VTubers (Virtual YouTubers) are streamers who use motion-capture anime avatars. But Japan turned this into a narrative. VTubers are not just gamers; they are "personalities" with lore (a shark girl, a detective, a phoenix). The top VTuber, Gawr Gura, has millions of subscribers globally. These characters hold "3D live concerts" in empty studios broadcast to 200,000 paying digital attendees.