‘Streaming gave me a space to be myself’: Twitch creators on what it’s like to grow up on the platform

Twitch creators at the annual TwitchCon in Rotterdam described the personal costs and benefits of building careers in front of millions, as the platform grapples with an aging user base and the rise of artificial-intelligence streamers [1]. Aimee Davies, known as Aimsey, began streaming at 16 and now has 1 million subscribers [1]. "When you're 16 you want to tell everyone everything about you," Davies said, recounting how they shared their identity and mental-health struggles online [1]. The 24-year-old said they have recently pulled back. "I'm living a little bit more of a reserved life," Davies said. "I'm still myself when I stream, but I'm trying my best to keep some things private – at least for now" [1]. Sweet Anita, a 35-year-old streamer who has Tourette syndrome, has been broadcasting since 2018 [1]. She said the platform provided a space "to be myself without constantly having to apologise to people" [1]. But she warned that visibility is permanent. "It's a little bit of a trap because once you're here, people don't forget you," she said. "You could leave tomorrow and someone might continue stalking you for the next 10 years" [1]. The career arc of growing up on camera is not unique to Twitch. PewDiePie, who registered his YouTube channel in 2010, became the platform's most-subscribed creator in 2013 and later diversified from gaming into vlogs and comedy [3]. In the 2020s he semi-retired, uploading less frequently and for personal enjoyment rather than as a career [3]. IShowSpeed, born in 2005, registered his YouTube channel in 2016 and shifted from gaming to general entertainment, winning Streamer of the Year at the 2024 and 2025 Streamer Awards [2]. Twitch has introduced tools to manage the risks. The company created guilds for minority groups and deployed an AI-driven AutoMod feature to police chat [1]. "We've invested heavily in moderation tools so streamers can define what safety looks like to them," said head of community Mary Kish [1]. CEO Dan Clancy said the platform's largest age group is now 25-34, as users age with the service [1]. He predicted continued diversification of content, suggesting that when the "Twitch generation" reaches retirement age, knitting and crocheting streams could emerge [1]. An AI avatar streamer, Neuro-sama, has already amassed 1 million followers [1]. Davies rejected the idea that human creators would be displaced. "No matter what happens there is always going to be an audience for human-made things," they said. "There's always going to be people who need that human connection to feel real" [1].