Former YouTube CEO’s Son Dies Suddenly At 19

Susan Wojcicki, the former CEO of YouTube, tragically lost her 19-year-old son, who was found dead at the University of California, Berkeley.

Janet Gilmore, a spokesperson for UC Berkeley, told NBC News that a student residing at the Clark Kerr Campus, was discovered unresponsive on Tuesday around 4:23 p.m. local time on Tuesday.

The Berkeley Fire Department arrived at the complex and informed the University of California Police Department they were “attempting life-saving measures” on the student, according to Gilmore. By the arrival of the campus police, the BFD had already declared him deceased.

Gilmore noted there appeared to be no evidence of foul play and confirmed that an investigation into the cause of death had been initiated.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Esther Wojcicki confirmed the passing of her grandson. “Tragedy hit my family yesterday My beloved grandson Marco Troper, age 19 passed away yesterday. Our family is devastated beyond comprehension.”

“Marco was the most kind, loving, smart, fun and beautiful human being. He was just getting starting on his second semester of his freshman year at UC Berkeley majoring in math and was truly loving it. He had a strong community of friends from his dorm at Stern Hall and his fraternity Zeta Psi and was thriving academically. At home, he would tell us endless stories of his life and friends at Berkeley.”

Esther shared with SFGATE her belief regarding the tragic event that led to her grandson’s death. “He ingested a drug, and we don’t know what was in it,” she explained.

She further stressed the unknown nature of the substance, adding, “One thing we do know, it was a drug. We want to prevent this from happening to any other family.”

Marco’s mother, Susan Wojcicki, has been a prominent figure in the technology industry, best known for her role as the CEO of YouTube from February 2014 until stepping down in 2023. Before her tenure at YouTube, Wojcicki was involved with Google, being one of the company’s earliest employees.