Twitch CEO Dan Clancy has officially addressed the shocking public assault of popular streamer Emiru that occurred last weekend. Clancy stated the company is “looking very closely at everything that happened there,” reiterating that creator safety remains his “top priority.”
During TwitchCon 2025, held at the San Diego Convention Center, streamer and cosplayer Emiru (Emily-Beth Schunk, 27) was subjected to a public assault. An individual bypassed several security barriers, grabbed her face, and attempted to forcibly kiss her during a fan meet-and-greet. Following the incident, which was captured in a viral video, Emiru has strongly advised other creators to “seriously consider not attending” future TwitchCon events and has confirmed she is pursuing legal action against her assailant.
A user named BaconCrumbz posted a viral video, stating: “So some freak just assaulted Emiru at TwitchCon. This behavior is disgusting. I’m amazed that she still came back to finish the Meet and Greet line, honestly she deserves the utmost of respect. THIS HAS TO STOP!!!”
Emiru expressed profound shock that the assailant could reach her without any intervention from Twitch security. She also conveyed her disappointment with Twitch’s immediate post-incident support and refuted their official statement claiming swift intervention and removal of the aggressor, labeling it “a blatant lie.”
Now, in a subsequent interview with journalist Taylor Lorenz, Clancy addressed the complex issue of creator safety and the challenges posed by parasocial relationships. He stated, “The safety of our creators is our top priority. The challenge we face is a challenge in today’s society. It’s not limited to Twitch, it extends throughout our society.”
Clancy further elaborated, “I do think that when you’re livestreaming, in many ways, since you control your community and you can ban people, you can make it so that those people that you don’t want engaging with you and participating with you, aren’t there. When I use other short-form content and people say all sorts of stuff, well I can’t stop that. But when I livestream, they basically don’t bother me.”
He concluded, “Now, what happened yesterday, obviously, was something that we care deeply about securing this environment. We’re looking very closely at everything that happened there, and I care deeply about Emi. She’s a friend of mine, and so I want to see how we can support her. This is just something we have to keep working on. I think everyone identifies our tools in terms of trust and safety as the leaders in the industry about helping creators, but that means there’s always more work to be done, because that’s the world we live in now.”
When questioned about how streamers can maintain trust in Twitch’s ability to ensure their safety at future TwitchCon events, especially after such a significant security lapse, Clancy stated: “The reality is even as you do a lot in terms of security in today’s world, there are challenges that can present themselves, especially when someone is putting themselves out there, right?”
He continued, “And so, we try to work very closely with each creator about what they want to do, and what works for them. I don’t want to get into any, you know, specifics or details, but part of that is working with creators. Right now, we’re definitely ramping it up to make sure creators know that we have the resources there to help them figure out what’s right for them.”
Emiru has yet to issue a direct response to Clancy’s recent statements. However, in a livestream shortly after the incident, she provided her firsthand account of the assault.
Emiru recounted her experience: “I see out of the corner of my eye, there’s a guy walking around the side of the Meet and Greet and he crosses in front of the Meet and Greet of the person to the left of me, which is a VTuber. So he’s able to walk up and in front of another streamer’s Meet and Greet, and then he walks up to me and he’s walking with a purpose, you know what I mean? And then he leans in like he’s going to tell me something, so maybe it’s like he’s TwitchCon staff or something, but I’m freaked out because he grabbed me. That’s not normal. And then he grabs my face, and he leans in, lips puckered, and tries to kiss me and I start screaming. You can’t hear it in the clip, but I’m f***ing screaming my head off.”
She further criticized the event security, stating, “Twitch security is nowhere near me. I can see them, but they don’t do anything. My security jumps up and shoves the guy away from me, and he’s allowed to walk away and leave. No one in Twitch staff came up to me to see what was going on.”
Expressing her vulnerability, Emiru felt she “could have literally been stabbed.” She also disclosed that a “global head of Amazon” personally flew to TwitchCon to engage with her manager and security. Emiru confirmed she is pressing charges against the individual responsible for the assault, noting, “As for anything else, I don’t know yet, because I’ve been having my manager handle all of those side conversations. So I have no idea, but this is just not okay.”
Original photo by Denise Truscello/Getty Images for Amazon’s Crown Channel.
This article was originally reported by Vikki Blake, an experienced journalist and critic in the gaming industry.