Good morning. All eyes are on the Vatican today as the conclave to elect a new pope begins. And things (read: internet trends) look different from the last conclave in 2013—you can livestream the Sistine Chapel chimney, refresh Pope Crave's X account, or fill out your own Fantasy Pope League bracket. Good to know the internet can keep even a thousand-year-old ritual fresh.

— Hannah Doyle & Syd Cohen

Kai Cenat Opens Applications for Streamer University

In a Hogwarts-inspired promo video yesterday, Twitch streamer Kai Cenat announced Streamer University—an application-only, on-campus program for streamers and creators to learn from Cenat and other professors.

Headmaster Cenat’s CV: 

• In just four years on Twitch, Cenat became the most subscribed-to streamer in the platform’s history. 

• His goal for the Streamer U is to create an environment where “chaos is encouraged, and content is king” for over 150 creators. 

• “At Streamer University, streamers of all backgrounds will have the opportunity to showcase their personalities as students, alongside both unrealized, upcoming, and well-established creators,” the website says.

Although details about the courses have yet to be revealed, the application for both students and professors is live—with over 20 questions including math and science trivia and a 45-second video submission.

Upon admission, students will receive free room and board on-campus—location TBA—and enroll in a variety of classes, from Business Management to Film and Acting to Music Production.

According to Cenat’s Instagram story, the website received 6.6 million visits within the first hour, crashing the site and application. Hundreds of creators are already campaigning for their admission on X, TikTok, and—of course—live on Twitch.

Creators Take on the Met Gala

This year’s Met Gala featured a roster of creator guets—Alex Consani wore Swarovski, Emma Chamberlain (in her fifth year as Vogue’s official correspondent) wore Courrèges and Ebay, and Khaby Lame wore BOSS.

But far more creators made their mark on fashion’s biggest night from the sidelines. Here’s how they covered the Met gala this year:

Lifestyle creators Alix Earle and Dolly Meckler contributed to Vogue’s app. Earle shared her favorite looks of the night from home, while Meckler interviewed guests and shared fan POVs live on the street.

Mandy Lee, aka OldLoserinBrooklyn, shared analysis of the outfits on her own Instagram and partnered with Threads to make videos about the gala’s theme.

Culture writer Emily Kirkpatrick hosted a three-hour livestream on her Substack, I Heart Mess, reacting to celebrities’ Met Gala arrivals.

Zoom out: The Met Gala has long been an exclusive, secretive event, but creators are putting their own spin on it—and making it accessible to fans, even without a proverbial seat at the table.

Why This Animator Vanished from YouTube

Animation creator Dr. Maaz MD, known as The AMaazing, left YouTube two years ago shortly after he hit 1 million subscribers. He just revealed why he returned to the platform last summer.

Context: 

• Maaz has been working as a full-time doctor and YouTube creator for nearly a decade. 

• In 2023, he felt overwhelmed by medical exams and criticism from doctor peers about his YouTube channel, so he abruptly left the platform.

Now he has a new plan. After passing two major medical exams during his YouTube hiatus, Maaz now has time to refocus on his creator work. He’s also relying more on brand deals, Patreon supporters, and channel members to fund video production, he said. 

“I’m so incredibly lucky to have this online career and I want to continue to look at it as a passion project, just like I started,” Maaz said in a video.

➕ Community Tab 

Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in Press Publish NYC, our one-day summit for the creator economy coming to Brooklyn in September.

We’ve been prepping hard—curating speakers, locking down panel topics, and of course, researching the best coffee spots.

Want early access to speaker lineups, event programming, and tickets (going live soon 👀)? Join the list here.

🔥 Press Worthy

• YouTube Premium tests a discounted two-person subscription plan in certain countries.

• Google launches a film and TV production studio.

• Spotify introduces a Plays metric that lets users see how many times a podcast is watched or listened to.

• Linus Tech Tips splits its online store into two websites (US and non-US) in response to tariffs.

• Internet-dependent jobs now make up 18% of total US GDP, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau. 

• Epic Gardening is launching a FAST channel on Samsung TV this July.