Globally popular social media star MrBeast (real name Jimmy Donaldson) is already estimated to be a billionaire, but he doesn’t seem to be satisfied with having made an obscene amount of money from YouTube videos. A new report claims that Beast plans to follow in the footsteps of Ryan Reynolds and get into the telecom business.
Business Insider writes that Donaldson has been mulling launching his own phone company. Citing a leaked investor deck, the outlet reports that the company would be a “MrBeast-branded mobile service” that runs atop an existing telecom network, such as Verizon or T-Mobile. Such a business is called a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, and functions by essentially branding a segment of an existing network—much like Reynolds’ Mint Mobile (which runs on the T-Mobile network).
If the product does launch, it may be in 2026, according to the viewed deck, although much about the company remains unclear. Gizmodo reached out to Donaldson for comment. An anonymous source familiar with the plans told BI that “the MrBeast team has been moving forward with a wide range of new initiatives and partnerships and has no specific timeline for its mobile-phone project, which isn’t an immediate priority.”
Lately, Donaldson seems to be attempting to expand his empire, and launching a phone business would probably be a good way to do that. The social media mogul’s expanded ambitions were revealed earlier this year when CNN reported that he was hoping to buy TikTok. Such a purchase would have made sense, given Donaldson’s penchant for viral videos. However, as of this summer, there was no clear winner in the bid to buy the popular app, although Donaldson still appears interested in it.
Donaldson has also faced some legal troubles over the past few years, including a lawsuit from former contestants on his Beast Games that alleged “chronic mistreatment” while participating in the show.