Alex O'Connor
English philosophy educator (born 1999)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alex J. O'Connor (born 27 March 1999), also known as CosmicSkeptic, is an English podcaster and YouTuber. He is known for his videos on philosophy on YouTube, most notably on the subjects of ethics, religion and atheism.
27 March 1999
Alex O'Connor | |
|---|---|
O'Connor in July 2025 | |
| Born | Alex J. O'Connor 27 March 1999 |
| Education | St John's College, Oxford (BA) |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Subscribers | 1.93 million |
| Views | 392.3 million |
| Last updated: 23 April 2026 | |
| Website | alexoconnor |
Early life and education
Alex O'Connor was born on 27 March 1999.[1][2] He grew up in Blackbird Leys, a civil parish and ward in Oxford, with divorced parents.[3] He attended St John's College at the University of Oxford and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and theology in 2021.[4][5][6]
Career
O'Connor started his career by uploading videos on skateboarding to YouTube. By age seventeen, he was making videos on his channel CosmicSkeptic commenting on philosophy, religion and political topics like the 2016 United States presidential election.[7] He started the Within Reason podcast (formerly called The Cosmic Skeptic Podcast) in 2019. His guests include Richard Dawkins, David Deutsch, Sam Harris, Jordan Peterson, Carlo Rovelli, and Slavoj Žižek.[2][4]
In October 2023 he interviewed the conservative journalist and commentator Peter Hitchens about drug decriminalisation, secularism and the British monarchy. Hitchens abruptly ended the interview and expressed his "active dislike" of O'Connor before leaving.[4][6] O'Connor has participated in debates at the Oxford Union.[4] In January 2025 he was featured in an episode of the American political debate series Surrounded by Jubilee Media, where he debated 25 Christians on the existence of God and the veracity of the resurrection of Jesus.[2]
Views
O'Connor identifies as an agnostic atheist; he is known for his critique of theistic belief systems and for his long-form conversations on the subject.[2][4][8] He is a British republican, a subject he has spoken publicly on, including with Piers Morgan.[9] O’Connor is a former vegan.[10][11]
