Taiwan VTuber

30-Second Overview: In 2017, Yahoo TV launched Hoonie, Taiwan's first VTuber, marking the beginning of virtual streaming in Taiwan.
From corporate experiments to Taiwanese Hokkien-speaking VTubers promoting local culture, Taiwan's VTuber scene has evolved
from a single character into a complete industry ecosystem including agencies, tech suppliers, and cross-sector collaborations within 7 years.

On June 30, 2017, a virtual girl with bright yellow pigtails and a distinctive fang smile made her debut on Yahoo TV. Her name was Hoonie, Taiwan's first VTuber.

This was just six months after Kizuna AI, the "VTuber pioneer" from Japan, began her activities. Taiwan didn't wait or imitate—Yahoo TV's team decided to create Taiwan's own virtual streamer. Seven years later, looking back at this decision, we see it wasn't just a technological experiment but a glimpse into a new era where virtual and real worlds merge.

Hoonie's story quickly became more than one person's journey. By 2023, Taiwanese VTubers occupied 42 spots on YouTube's top 100 Super Chat rankings, nearly double the 23 spots from 2021. Behind these numbers is a community of creators singing in Taiwanese Hokkien, discussing current events, and promoting local culture, supported by a complete industrial ecosystem.

From Corporate Experiment to Industry Genesis

Hoonie's birth carried strong corporate characteristics. Yahoo TV needed a new form of interactive host, and the malleability of virtual characters—plus their inability to "cause scandals"—perfectly fit their requirements. Her character design was jointly created by Studio Reals and SAFE HOUSE T, with the production team using the then-cutting-edge Live2D technology to make flat illustrations respond to the host's facial expressions and movements in real-time.

In 2018, Hoonie interviewed renowned animator Mamoru Hosoda, becoming Taiwan's first VTuber to interview an internationally famous animation director. She also appeared alongside Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je promoting the World University Games, and in 2020, she appeared on Tang Qiyang's show alongside President Tsai Ing-wen. These "firsts" established an important precedent for Taiwanese VTubers: virtual characters could break out of the ACG (Animation, Comics, Games) circle and enter mainstream media and political spheres.

💡 Did You Know
Hoonie ranked 118th in a global VTuber survey, placing in the top tier among over 4,000 VTubers worldwide, earning her the fan nickname "Island Master."

However, the corporate-led model also had limitations. In January 2020, the original Hoonie (α Hoonie) "went to Planet Damaike," ending her hosting duties, replaced by β Hoonie. In August 2023, β Hoonie also announced an extended hiatus. An IP's lifecycle seemed to be forever subject to changes in corporate strategy.

Taiwanese Hokkien VTubers and Localization Experiments

As mainstream media VTuber experiments gradually cooled down, a group of more ambitious creators was brewing different possibilities.

In 2023, Chang Fang-yu, a graduate from National Taiwan Normal University's Department of Taiwanese Literature, founded Shen Xiao Co., launching a VTuber team that exclusively uses Taiwanese Hokkien. "Tsa̍k-ke-hó! Góa sī Lu̍t-Sim. Sī 18-hòe Chúi-kan-á-chō (Aquarius) ê bí-siàu-lú." (Hello everyone! I'm Lu-Sim. I'm an 18-year-old Aquarius beauty.) Lu-Sim introduced herself in a video using Taiwanese romanization, unprecedented in Taiwan's VTuber circle.

Chang's motivation was simple: "Let VTubers speak Taiwanese." She believed that instead of using traditional forcing methods to make young people learn Taiwanese, why not use VTubers, this emerging entertainment form, to let audiences naturally encounter Taiwanese culture through entertainment. Shen Xiao's VTubers discuss current events in Taiwanese, teach audiences how to say "emotional blackmail" in Taiwanese (khí-moo khà-iû), and even explain cultural differences between traditional banquets and buffet-style feasts.

This localization attempt received government support. Shen Xiao passed the Ministry of Education's U-start Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program, receiving NT$900,000 in funding, becoming that year's only selected student startup team from NTNU. They also collaborated with Taiwan Indigenous Television on projects, inviting famous VTuber Nekomasu to participate in the "Voice to Life" program, creating a record of single-day viewership climbing from single digits to 2,000 simultaneous viewers.

Taiwan's Distinctive Business Model

Taiwanese VTubers' economic model shows characteristics distinctly different from Japan's. In Japan, major agencies like Hololive and Nijisanji derive their primary income from merchandise sales (40-60% of revenue), with concert activities as secondary income. But Taiwanese VTubers mainly rely on Super Chat and membership subscription income, with relatively limited merchandise sales.

This difference reflects the reality of market size and consumption habits. In 2023, Taiwanese VTubers' total SC income was approximately NT$33.5 million, though this represented a 14% increase from 2021, the average per VTuber remained limited. Therefore, crowdfunding has become an important means for Taiwanese VTubers to overcome financial limitations.

Mizuki's 3D modeling crowdfunding reached NT$8.74 million, and Lily Linglan's 3D modeling and live concert crowdfunding reached NT$8.68 million, both far exceeding their original targets. Lin Ta-han, founder of WaBay, observed: "VTuber management requires audience participation, which is similar to the essence of crowdfunding. As long as they have a certain scale, Taiwanese VTubers will use crowdfunding to strengthen themselves."

📊 Data Source
According to Playboard statistics, VTubers occupied 42 spots in Taiwan's YouTube top 100 SC rankings for 2023, with total SC income of NT$33.52 million, accounting for 38% of the total.

Complete Industrial Ecosystem

By 2024, Taiwan's VTuber scene is no longer just a story of a few independent creators, but an industrial ecosystem encompassing multiple levels.

For agencies, SpringFish specializes in IP storytelling, launching series like "Endangered Group" and "Age of Evil Beasts"; Meridian Project takes a premium route, with Mizuki being one of Taiwan's highest SC-earning VTubers; Magic Entertainment adopts an "affordable volume" strategy, with first-generation "EXITUS" and second-generation "MeloNyx" totaling 13 members.

Tech suppliers include companies providing motion capture equipment like Kokura Electronics and Future Production, as well as HTC VIVE Originals' metaverse platform Beatday, allowing VTubers to hold concerts in virtual reality.

Cross-sector collaborations demonstrate VTuber influence beyond entertainment. SpringFish collaborated with the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee to promote the Paris Olympics, with their VTubers serving as virtual ambassadors; Shen Xiao collaborated with Chunghwa Post to promote mobile apps and stamp collecting activities; Nan I Books even launched their own VTubers and virtual classrooms.

Taiwan's Characteristics and International Positioning

Taiwanese VTubers show unique competitive advantages on the international stage. Wang Wei-chih, assistant professor at National Tsing Hua University's Institute of Taiwan Literature, points out that VTubers possess the "triple qualities of anime character recognition, livestreamer real-time interaction, and idol emotional connection," while Taiwanese creators excel particularly in "localized language use, approachability, and internet meme utilization."

This localization advantage is also recognized in international markets. Though Nekomasu lives in Japan, she chose SpringFish for legal and business assistance; Annin Miru, with her Taiwan-Japan mixed heritage setting, has fan bases in both locations. Taiwanese VTubers aren't copies of the Japanese model but have developed unique forms suitable for local culture and markets while inheriting core concepts.

A January 2026 Taipei Times report mentioned that VTubers have become "the most effective cross-domain mediators," unrestricted by physical bodies and real-world settings, capable of instantly crossing different fields and demographics. This quality has allowed Taiwanese VTubers to move from niche entertainment to mainstream applications, opening new possibilities for Taiwan's digital content industry.

Challenges and Future

The development of Taiwan's VTuber industry hasn't been smooth sailing. Talent loss is the biggest challenge: among the top ten in 2021's SC rankings, Ping Ping and No. Fifteen have graduated, and Haruka left her original agency. Ideological differences and revenue-sharing disputes between agencies and creators lead to frequent "graduation waves."

Technical barriers and funding requirements also limit industry scale. A complete set of 3D models and motion capture equipment costs NT$150,000-400,000, a heavy burden for individual creators. While corporate-backed VTubers have resource support, they also face pressure for return on investment.

However, industry prospects remain optimistic. As AI technology reduces modeling barriers and 5G networks improve streaming quality, VTuber creation costs will continue to decrease. More importantly, the digital native generation that grew up post-pandemic has higher acceptance of virtual-real integration. Wang Wei-chih predicts that "corporate self-built VTubers" will become a standard configuration for brands managing digital communities.

From Hoonie's 2017 corporate experiment to 2024's cross-sector collaborative industrial ecosystem, Taiwanese VTubers have proven one thing in seven years: in the globalized digital age, the most localized content might be the most internationally viable. When a virtual girl discussing current events in Taiwanese can attract thousands of simultaneous viewers, we see not just technological progress, but the possibility of cultural inheritance and innovation.

Behind the virtual lies real cultural identity; digital appearances package local emotional connections. This might be the most unique value of Taiwanese VTubers: in an age when everything can be virtual, they guard what's most authentically themselves.

From Corporate Experiment to Industry Genesis

Taiwanese Hokkien VTubers and Localization Experiments

Taiwan's Distinctive Business Model

Complete Industrial Ecosystem

Taiwan's Characteristics and International Positioning

Challenges and Future

References

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