Nyan Cat was created by artist Christopher Torres, who first posted the animated GIF on his website LOL-Comics on April 2, 2011. The idea came from two people asking him to draw a cat and a piece of food, which he combined into a cat with a Pop-Tart body flying through space with a rainbow trail. A few days later, on April 5, 2011, YouTube user saraj00n uploaded a video that combined the animation with a catchy Japanese Vocaloid song, which helped the meme become famous. Originally, Christopher Torres called it "Pop Tart Cat," but it became known as Nyan Cat after the YouTube upload.

In brief, Nyan Cat was made and first shared in early April 2011, with the exact creation date of the animated GIF being April 2, 2011, and the popular YouTube video upload occurring on April 5, 2011.