Smosh is an American YouTube sketch comedy-improv collective, independent production company, and former social networking site founded by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox. In 2002, Padilla created a website named "smosh.com" for making Flash animations, and he was later joined by Hecox. They began to post videos on Smosh's YouTube channel in the fall of 2005 and quickly became one of the most popular channels on the site. The Smosh channel has over 10 billion views and over 25 million subscribers.
Ian Hecox (left) and Anthony Padilla (right) at VidCon 2014
Padilla (left) and Hecox (right) at the 2nd Streamy Awards in 2010
Hecox (left) and Padilla (right) performing at Vidcon 2012
Hecox (left) and Padilla (right) at VidCon 2014
Daniel Anthony Padilla is an American internet personality, filmmaker, host, and actor. He gained prominence for co-founding the YouTube comedy collective Smosh with Ian Hecox, where he wrote, directed, and starred in sketch comedy videos with Hecox from 2005 to 2017; after leaving Smosh, Padilla announced his return to the channel in 2023. Outside of Smosh, Padilla hosts a series of interviews titled I Spent a Day With..., where he interviews fellow Internet celebrities, as well as survivors of crime and natural disasters.
Padilla at VidCon in 2012
Padilla at Vidcon in 2014