History Trivia / KizunaAI

** English speakers eventually started to notice Kizuna Ai thanks to the various [[{{Crossover}} collaborations]] that she had with WebOriginal/TheAnimeMan.

* ColbertBump: Some mobile video games collaborate with Kizuna Ai either via sponsored videos, [[GuestFighter in-game playable cameos]], or both in the hopes of having her fans try out said games.

** In order to address the [[EpilepticTrees massive speculation]] whether or not Kizuna's original voice actress has been permanently replaced from her channels, [=activ8=] released an official [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/cr454z/official_announcement_about_kizuna_ai_situation/ announcement]] on mid-2019, stating that the original voice actress is not retired, but had less activity and focused [[KickedUpstairs mostly on music video production]].

** She sometimes mentions that she has staff members. In her LetsPlay for ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2Remake'', fans think that Ai's staff plays the game because her aim significantly improved, but she, explains that even if she has a staff, she herself plays the games. In Ai-chan's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKJuN1R5mxE I have an assistant now!!]]" vlog, she even casually mentions having a staff team and some of them can be heard laughing offscreen.

* IKnewIt: Yep, Ai-chan's voice actress is Nozomi Kasuga. It was a popular {{fanon}}/theory before, but has finally been confirmed true in her [[https://mobile.twitter.com/kasuga_nozomi/status/1253662616674725888 her Twitter post]] on April 24, 2020. As such, a lot of fans knew it already, but kept quiet as not to ruin the immersion.

* ReclusiveArtist: Almost nothing is known about the voice actress who does Kizuna Ai's voice, nor the rest of the team responsible for the project. As the whole gimmick is that she is supposedly an artificial intelligence that makes vlogs and skits and LetsPlay videos in order to connect with humans, the identities of the humans behind it are kept secret to maintain the illusion.
** Even moreso when [[TheOtherDarrin Ai sounded like Luna and vice-versa]] in their respective April Fool's videos, and ''only'' those videos.

** In a commentary of her LetsPlay for ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2Remake'', she reads comments about fans thinking that Ai's staff plays the game in place of her because at one point, her aim significantly improved. She denies the statement, saying that she herself plays the games and not her staff. In Ai-chan's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKJuN1R5mxE I have an assistant now!!]]" vlog, she casually mentions having a staff team. The video is also played on a hardware screen, with some of the staff members audibly trolling and laughing at her.
** Following the channel's supposedly permanent shift to a new voice actor for Ai-chan sometime in August 2019 (see the YMMV page), fans found the Twitter account of a certain [[https://twitter.com/nozomi__kasuga?lang=en "Nozomi Kasuga"]], which apparently [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/co22i0/full_timeline_of_multiple_ai_project/ formerly contained]] some now-deleted tweets heavily implying that she's the original Kizuna Ai herself, including a censored picture of a Kizuna Ai-themed birthday cake on a day that wasn't Ai's actual birthday, some subtle jabs at her workplace, and quoting Japanese movie memes revolving around the CorruptCorporateExecutive trope.
** On 24 April 2020, it's officially confirmed that, yes, Nozomi Kasuga is the original voice for Ai-chan, and now she is [[https://grapee.jp/en/138010 on advisory role]] for the new Kizuna AI Co., Ltd.

* WordOfGod: In order to address a [[EpilepticTrees massive speculation]] among the fandom whether or not Kizuna's original voice actor has been permanently replaced from her vlog and LetsPlay channels, causing some [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unfavored changes]] in the format from late-July 2019 onwards, [=activ8=] released an official [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/cr454z/official_announcement_about_kizuna_ai_situation/ announcement]] stating that the original voice actor is now [[KickedUpstairs relegated to music video production]].

** Going in the other direction, the success of large [=VTuber=] groups like WebAnimation/{{hololive}}, Creator/{{Nijisanji}}, Game Club Project and many others prompted a change in format to the channel by introducing Kizuna Ai clones voiced by different voice actresses (and, in the Chinese channel's case, a different language entirely).
* IKnewIt: Yep, Ai-chan's voice actress is Nozomi Kasuga. It was a popular {{fanon}}/theory before, but has finally been confirmed true in her [[https://mobile.twitter.com/kasuga_nozomi/status/1253662616674725888 her Twitter post]] on April 24, 2020. As such, a lot of fans knew it already.

** Going in the other direction, the success of large [=VTuber=] groups like WebAnimation/{{hololive}}, Nijisanji, Game Club Project and many others prompted a change in format to the channel by introducing Kizuna Ai clones voiced by different voice actresses (and, in the Chinese channel's case, a different language entirely).

* MoneyDearBoy: GUMI, the majority investor of [=Activ8=] (the company managing the Kizuna Ai IP), are [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/dtega9/kizuna_ai_replacement_timeline_and_theory_how/ collectively of the opinion]] that it ultimately [[TheOtherDarrin doesn't matter who plays Kizuna Ai]] as long as the franchise and [[TheMerch merchandise]] keep the money rolling in. This is ultimately due to the fact that the management company and investors get a bigger cut of the profits than if Nozomi Kasuga (Ai's first voice actor) had made her debut as a real person rather than a Virtual [=YouTuber=]. Ironically, the reverse was true in the early days of the channel, which may have contributed to GUMI's views in the first place. Their mentality might have actually worked had they not subtly tried to spurn Nozomi from doing her usual LetsPlay content -- perhaps unsurprisingly, [=Activ8=] ended up [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/eumlbe/activ8_produced_by_kizuna_ai_large_deficit_675/ publicizing a loss of ¥675 million]] a few months after this came to light. [=VTuber=] projects that sprung up afterwards, such as WebAnimation/{{hololive}} and Nijisanji, learned not to be so hostile to their talent for success.

** On 24 April 2020, it's officially confirmed that, yes, Nozomi Kasuga is the original voice for Ai-chan, and now she is now [[https://grapee.jp/en/138010 on advisory role]] for the new Kizuna AI Co., Ltd.

* OfficialFanSubmitedContent: Nicknames for the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ-MErCNOMQ yellow asterisk hairclip Ai]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sp0n12L3Fo0 blue number sign hairclip Ai]] were decided upon through a fan vote (Ai-pi and Love-chan, respectively).

* MoneyDearBoy: GUMI, the majority investor of [=Activ8=] (the company managing the Kizuna Ai IP), are [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/dtega9/kizuna_ai_replacement_timeline_and_theory_how/ collectively of the opinion]] that it ultimately [[TheOtherDarrin doesn't matter who plays Kizuna Ai]] as long as the franchise and [[TheMerch merchandise]] keep the money rolling in. This is ultimately due to the fact that the management company and investors get a bigger cut of the profits than if Nozomi Kasuga (Ai's first voice actor) had made her debut as a real person rather than a Virtual [=YouTuber=]. Ironically, the reverse was true in the early days of the channel, which may have contributed to GUMI's views in the first place. Their mentality might have actually worked had they not subtly tried to spurn Nozomi from doing her usual LetsPlay content -- perhaps unsurprisingly, [=Activ8=] ended up [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/eumlbe/activ8_produced_by_kizuna_ai_large_deficit_675/ publicizing a loss of ¥675 million]] a few months after this came to light. [=VTuber=] projects that sprung up afterwards, such as Hololive and Nijisanji, learned not to be so hostile to their talent for success.

* MoneyDearBoy: GUMI, the majority investor of [=Activ8=] (the company managing the Kizuna Ai IP), are [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/dtega9/kizuna_ai_replacement_timeline_and_theory_how/ collectively of the opinion]] that it ultimately [[TheOtherDarrin doesn't matter who plays Kizuna Ai]] as long as the franchise and [[TheMerch merchandise]] keep the money rolling in. This is ultimately due to the fact that the management company and investors get a bigger cut of the profits than if Nozomi Kasuga (Ai's first voice actor) had made her debut as a real person rather than a Virtual [=YouTuber=]. Ironically, the reverse was true in the early days of the channel, which may have contributed to GUMI's views in the first place. Their mentality might have actually worked had they not subtly tried to spurn Nozomi from doing her usual LetsPlay content -- perhaps unsurprisingly, [=Activ8=] ended up [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/eumlbe/activ8_produced_by_kizuna_ai_large_deficit_675/ publicizing a loss of ¥675 million yen]] a few months after this came to light.

* MoneyDearBoy: GUMI, the majority investor of [=Activ8=] (the company managing the Kizuna Ai IP), are [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/dtega9/kizuna_ai_replacement_timeline_and_theory_how/ collectively of the opinion]] that it ultimately [[TheOtherDarrin doesn't matter who plays Kizuna Ai]] as long as the franchise and [[TheMerch merchandise]] keep the money rolling in. This is ultimately due to the fact that the management company and investors get a bigger cut of the profits than if Nozomi Kasuga (Ai's first voice actor) had made her debut as a real person rather than a Virtual [=YouTuber=]. Ironically, the reverse was true in the early days of the channel, which may have contributed to GUMI's views in the first place.

* WordOfGod: In order to address a [[EpilepticTrees massive speculation]] among the fandom whether or not Kizuna's original voice actor has been permanently replaced from her vlog and LetsPlay channels, causing some [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unfavored changes]] in the format, [=activ8=] released an official [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/cr454z/official_announcement_about_kizuna_ai_situation/ announcement]] stating that the original voice actor is now [[KickedUpstairs relegated to music video production]].

* WordOfGod: In order to address a [[EpilepticTrees massive speculation]] among the fandom whether or not Kizuna's original voice actor has been permanently replaced from his vlog and LetsPlay channels, causing some [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks unfavored changes]] in the format, [=activ8=] released an official [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/cr454z/official_announcement_about_kizuna_ai_situation/ announcement]] stating that the original voice actor is now [[KickedUpstairs relegated to music video production]].

** Following the channel's supposedly permanent shift to a new voice actor for Ai-chan sometime in August 2019 (see the YMMV page), fans found the Twitter account of a certain [[https://twitter.com/nozomi__kasuga?lang=en "Nozomi Kasuga"]], which apparently [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/co22i0/full_timeline_of_multiple_ai_project/ formerly contained]] some now-deleted tweets heavily implying that she's the original Kizuna Ai herself, including a censored picture of a Kizuna Ai-themed birthday cake on a day that wasn't Ai's actual birthday and some subtle jabs at her workplace.

** Following the channel's supposed shift to a new voice actor for Ai-chan sometime in August 2019 (see the YMMV page), fans found the Twitter account of a certain [[https://twitter.com/nozomi__kasuga?lang=en "Nozomi Kasuga"]], which apparently [[https://www.reddit.com/r/VirtualYoutubers/comments/co22i0/full_timeline_of_multiple_ai_project/ formerly contained]] some now-deleted tweets heavily implying that she's the original Kizuna Ai herself, including a censored picture of a Kizuna Ai-themed birthday cake on a day that wasn't Ai's actual birthday and some subtle jabs at her workplace.

* ReclusiveArtist: Almost nothing is known about the voice actress who does Kizuna Ai's voice, nor the rest of the team responsible for the project... or, for that matter, if there even ''is'' a team beyond the voice actress. The sheer rate of updates and video uploads would strongly suggest the probability of a multi-person project, but the whole gimmick is that "she" is supposedly an artificial intelligence that makes vlogs and skits and LetsPlay videos in order to connect with humans, so the human(s) behind it are kept secret to maintain the illusion. Even moreso when [[TheOtherDarrin Ai sounded like Luna and vice-versa]] in their respective April Fool's videos, and ''only'' those videos.

** Averted in a commentary of her LetsPlay for ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil2Remake'', she reads comments about fans thinking that Ai's staff plays the game in place of her because at one point, Ai's aim significantly improved. She denies the statement, saying that she herself plays the games and not her staff. Although the way she phrased it gave away the idea that Kizuna Ai is really a team project and not a one-man project. In Ai-chan's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKJuN1R5mxE I have an assistant now!!]]" vlog, she casually mentions having a staff team. The video is also played on a hardware screen, with some of the staff members audibly trolling and laughing at her.

** Being the TropeCodifier, Kizuna Ai's success kicked off a whole slew of other "Virtual [=YouTuber=]" channels like [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLhUvJ_wO9hOvv_yYENu4fQ Dennou Shoujo Youtuber Shiro]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMYtONm441rBogWK_xPH9HA Mirai Akari Project]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQYADFw7xEJ9oZSM5ZbqyBw Kaguya Luna]][[note]] her own page can be seen [[WebAnimation/KaguyaLuna here]][[/note]], and even [[Creator/{{SNK}} SNK's]] [[VideoGame/PsychoSoldier Athena]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Asamiya]], and Anime/SuperSonico, [[https://kotaku.com/the-invasion-of-virtual-anime-girl-youtubers-1821940758 amongst others]].

** Being the TropeCodifier, Kizuna Ai's success kicked off a whole slew of other "Virtual [=YouTuber=]" channels like [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLhUvJ_wO9hOvv_yYENu4fQ Dennou Shoujo Youtuber Shiro]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMYtONm441rBogWK_xPH9HA Mirai Akari Project]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQYADFw7xEJ9oZSM5ZbqyBw Kaguya Luna]][[note]] her own page can be seen [[WebVideo/KaguyaLuna here]][[/note]], and even [[Creator/{{SNK}} SNK's]] [[VideoGame/PsychoSoldier Athena]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Asamiya]], and Anime/SuperSonico, [[https://kotaku.com/the-invasion-of-virtual-anime-girl-youtubers-1821940758 amongst others]].

** As her format is similar to other real-life [=YouTubers=], Ai-chan is also a fan of LetsPlay/PewDiePie. When she made a cover of his Hej Monika, Felix reacted to it positively. And thus, she expressed her desire of doing a collab with him in the future as stated in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjefKAmee00 this video]], while also acknowledging [=PewDiePie=]'s status as "world-famous".

* FollowTheLeader: Kizuna Ai's success kicked off a whole slew of other "virtual [=YouTuber=]" channels like [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLhUvJ_wO9hOvv_yYENu4fQ Dennou Shoujo Youtuber Shiro]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMYtONm441rBogWK_xPH9HA Mirai Akari Project]], [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQYADFw7xEJ9oZSM5ZbqyBw Kaguya Luna]][[note]] her own page can be seen [[WebVideo/KaguyaLuna here]][[/note]], and even [[Creator/{{SNK}} SNK's]] [[VideoGame/PsychoSoldier Athena]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Asamiya]], and Anime/SuperSonico, [[https://kotaku.com/the-invasion-of-virtual-anime-girl-youtubers-1821940758 amongst others]].