Panda Boi
Panda Boi | |
|---|---|
Panda Boi winning the Grand Prix at the WIBA Awards in Cannes, 2025 | |
| Born | Federico Hu 20 December 2002 Milan Province, Italy |
| Education | London School of Dramatic Art |
| Occupations | Influencer, social media personality |
| TikTok information | |
| Page | |
| Years active | 2020-present |
| Genres | Comedy, Emotional |
| Followers | 12.3 million |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2020–present |
| Genres |
|
| Subscribers | 62.2 million |
| Views | 27.1 billion |
| Last updated: 11 November 2025 | |
| Website | pandaboi |
Federico Hu (born 20 December 2002), known online as Panda Boi, is an Italian actor, YouTuber and social media personality. He is known for being the most-subscribed[1] and most viewed[2] YouTube channel in Italy, for being in the top 5 most subscribed YouTube channel in Europe, for being in the top 15 most subscribed individual YouTube channel worldwide[3] and for being in the top 100 list of most subscribed YouTube channels globally.[4]
Panda Boi created his YouTube channel in 2020, where he began posting street interview content. He has created some of the most viral internet trends that inspired domestic and international creators.[5]
In 2024, Hu was listed in Fortune Italy's Top 25 Content Creators list.[6]
In May 2025, Panda Boi was awarded the Grand Prix title at WIBA Awards during Cannes Festival.[7]
Early life and education
Hu was born in the province of Milan, Italy to Working class Chinese immigrant parents.[8] He grew up in the neighbourhood of Cinisello Balsamo in Italy.
His family was one of the first generation of Chinese immigrants to move to Italy, he explained in an interview that he had been victim of discrimination and racism because of his origins.
As a kid his dream was to become an actor and he pursued this path as he grew older but due to almost no representation of Asians in Italian media, he had no success.[9]
Hu applied for admission at Centro sperimentale di roma[10] and was rejected for his ethnically diverse appearance.
Hu moved to Los Angeles, using his savings to pay for one semester tuition at Santa Monica College. He returned to Italy after he no longer had financial means.
He moved to London to train acting and graduated at the London School of Dramatic Art.[11]
Career
In 2011 Hu acted as a child actor in the movie Shun li and the poet playing the role of the protagonist son.[12] The movie was presented at the 68th Venice international film festival.
In the next few years he auditioned to more than 1000 movie castings but was never selected, After realising there was no opportunities for him in the film industry he began posting on TikTok in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
After amassing nearly 12 million followers, he shifted his focus to YouTube.[13]
In August 2021, Hu released his book Panda Boi Hello English[14] published by Italian book company Mondadori Electa.
In 2023, he released a mobile game entitled "Panda Boi Runner."[15]
In 2025, he expressed his desire to make another attempt in the Film industry.
Recognition
At the beginning of 2022, Hu was among the top 50 most viewed YouTube channels worldwide for the week of 23 January, placing at 27th.[16]
In 2023, Hu was featured in the Italian magazine Millionaire as the most subscribed YouTube channel in Italy.[8]
In May 2023, Hu's YouTube channel was the fifth most watched YouTube channel worldwide.[17]
In 2024, he was listed in Fortune's Italy Top 25 Content Creator.[6] That same year, he entered the top 100 most subscribed YouTube channels worldwide, he also entered the top 50 most subscribed YouTube channels worldwide placing at 44th place.
As of September 2025, Hu's channel is the most subscribed YouTube channel in Italy with over 60 million subscribers.[18]
Hu holds the Italian record for the fastest YouTube channel in Italy to reach one million subscribers.[13][19]
On 23 May 2025, Hu won the Grand Prix Title at Wiba Awards during the Cannes Film Festival.[20]
Awards
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Refs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Fortune Magazine Italy Top Creators | Entertainment | Won | [21] |
| 2025 | 2025 Wiba Awards | Grand Prix | Won | [22] |
Personal life
Hu was born in Italy and speaks fluent Italian. He also speaks English, Chinese, and Spanish. He moved temporarily to Ukraine in 2021, and he moved back to Italy in January 2022, one month before the start of the Russo-Ukraine War.
While in Ukraine, Hu met his girlfriend, Liudmyla. She remained in Ukraine after Hu returned to Italy. Once the war started, Hu drove 2000 km to bring her to Italy. His actions have been covered internationally by media from UK,[23] Italy,[24] and Germany.[25]
References
- ^ "Top 100 YouTubers n Italy Sorted by Subscribers". Social Blade.
- ^ "Top 100 YouTubers in Italy". Social Blade.
- ^ Shelley Walsh. "The 30 Most-Subscribed YouTube Individuals (Q2 2025)". Search Engine Journal. Retrieved 16 May 2025.
- ^ "Top 100 Subscribed YouTube Channels". Social Blade.
- ^ "Panda Boi". romics.it. 17 September 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2025.
- ^ a b "Top 25 Content Creator 2024". Fortune Italia (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Awards, WIBA. "Global Influencer Stars Shine at the 2025 WIBA Awards in Cannes" (Press release). PR Newswire. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ a b Cerri, Matteo (9 October 2023). "Con oltre 58.5 milioni di subscriber, Federico è lo youtuber italiano più seguito al mondo". Millionaire (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "PANDA BOI, LO YOUTUBER PIÙ SEGUITO D'ITALIA by Stasera c'è Cattelan – SUPERNOVA". Spotify for Creators. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
- ^ ""Selezione per lammissione ai corsi ordinari del triennio 2018–2020: Corso di Recitazione"". Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia (in Italian). 28 November 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
- ^ "2019 Graduates « – London School of Dramatic Art". lsda-acting.com. Retrieved 1 May 2025.
- ^ Shun Li and the Poet (2011) ⭐ 7.2 | Drama. Retrieved 29 September 2025 – via m.imdb.com.
- ^ a b "Panda Boi è l'italiano più veloce a raggiungere un milione di iscritti su YouTube (grazie a TikTok)". Tech Fanpage (in Italian). 23 August 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Hello, English! Impara l'inglese con me – Panda Boi". Mondadori Store (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Panda Boi Runner". Panda Boi Publishing. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Top 50 Most Viewed YouTube Channels Worldwide • Week Of 01/23/2021". Tubefilter. 25 January 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Top 100 Most Viewed YouTube Channels Worldwide • May 2023". Tubefilter. 9 June 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Siciliano, Francesco (23 September 2025). "Panda Boi: chi è lo YouTuber più famoso al mondo?". Webboh (in Italian). Retrieved 29 September 2025.
- ^ "Panda Boi, record su Youtube: 1 milione di iscritti in tre settimane, come?". Webboh (in Italian). 22 August 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "World's Top Influencers Honored at 2025 WIBA Awards During Cannes Festival". Times Monaco. 26 May 2025. Retrieved 28 May 2025.
- ^ "Italy Top 25 Fortune Creators". Fortune Magazine Italy. 2024.
- ^ "PANDA BOI takes home the Grand Prix Title at Wiba Awards during Cannes Festival". PR Newshire. 23 May 2025.
- ^ "Man Drives 2,000km From Italy To Ukraine To Rescue Girlfriend". Tyla. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ Cigna, Ygnazia; Di Noto, Antonio; Berra, Valerio (21 March 2022). "Dai tutorial ucraini per guidare un tank al copione per influencer russi: la guerra raccontata su TikTok – I video". Open (in Italian). Retrieved 30 May 2024.
- ^ "Influencer fährt mit dem Auto von Italien in die Ukraine, um seine Freundin zu holen". Stern (in German). 27 March 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2024.