcicki’s Family

Earlier in 2024, Wojcicki and her husband Dennis faced the devastating loss of their son Marco, 19, due to an accidental overdose, per the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.

Marco was discovered deceased around 4 p.m. in his dorm at the University of California, Berkeley, on February 13, and his grandmother, Esther Wojcicki—an American journalist and educator—confirmed the tragedy via a Facebook post, stating, “Our family is utterly devastated by the loss of my beloved grandson Marco, who passed away yesterday at the young age of 19.”

The autopsy revealed that Marco had high levels of cocaine, amphetamine, alprazolam (Xanax), and hydroxyzine—all substances that contributed to his death, according to the coroner’s report. He was also noted to have a history of chronic substance abuse and had suffered a wrist fracture from a scooter accident prior to his passing.

In her heartfelt Facebook message, Esther Wojcicki remembered her grandson as “the most kind, loving, smart, fun, and beautiful human being.”