Twitch announced a series of platform updates at TwitchCon Rotterdam on May 30, including simultaneous horizontal and vertical streaming, 2K resolution support, and expanded creator monetization tools.

Streaming Quality Updates

The company’s “Dual Format” feature allows creators to broadcast in both horizontal and vertical formats at the same time. Desktop viewers will see the standard horizontal layout, while mobile users holding their phones vertically will see a full-screen vertical view. The feature relies on Enhanced Broadcasting technology, which uses the client to encode multiple stream variants. 

According to a blog post, Twitch plans to add server-side transcoding support for Partners and many Affiliates when the feature rolls out in June.

Also launching in June for all Partners and Affiliates is 2K streaming at 1440p resolution. Twitch raised bitrate ceilings alongside the resolution upgrade, with a maximum of 9 Mbps for 1440p and 7.5 Mbps for 1080p.

Clips and Viewer Tools

Twitch announced “Auto Clips,” a feature that automatically generates captioned clips from stream highlights by analyzing chat activity, vocal inflection, and on-screen events. The company said 50% of streamers currently have a clip to share after a given stream; among Auto Clips users in testing, that figure reaches 85%. 

The feature moves to beta in the coming months, with signups now open. Captions for community clips will begin rolling out next week.

The company also introduced “Mid-Stream Summaries,” which will generate a brief synopsis of stream activity for viewers joining partway through.

Creator Monetization

Twitch introduced several tools designed to increase creator revenue through viewer participation. “Creator Badge Drops” allows streamers to design custom chat badges for live events, with unlock conditions tied to subscriptions gifted or minutes watched. During testing, creators who configured custom badges saw up to 50% more gift sub revenue on the first day of an event compared to their monthly average.

Twitch expanded “Bounty Board” campaigns to Affiliates through Open Invite campaigns within Creator Sponsorships. A recent “Minecraft” campaign drew more than 6,000 participating streamers, with over half being Affiliates. The company said it has seen three times as many streamers participating in Creator Sponsorships in 2026 compared to 2025.

“Streamer-Led Promotions,” which lets creators offer a 35% discount on gift sub bundles, has generated over 450,000 promotions since its June 2025 launch, according to the company. Channels running discounts see up to 80% more gift subs during promotional events. Twitch will increase total promotional hours by 20%, to 96 hours annually.

According to Stream Hatchet, Twitch remained the most-watched live streaming platform in 2025, with 19.2 billion hours watched for the year. 

The next TwitchCon Europe is scheduled for Berlin on May 22-23, 2027.

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