YouTuber to the rescue?: Markiplier becomes GoPro's largest shareholder - and promotes the Mission 1 ILS
[16:24 Tue,1.September 2026 � by blip] ���
In an unexpected twist in the GoPro saga, it turns out that YouTuber and filmmaker Markiplier (Mark Fischbach) is now the action camera manufacturer's largest shareholder. He now holds an 8.5% stake in the company, which GoPro had already reported to the US Securities and Exchange Commission in July, though it only became public a few days ago following a Bloomberg report. Since then, GoPro's stock price—which was very low following the company's continued poor financial results—has soared with a current value increase of approximately 46%.
Markiplier with GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS
As the reason for his investment, Fischbach reportedly explained that he considered the stock undervalued and that he wishes GoPro success—he is particularly fond of the new Mission 1 Pro ILS, the new 1" interchangeable-mount camera that is being marketed as a compact cine-cam. As Heise reports (the Bloomberg report is behind a paywall), GoPro is not the only company he has invested in; Strada is also mentioned. Fischbach is explicitly on a mission to make filmmaking more accessible.
The extremely successful YouTuber will certainly have the necessary cash for this—in February, he released his first-ever, and self-financed! — film, Iron Lung, in select theaters. With worldwide box office earnings of around .2 million, it has since grossed more than ten times its production budget. Doubtless not least because Fischbach has nearly 40 million followers on his Markiplier channel and was able to activate them as a potential audience for his horror flick.
Will they also be persuaded to buy a GoPro camera? That certainly seems to be part of the calculation, because a few days ago, an upbeat video by Markiplier was released in which he praises the GoPro Mission 1 Pro ILS to the skies and compares it directly with the "entry-level" RED Komodo-X with a Super 35 sensor, which costs about ten times as much. The Mission ILS, priced at , is not only significantly smaller, but can also more than hold its own in terms of image quality—it even comes out on top when it comes to slow motion and resolution. While it lacks RAW recording, the Log profile is more than sufficient, especially if you are only shooting for YouTube.
Markiplier says he himself could easily have used footage from the small camera in his film—meaning he holds 8.5% of GoPro's stock under his real name and is therefore anything but unbiased in his judgment. (After all, his "review" starts with the brief disclaimer, "This video is sponsored by GoPro.") Anyone who buys the Mission 1 Pro ILS from GoPro using his discount code gets 10% off.
Whether Markiplier and his promo machinery can be the desperately needed lifeline for the struggling manufacturer remains to be seen (as does how lucrative his investment will be for him in the long run—if he even holds it long term). In the second quarter, GoPro's revenue dropped by another third, with only 291,000 cameras sold—38% less than in the same period last year, and this despite the first two Mission 1 action cams being available since May.
However, the whole affair is also interesting as an illustration of just how influential YouTubers with massive followings can be nowadays, and how they are increasingly carrying their media standing—and above all, the capital earned from it—into the "real" world. Fischbach reportedly also told Bloomberg that in April at the NAB show in Las Vegas, he had tried to see the Mission Pro 1 ILS at the GoPro booth, but was allegedly turned away. Four months later, he is GoPro's largest individual shareholder—whether that is payback, a demonstration of power, or simply good storytelling, it is certainly highly remarkable.
