Kizuna AI also teased an album and a live concert later this year.
Kizuna AI, the progenitor of the now-popular Virtual YouTuber trend, announced her return to the streaming space after a three-year hiatus.
Kizuna AI: "You waited for me, right?"
The announcement was made through a video on the official A.I.Channel YouTube channel simply titled "I'm Back" in English. The video was titled "ただいま" in Japanese, which can also mean "I'm home." The ten-minute video has been viewed over 1.1 million times in less than 24 hours.
"I want to tell everyone that I'm grateful to all of you who have waited for me," Kizuna AI said.
The video showed Kizuna AI's new model as well as her new background - she says she is now in her room instead of the white space she used to "stream" in.
Her demeanor also eased the worries of her fans - this is the same Kizuna AI that they enjoyed watching and not a different person playing the same character.
"Before, I used to be in that completely white space, but I've updated myself and became a stronger AI-chan!," she says.
Apart from her updated look, better tracking technology is also evident in the video. This is no doubt thanks to various technological leaps made in the VTubing space in the three years that she was inactive.
She discussed the "reasons" for her three-year hiatus. She did so while staying in character, but those who know how to read between the lines may be able to glean parts of her real reason. "I went to sleep to update so that I could connect with even more people around the world."
For her future activities, she says she'll focus on music first and foremost, beginning with an album this year. She also teased a concert. "I realized that if I wanted to connect with more people on a deeper level, music was the best way to do it! I think that music transcends barriers like language."
Along with her comeback announcement stream was the release of the music video for kamone, her newest single. Her next single will drop on March 12 or 19.
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Who is Kizuna AI and why is she the original VTuber?
Kizuna AI is credited for being the first creator who used the term "Virtual YouTuber." In her self-introduction video last Dec. 2016, she introduced herself using the term.
While she isn't the first VTuber by definition, Kizuna AI was the one who coined the term. At the time, she used "Virtual YouTuber" as an in-character description of her persona, since she's meant to be an artificial intelligence.
Her approach to content creation and streaming was not as prevalent in 2016 as it is today. Kizuna AI's secrecy of her real-life identity, as well as her activities, would eventually become blueprints for those who aspire to be like her.
When the VTuber trend began to rise in popularity in Japan, Japanese fans coined the term shitennou, or Four Heavenly Kings, as an informal way to refer to the four most subscribed-to VTubers at the time. This list began with Kizuna AI, Kaguya Luna, Mirai Akari, and Nojaloli.
Eventually, the gap between AI and the rest of the Four Heavenly Kings grew too big. Kizuna AI was promoted as their "boss," and a new King joined the group: Siro.
Kizuna AI's success
On Dec. 2021 Kizuna AI was the second VTuber to reach 3 million subscribers on YouTube shortly after announcing her upcoming hiatus. Gawr Gura of hololive English was the first to reach this milestone six months prior.
Her subscriber count has stayed mainly static, but very few VTubers were able to catch up with her success even with her three-month break.
Gawr Gura still leads the VTubers in terms of subscriber count with over 4.5 million. She is followed by Houshou Marine of hololive JP with 3.75 million, and Kizuna AI slots in at third with over 3 million subscribers.
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