I went to the influencer industry's biggest conference where fans dressed in cosplay, walked in a 'Minecraft' world, and played cat-themed carnival games
- I traveled to Anaheim, California, for the largest conference celebrating the creator industry.
- I saw screaming fans dressed in cosplay and stepped inside YouTube Gaming's "Minecraft" installation.
- Here's a photo walk-through of the event, from the panels to exhibitions.
Last week, as I walked through a faux terminal in a room transformed to look like an airport, I was handed a "destination creation" passport that would take me to destinations like "your Roman empire" and "longer video."
The exhibit was part of TikTok's activation at VidCon.
VidCon is the premier creator-economy conference, held each year in Anaheim, California. It celebrates online fandoms, influencer marketing, and the latest digital trends.
At this year's event, platforms like TikTok, Meta, and YouTube hosted themed rooms for creators, while fans of influencers like gamer Jessica "Aphmau" Bravura lined up to play carnival games and hear her chat about her YouTube channel.
While several big stars and companies sat out this year's VidCon, there were still plenty of screaming fans, long lines, and insightful conversations.
Step inside VidCon 2024 below:
Top creators, talent managers, CMOs, senior brand executives, and VCs came together on June 26 for VidCon's first Industry Leadership Summit.
The pre-conference gathering was an invite-only off-the-record event focused on the future of the creator economy.
Bravura's merchandise company, MeeMeows, put on the largest and most exciting installation at VidCon.
Her booth (if you can even call it that) mimicked a carnival with several interactive games and a place to purchase merchandise.
The exhibit was in VidCon's main conference hall and drew the longest lines each day.
Even though "Minecraft" has been around for 15 years, the game seems to be more popular than ever.
Creators who stream themselves playing it are reaching new levels of stardom on YouTube.
At VidCon, YouTube Gaming hosted a walk-through of a "Minecraft" world where fans could place themselves inside the game.
Several "Minecraft" creators on YouTube also appeared on panels at the conference and drew massive crowds of fans.
Several fans dressed in cosplay related to videos from their favorite "Minecraft" streamers and gamers.
One fan made a cape with photos of every video from YouTuber MatPat's channel The Game Theorists.
The main convention hall featured several interactive booths, including promotions for the D'Amelio family's popcorn brand Be Happy and MGA's TikTok viral brand Miniverse.
YouTube hosted two creator lounges — one at the convention center and a larger lounge at the event's hotel partner, Hyatt.
Both rooms were dubbed the All-Star Lounge and promoted tools like YouTube Shopping, shorts, and the YouTube Partner Program for creator monetization.
The exhibits also supplied sports swag like customizable jerseys and water bottles, T-shirts, and a pickleball set, among other items.
TikTok hosted an airport-themed room with destinations promoting TikTok Shop, creating longer videos, and "going horizontal."
Employees handed creators and attendees walking inside the exhibit a TikTok-branded passport filled with tips and advice for creating content on the platform.
Employees also answered questions from creators about new features and tools and handed out snacks.
Meta hosted several exhibits, like a creator café that promoted the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses and a booth in the convention center that showcased Instagram's many AI features for creators.
Attendees and creators could make a magnet using Instagram's AI-generated stickers or use a photo station to place themselves inside an AI-generated background like those available in stories.
Creator-led publication, The Publish Press, gave out printed newspapers at VidCon.
The paper featured stories, including "The year creators went Hollywood," by Nathan Graber-Lipperman.
YouTube stars Colin Rosenblum and Samir Chaudry founded The Publish Press, a newsletter about the creator economy.
VidCon hosted several meet-and-greets during the convention.
TikTok sisters Charli and Dixie D'Amelio met with fans inside their Be Happy popcorn booth.
The gaming group Krew had a long line of fans eager to meet with them, as well.
Creators, including Smosh, The Try Guys, the D'Amelios, and several rising "Minecraft" stars, spoke on panels throughout the conference about their careers and the state of the industry.
On the second floor of the conference center, industry professionals, VCs, and startup founders spoke about their businesses and strategies for success.
Rising stars on YouTube Gaming, many of whom are known for streaming themselves playing "Minecraft" and other games, brought in heaps of screaming fans who were excited to see their favorite creators IRL.