Most high schoolers scroll through their TikTok feeds daily. Do you? If so, you have probably encountered a human acting as an “AI” (artificial intelligence) on a live stream who solicits viewers to stay on the page. Chances are you might keep watching to see what happens next. 

Over the past few months, TikTok live streamers have become more and more popular. The streamers are finding ways to earn money and fame through going live on Tik Tok and doing entertaining things. The new and current trend took off in July 2023. People are going live and pretending to be “AI.”  This trend has become so popular that streamers on Tik Tok are now earning money from going Live on the platform.

“Some live streamers make about close to 10K a month,” Dominic Cox, a sophomore, shared. 

When this trend started to go viral in the summer, other TikTokers jumped on the bandwagon of this trend to earn money and fame as well. People can make up to hundreds of dollars a week doing this daily. In particular, these TikTokers are creating ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) and NPC (non-player character) themed content. 

How do people make money from this kind of content? When users go live, viewers have the ability to boost the live stream and use TikTok coins to send gifts. The gifts are sent to show appreciation of their live stream, and the gifts cost coins, which you purchase through the app. Once a streamer has received gifts, the gifts are turned into diamonds, and in turn, diamonds are converted into U.S dollars.

“I do not really feel like teenagers are [the ones] spending their money on this,” Denise Penn, a senior reporter, observed. “If they do spend on coins or gifts, it’s usually the cheaper ones worth like a dollar.”

This observation tracks because TikTok says its users must be 18 or older to purchase gifts that they can use to boost live streams.

For most participating in the live trends, the goal is to make money, and that is really obvious to TikTok users. Most teens do not seem to like this trend. One critique is that users will start to depend on streaming to make money instead of actual jobs.

“I would like to see more …small businesses [succeed] on TikTok,” S’Nahja Gatling, a sophomore, shared, implying that she does not want to see people making money off of random content. 

Users who rely on the platform to promote small businesses, cooking projects, and art promotion find themselves pressured to jump on the live trend. Many now take advantage of  the TikTok shop feature where they can now sell items. 

All this leaves TikTok users wondering what the platform is becoming. It used to be an app focused on music and dancing, but now it seems to be very transparently focused on generating cash for its users. Whether this will diminish the app’s popularity or the quality of its content, especially among teenagers, remains to be seen.