YouTuber Markiplier will get $15 million from GoPro's merger, but says he's disappointed in the deal

YouTube creator Markiplier doesn't like GoPro's plans to merge with an optical transceiver company, though he stands to get a $15 million check from the deal.

"I'm not going to lie, I'm disappointed," he told Business Insider. "I would vote against the deal."

Markiplier, whose real name is Mark Fischbach, runs a YouTube channel with nearly 40 million subscribers. He's also a filmmaker who wrote, directed, and starred in the early 2026 box-office hit "Iron Lung."

A self-described lens obsessive, his stake in GoPro reached 8.5% in July. He said he built his position after learning GoPro was introducing a new camera with capabilities similar to those of a professional cinema product. He became GoPro's largest external shareholder and sparked a meme-stock rally when he did an interview with Bloomberg about his investment in August.

Days after the interview, GoPro announced plans to merge with Starman Optical. Should the deal go through, Markiplier would receive a cash payment of around $15 million ($1.14 for each of his 13.5 million shares), according to the merger terms. Existing shareholders would also retain about 10% of the company after the deal.

If Markiplier bought all of his GoPro shares on July 13, the day he hit 8.5% ownership, his profit from the cash payout would be around $5 million. His potential profit may be smaller if he accumulated some of those shares earlier, when the stock price was higher. Fischbach did not respond to a request for more information on how much he would take home from the proposed merger.

Despite a potential windfall, Fischbach said he's worried the company will lose its camera focus and move into optical connectors for AI data centers or other unrelated business lines flagged in the merger announcement.

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A GoPro spokesperson said the company plans to continue investing in consumer and professional cameras, pointing to a September 3 letter from founder and CEO Nick Woodman, in which he wrote that making cameras was part of the company's "core DNA and reason for being."

As of May, Woodman had about 62% voting power over the company, meaning his support for the Starman merger would override objections from other shareholders.

Markiplier is part of a growing class of YouTube millionaires who are turning to investing to build wealth. Content creators, like Hollywood celebrities, can inspire hype for a company or stock simply by talking about it.

YouTuber Logan Paul helped drum up interest in buying Pokémon cards last year after posting about his rare Pikachu card, for example. Snap's stock price fell in 2018 after Kylie Jenner posted on social media that she didn't open Snapchat anymore. Some influencers have come under scrutiny for hyping volatile assets like crypto coins.