GM Daniel Naroditsky, the popular U.S. grandmaster, commentator, creator, educator, and author, unexpectedly passed away on Sunday at the age of only 29. The news has sent shockwaves around the chess community, which is grieving the loss of one of its most beloved and influential voices.
The devastating news was first shared by Naroditsky’s club, Charlotte Chess Center, on Monday, and confirmed by Chess.com with multiple sources.
It is with great sadness that we share the unexpected passing of Daniel Naroditsky. Daniel was a talented chess player, educator, and cherished member of the chess community. He was also a loving son, brother, and loyal friend.
We ask for privacy for Daniel’s family during this extremely difficult time. Let us honor Daniel by remembering his passion for chess and the inspiration he brought to us all.
The Naroditsky family shares the sad news of Daniel’s unexpected passing. Daniel was a talented chess player, educator, and beloved member of the chess community. We ask for privacy as the family grieves. pic.twitter.com/otNdUxDKtL
— Charlotte Chess Center (@CLTchesscenter) October 20, 2025
Chess.com’s Chief Chess Officer (CCO) IM Danny Rensch worked closely with Naroditsky during several major Chess.com events, and said: “Danya was more than an amazing, inspirational face of our game, he was a friend and brother. The news is devastating for the chess world and all who knew him. It’s impossible to put words to this kind of loss. My love, thoughts and prayers are with his family,” he said.
The news is devastating for the chess world and all who knew him. It’s impossible to put words to this kind of loss.
—Danny Rensch, Chess.com CCO
GM Oleksandr Bortnyk, Naroditsky’s close friend and regular blitz partner at Charlotte Chess Club, also adressed the news during his Twitch stream on Monday, saying: “He was a very talented chess player,” he said. “But more, he was a very good guy. A very kind guy. He was a good friend.”
The grandmaster said his last words in person to Danya were: “Danya, don’t worry about anything. I love you so much.” Bortnyk also said “I’m happy my last words were supportive.”
Today’s round in the 2025 U.S. Chess Championship started with a minute of silence in honor of Naroditsky. After his game, GM Levon Aronian talked about the passing.
Levon on the passing of Daniel Naroditsky: “It’s heartbreaking. I knew Danya quite well and I can say he was always a good friend and a nice guy.” pic.twitter.com/9Voxp8SGRz
— Saint Louis Chess Club (@STLChessClub) October 20, 2025
Naroditsky, who was three weeks away from turning 30, has long been known as one of United States’ most talented players. He achieved his grandmaster title at the age of 18 in 2013, and placed fifth among the highest-ranked juniors in 2015. His last FIDE-rating is 2619, which places him among the top 150 in the world, or the 17th highest-ranked in the United States. He has a peak rating of 2647 from 2017.
He leaves a legacy that spans strong over-the-board competition and highly popular chess instruction and commentary on streaming platforms.
Born in San Mateo, California, Naroditsky first learned the game from his father at the age of six. He quickly established himself as a prodigy, becoming the youngest player ever to win the Northern California K–12 Chess Championship.
His international breakthrough came in 2007 when he won the gold medal in the Under 12 section of the World Youth Chess Championship on tiebreaks, ahead of now GM Illya Nyzhnyk. Below is a game from that tournament.
Naroditsky won the U.S. Junior Championship in 2013 with a score of 6.5/9, an achievement that qualified him for the 2014 U.S. Championship. He earned the coveted grandmaster title at the end of 2013 at the age of 18, securing his final norm at the Benasque Open. He was awarded the prestigious Samford Chess Fellowship in 2014.
Here’s one of his wins from the tournament where he secured the GM title:
Throughout his career, Naroditsky was consistently ranked in the top 200 in the world in classical chess. He represented the United States in major events, including the 2015 World Team Championship, where he posted a performance rating of 2701. Among others, he beat the strong Russian GM Dmitry Jakovenko.
One of his most significant victories came in the 2021 U.S. Championship, where he defeated GM Fabiano Caruana, who was then the FIDE world number two and rated 2800.
A recent competitive success was in August 2025, when he won the US National Blitz Championship with a perfect 14/14 score. Also in Chess.com’s Titled Tuesday tournaments he was a feared opponent for any player.
In recent years, Naroditsky has been balancing his playing career with creating content on his Twitch channel (340,000 followers) and YouTube (482,000 followers). He was immensely popular and gained a huge following, not only to due to his insightful commentary and educational content, but also thanks to his humorous personality.
One example is from this video on his channel.
But it was his skills in online speed chess that earned Naroditsky his reputation as one of the world’s leading blitz players, having played a total of 140,000 games on Chess.com, making him the eighth most active titled player. He regularly placed among the top-ranked players in both blitz and bullet, and won two Titled Tuesday events.
He also proved his incredible skillls over-the-board multiple times. In the 2024 World Blitz Championship, where he was close to qualify for the knockouts phase, he finished ninth. FIDE’s October 2025 blitz list places him 23rd with a 2705 rating.
His lessons also helped countless players improve their understanding of the game. One of them is renowned YouTuber Cr1TiKaL/MoistCr1TiKaL, or penguinz0, who was coached by the grandmaster for 1.5 years: “Daniel was such a bright light in the chess community. His love of the game was infectious… He was an amazing teacher, an incredible player, and a great friend,” he explained during a stream on Monday.
Daniel was such a bright light in the chess community. His love of the game was infectious.
—Cr1TiKaL, YouTuber
Among those who knew him from his earliest days is IM John Donaldson, longtime Director of The Mechanics’ Institute in San Francisco and the U.S. National Team coach. He told Chess.com:
“I am shocked beyond words. My first memories of Daniel are of him playing at the Mechanics’ Institute at around the age of seven. He was so small that his dad, Vlad, had to put a cushion on his chair so he could see the board. Daniel was a constant presence at the Mechanics’ for roughly the next dozen years, and his love for chess was infectious.”
“Daniel enjoyed everything about chess, whether it was playing, studying or learning about the history of the game. He was a voracious reader of chess literature. The Mechanics’ Institute has several thousand chess books in its library and Daniel was constantly checking out game collections and tournament books. His father Vlad often brought back Russian language chess books from his business trips to the former Soviet Union which would be added to Daniel’s ever-growing library.”
Daniel enjoyed everything about chess, whether it was playing, studying or learning about the history of the game.
—John Donaldson
“Daniel gave back to the game from an early age—teaching, lecturing, and writing. He wrote his first book, Mastering Positional Chess, when he was only 14. Some questioned how it was possible for someone so young to write so well, but if you knew Daniel, it was no surprise.”
Donaldson also recalled captaining Naroditsky during the 2015 World Team Championship in Armenia. “We were ranked ninth out of ten teams, but Daniel and his teammates led the U.S. to a tie for fourth place. Daniel scored 4/7, including the win against Jakovenko. It was his only appearance for the national team, but it showed he was already world top-50 strength.”
“I will remember Daniel for his love of learning, his humor—what great impersonations he did of chess legends!—and his kindness.”
Naroditsky served as the Grandmaster-in-Residence of the Charlotte Chess Center from 2020 until 2025, where he made his home after studying history at Stanford University.
Remembrances:
RIP my great friend Daniel Naroditsky , I still can’t believe
— Oleksandr Bortnyk (@BortnykChess) October 20, 2025
GM Daniel Naroditsky passed away. He was a talented chess player, commentator, and educator. FIDE extends its deepest condolences to Daniel’s family and loved ones. pic.twitter.com/uxoccDbnHW
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) October 20, 2025
— Chess.com (@chesscom) October 20, 2025
Utterly devastated. pic.twitter.com/ZhVbitY79R
— Sam Shankland (@SamShankland) October 20, 2025
It is with great sadness that the Kasparov Chess Foundation mourns the passing of GM Daniel Naroditsky, one of the brightest stars to emerge from our programs.
Danya’s talent, creativity, and love for chess inspired everyone who knew him, from students to fellow competitors. pic.twitter.com/AuPr0uZx4u
— Kasparov Chess (@Kasparov_Chess) October 20, 2025
“I’ve been sitting here numb for the past hour staring at this news. The world lost a brilliant man today. May his memory live on forever and may we always cherish his contributions to our beautiful game.” — IM Levy Rozman
“I’m devastated. This is a massive loss for the world of chess.” — GM Hikaru Nakamura
“Heartbreaking. My deepest condolences.” — GM Alireza Firouzja
“I am at a loss of words. What an incredible human being he was. Rest in peace Danya.” — WFM Anna Cramling
“This is shocking! I knew Daniel since he was a young kid. His parents sent him to stay at my home so he can train with my other SPICE students. Always a nice and polite kid! Just saw him at the @CLTchesscenter“ — GM Susan Polgar
“Unimaginable tragedy. A great person, chess player and chess history connoisseur. I could listen to Danya for hours just effortlessly bending the English language to his will – as a fellow content creator, I admired it greatly. R.I.P.” — Agadmator
“Devastated and heartbroken 💔. Danya was one of the kindest, thoughtful, and incredible people I ever met and I’m so lucky to have gotten to work with and learn from him over the years. He truly made the world a better place and will be missed more than words can express. My prayers are with the Naroditsky family. His absence will be irreplaceable in the chess community😭😭” — WGM Nemo Zhou
“Daniel was a shining star of a person. Authentic, whip smart – someone you meet and instantly think “Wow, this guy would be successful at whatever he sets his mind to.” He published a chess book at the age of 14! But he was also a sensitive and deeply modest individual. Despite his brilliance, he never wanted to upstage someone – he always made space for others to showcase their talents. Of all his qualities, I think that’s the one that impressed me the most.” — IM John Bartholomew
“This is absolutely devastating. Danya was an amazing friend and role model not only for myself, but for so many in the chess community. My deepest condolences to his family, friends, and everyone who knew him. You’ll be dearly missed, Danya. Rest in peace.” — IM Eric Rosen
“This is absolutely shocking! 💔 My deepest condolences.” — GM Vidit Gujrathi
“Jesus Christ… Daniel, no, no, no! 😭😭😭😭 I can’t believe it.😪 I was so looking forward to meet you once again this December, share stories. May your soul find eternal peace – you will never be forgotten. Life is so short.” — GM Arturs Neiksans
“This is just horrible. Everything is wrong and getting wronger. May his memory be a blessing.” — GM Peter Svidler
Mike Klein and Peter Doggers contributed to this story.