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The idea that a creator's income is all about ads and sponsorships has been entrenched for a long time. Heopop moved against that assumption. This piece uses Dhesy data and press coverage to trace how a first-generation experiment-and-hands-on creator with 4.24 million subscribers treated advertising as just one axis and widened the channel's core curiosity into goods, publishing, offline events, and overseas IP.

"If the quality is poor, I'll burn it" — why Heopop staked his name on his own business

Some creators stake their reputation on their own business rather than on ads. Heopop (real name Heo Jae-won) said of his own apparel line, "This is clothing I made staking 10 years of my reputation; if the quality is poor, I'll burn it." As reported by Hankyung (Aug 2024), the remark shows a stance of taking responsibility for products bearing his own name, not a slot for reselling an advertiser's goods.

Heopop debuted on YouTube in 2014 as a first-generation experiment-and-hands-on creator. According to press reports, his clip imitating the "alien dance" surpassed 120 million views, and he built a fan base with outlandish experiments such as placing a steel ball heated to 1,000°C on ice. The channel's tagline, "solving your curiosities," is itself the backbone of the content. This curiosity as a core became the starting point for widening revenue beyond ads.

Only 1 sponsored video out of 28 in 90 days — the makeup of a channel with low ad dependence

Low ad dependence is not an abstract impression; it shows up in the video distribution. Per Dhesy data, over the last 90 days (Mar 27 to Jun 24, 2026) the Heopop channel uploaded 28 videos, of which 1 was classified as a collaboration and the remaining 27 were non-collaboration videos. That signals a channel that does not run an endless stream of ads.

Views point the same way. Over the same period, collaboration videos averaged 85,601 views, while non-collaboration videos averaged 393,962 views, about 4.6 times higher. It means his own planned content, not ads, drives the channel's reach. The single confirmed partner was the Ministry of Science and ICT, carrying more of a public-agency campaign character than a commercial brand.

That said, these figures are limited to the range Dhesy has collected. Unlabeled collaborations or advertising outside YouTube are not captured, so it is more accurate to read this as "a distribution with a low ad share" rather than "no ads at all."

Because collaboration videos actually pull the average down, it is plain at a glance that ads are not the channel's main engine.

How an experiment-and-curiosity core spreads into goods and publishing

The starting point of diversification is not a new business but the core of existing content. According to a Chosun Biz cover story (May 2018), Heopop already held four or more revenue sources. Beyond YouTube content and ad revenue, offline-event income, character-goods income, and book-royalty income were counted together. Viewers who watched the experiments would buy character products, read the books, and attend the events.

Publishing is a representative case. The same report noted that a science educational comic starring Heopop had been published. It is the 'Heopop Lab' series, which explains the science behind the videos through his character. Because an experiment seen once in a video is consumed again as a book, a single piece of content splits across video, book, and goods to generate revenue several times.

His own apparel line follows the same logic. The quoted remark, "clothing I made staking 10 years of my reputation," is a declaration that goods are a business competing on quality rather than one-off souvenirs. If advertising borrows an external brand's value, goods and publishing build Heopop's own name into an asset.

Offline and education IP — from the Heopop Lab comics to Ellihigh

When the core is solid, content expands beyond the screen too. With 4.24 million subscribers, Heopop's revenue extended past books and goods into offline events and education IP. Family-oriented hands-on events and career-education lecture bookings mentioned in blog reviews are such cases.

Reuse of the core stands out in education. According to coverage of the elementary online course 'Ellihigh' (Apr 2026), Heopop was tied in with elementary education content alongside creators such as Jeongbeu and Sabu-gungi, bundled as the learning content 'Heopop's Wacky Science Lab.' One parent shared, "Because it connects with the curriculum, my child seems to build background knowledge naturally." The experiment signature moved straight into an education product.

It also widened into the public sphere. Heopop was appointed as an instructor at the '2023 Marine and Fisheries Science and Technology Week' talk concert alongside science communicator Gwedo, and joined a Ministry of Science and ICT campaign as a collaborator. Handing out 10,000 KF94 masks to citizens near Gangnam Station as a positive-influence activity is of the same grain as his core. The identity of experiment and curiosity carries across commercial, educational, and public stages.

The Pixar Hoppers collaboration, a stage for overseas IP built by the core

When the core accumulates, the collaboration counterpart changes too. According to Media Pen (Mar 2026), Disney and Pixar's new animation 'Hoppers' collaborated with the 4.24-million-subscriber Heopop, releasing a video on his official channel in March 2026 in which he visited the Pixar Animation Studios headquarters in San Francisco, experienced the production process, and interviewed the chief director Daniel.

The notable point is the direction of this collaboration. A global IP reached out directly to a Korean creator and arranged a headquarters tour and interview, because the experiment-and-hands-on format meshes naturally with content about "experiencing the production process." It is an expansion driven not by ad-rate negotiation but by calling in a partner that fits the core.

Such collaboration requires scale to back it up. With 4.24 million subscribers and a signature format built over more than a decade, an overseas IP could choose him as a collaboration partner. It is a scene that shows the final stage of diversification heading toward "licensing and collaboration that reuse one's own core outside the channel."

How Shorts become the engine of reach and reach cycles back into revenue

What ultimately supports diversification is reach. Heopop's Shorts are not edited clips cut from long-form; they are independently planned short experiments such as "why you shouldn't eat dried seaweed" and a "human washing machine" trial. That is why Shorts and long-form reach can be compared side by side.

Per Dhesy data, 26 of the 28 videos in the last 90 days were classified as Shorts, with Shorts averaging 408,327 views versus long-form's 53,026, about 7.7 times higher. A single short experiment reaches hundreds of thousands, and that reach cycles back into latent demand for goods, publishing, and offline events.

The gap in the chart plainly shows that Shorts are the engine of reach.

The most-viewed video of the last 90 days was also a Shorts experiment, "why you shouldn't eat dried seaweed" (about 2.51 million views). Experiments rather than ads create reach, and that reach feeds demand for off-channel products and IP — the foundation of diversification.

With Shorts as the engine of reach and long-form adding depth, a structure that repeatedly produces the core regardless of format becomes the fuel for diversification.

From a single ad axis to core-based diversification — what creators should check

Copying the Heopop case as-is is not easy. Goods, offline, and overseas IP hold together only with the scale of a first-generation creator who debuted in 2014 and reached 4.24 million subscribers. New or mid-sized channels will find it hard to replicate the same diversification right away. The premise of diversification is a repeatable signature format and accumulated reach, which must be acknowledged first.

Even so, the questions to check are clear. Is my channel's revenue tied to a single dependence on ads, and what is the content core minus ads — can that core move into products, education, and offline? The direction of spreading ad dependence into IP rooted in the content core also shows up in the same grain in the Sanago case on revenue beyond sponsorship.

If a structure takes hold in which products, IP, and offline rooted in the core act as a buffer even when ad rates wobble, the next stage is likely to move toward a larger share of licensing that reuses the core outside the channel, as with education and overseas IP collaborations.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What are Heopop's real name and age?

Heopop's real name is Heo Jae-won. According to profiles compiled on blogs, he was born on June 4, 1988, and is from Busan. He is better known by his stage name 'Heopop (Heopop).'

Q. What content is Heopop known for?

He is known for wacky science-experiment content spanning challenges, experiments, games, daily life, and hands-on trials. Curiosity-solving experiments such as placing a 1,000°C steel ball on ice or trying a 'human washing machine' himself are his signature.

Q. Besides ads, what are Heopop's revenue sources?

According to press reports, beyond YouTube content and ad revenue he holds several sources including character goods, his own apparel, book royalties, offline events, and education and overseas IP collaborations. It is a structure that treats ads as just one axis and widens the core into multiple branches.

Q. What books has Heopop published?

The science educational comic series 'Heopop Lab,' starring Heopop, has been published, along with 'Just Follow Heopop! The YouTube Playbook,' which covers know-how on running a YouTube channel. It is a publishing line that re-tells the experiments and characters from the videos in book form.

Q. What is Heopop's Pixar Hoppers collaboration?

According to Media Pen (Mar 2026), it is a global IP collaboration with Disney and Pixar's new animation 'Hoppers,' in which Heopop visited Pixar's San Francisco headquarters, experienced the production process, interviewed chief director Daniel, and released the video on his official channel in March 2026.

Methodology: Based on Dhesy platform data covering 6,129 brands and 10,485 creators. Heopop channel (4.24M subscribers) analysis period: last 90 days (Mar 27 to Jun 24, 2026), 28 videos. Collaboration classification uses per-video sponsorship labels and Shorts classification uses channel metadata, limited to the range Dhesy has collected.

Data source: Dhesy External sources: YouTuber Heopop visits Pixar, experiences production of new film 'Hoppers' (Media Pen), Heopop: "Clothing made staking 10 years of reputation; I'll burn it if quality is poor" (Hankyung), Teens captivated by wacky science experiments...from 20,000 won a month to hundreds of millions (Chosun Biz) Last updated: 2026-06-25