Twitch: "Live is where you build belonging"

Short-form video may be effective at attracting audiences, but creators looking to build lasting communities should prioritise live content, according to Twitch's Vice President of Global Partnerships, Pontus Eskilsson.

Eskilsson told The Daily Influence that creators no longer need to think of live streaming and short-form video as competing formats. Instead, he argued, each serves a different purpose – short-form driving discovery while live builds stronger audience relationships through real-time interaction. 

That direct feedback loop, he said, allows creators to better understand what resonates with audiences as they expand into new formats.

"People are very tired of the short-form content overall," he said. "Live is where people actually get to know you. It becomes a two-way conversation rather than passive engagement."

"Rather than someone thinking, 'I wonder if my audience likes this' – which is very common in short-form – all our streamers know what their community likes because they get that direct feedback every day. So it's really easy for them to build on top of that rather than guessing," he added.

Eskilsson noted that creators do not need to become full-time streamers to benefit from live, encouraging them instead to build it into their existing content mix.

"You can stream for one hour every week and do short-form or long-form the rest of the time," he said.

Not taking a slice

As creators increasingly expand beyond streaming, Eskilsson said Twitch has deliberately avoided taking an ownership stake in those ventures – even as other platforms look to capture more of the value creators generate.

"My personal view is that we are there to be an amplifier," he said. "We don't need to have a stake in what they're doing."

The strategy is built on the belief that helping creators succeed beyond Twitch ultimately strengthens what they build on the platform. Eskilsson pointed to Spanish creator Ibai Llanos as an example of how live streaming can evolve into much larger entertainment businesses.

Llanos’ creator-led boxing events grew from a Barcelona nightclub to an 80,000-seat stadium within four years, with performers including Will Smith appearing between bouts.

Using Kai Cenat's Streamer University – a week-long live event running from 15 to 20 July in which Cenat is training a new class of streamers – as a further example, Eskilsson said Twitch's role is to help creators build sustainable businesses rather than participate financially in projects beyond the platform.

"When creators want to do something unique, we figure out how we can promote it, amplify it and maximise the KPIs they want to achieve," he said. "Doing something once is a one-time thing, but doing something consistently over time has a lot of value to creators, and we want to help them build that sustainable aspect."

Beyond gaming

Eskilsson said Twitch is also seeing strong growth among female creators and audiences, with "get ready with me" content – live streams in which creators do their makeup or prepare for events while talking to their audience – expanding rapidly on the platform.

"The women creator base is growing," he said, adding that Twitch is actively recruiting creators across fashion, science and politics as it continues to move beyond its gaming roots.

"Twitch used to be just one thing," he said. "Now it's many things to many people."

*Interview conducted at CreatorFest London, 14 July 2026.