# Twitch

> Twitch is the world's largest live-streaming platform, where creators broadcast video games, IRL content, music, and talk shows to a real-time audience that talks back in chat. Founded as a gaming-focused spin-off of Justin.tv in 2011 and acquired by Amazon in 2014, Twitch turned watching someone play a game into a social, participatory medium, building a creator economy powered by subscriptions, Bits, ads, and a culture of emotes and live community.

- **Founded:** 2011
- **Headquarters:** San Francisco, California, United States
- **Founders:** Justin Kan (Co-founder (Justin.tv / Twitch)), Emmett Shear (Co-founder & former CEO), Michael Seibel (Co-founder (Justin.tv)), Kyle Vogt (Co-founder (Justin.tv))
- **Team size:** ~1,100+ employees
- **Products:** Live Streaming, Twitch Chat, Subscriptions, Bits & Cheering, Video on Demand & Clips
- **Notable:** Grew from a Justin.tv spin-off in 2011 to the world's largest live-streaming platform., Acquired by Amazon for ~$970M in 2014, one of gaming's landmark deals., Reached ~240 million monthly active users by 2025.

## Products & services

- **Live Streaming** — Real-time broadcasting of gaming, IRL, music, sports, and talk content to a global audience.
- **Twitch Chat** — Interactive live chat with emotes, badges, and moderation tools that make every stream a two-way conversation.
- **Subscriptions** — Monthly paid channel subscriptions that share revenue with creators and unlock perks and custom emotes.
- **Bits & Cheering** — A virtual goods system letting viewers tip and cheer for streamers in chat.
- **Video on Demand & Clips** — Replay of past broadcasts plus short shareable clips highlighting standout moments.
- **TwitchCon** — The platform's flagship in-person convention bringing streamers and communities together.
- **Developer Tools & Extensions** — APIs, Extensions, and the IngestKit that let third parties build interactive overlays and integrations.

## Achievements

- Grew from a Justin.tv spin-off in 2011 to the world's largest live-streaming platform.
- Acquired by Amazon for ~$970M in 2014, one of gaming's landmark deals.
- Reached ~240 million monthly active users by 2025.
- Helped legitimize esports as a mainstream spectator sport.
- Pioneered the modern creator economy with subscriptions, Bits, and revenue sharing.
- Created a shared internet vocabulary of emotes (Kappa, PogChamp) adopted well beyond the platform.

## Latest updates

- **2025-02** — CEO Dan Clancy's open letter outlines 2025 priorities: day-one monetization for most streamers, Shared Hype Trains, and improved clip tools.
- **2025-10** — Twitch faced a major safety controversy after streamer Emiru was assaulted at TwitchCon 2025; Clancy apologized and promised a security review.
- **2025** — Platform reports ~240M monthly active users and ~$1.9B in revenue, up ~5.6% year over year.

## Links

- Website: https://www.twitch.tv
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/twitch-tv
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/twitch
- GitHub: https://github.com/twitchtv
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/twitch
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twitch
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/twitch
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twitch

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/twitch
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-01