Sony Music: VTuber project VEE ends in September

Sony Music is ending the VTuber project VEE as of September 30, 2026, thereby discontinuing both the project management and the direct management of the talents currently associated with it. The company justifies the step by saying the existing structure cannot be sustained as a viable business.

VEE was launched in 2021 as a project for developing and supporting virtual talents. According to the official announcement, the names, characters, YouTube channels and social media accounts of those talents who wish to continue will in principle be transferred to the respective individual or to a new management structure.

20 talents continue their activities

Of the 21 talents currently listed, 20 plan to continue their activities. Only Hinahoshi Airu is ending her activities; a farewell broadcast is scheduled for September 16. For the remaining talents, Sony Music outlines various possible paths, including continuing as independent VTubers or switching to a new management.

Several central VEE services are also being discontinued. The fan community "VEELLAGE" ends on September 30 at 23 Japan time. The official shop will remain open until November 30, but new VEE products are not expected to be released from October onward. The game "Gun Girl Go", which had been in development, will be discontinued entirely and not released.

The official VEE announcement explicitly states that the failure to establish a viable business structure lies with the project leadership and not with the talents. The official YouTube channel and social media profiles are to remain in place as an archive for the time being after the project ends.

The overlap between the VTuber and anime scenes is now regularly visible. Recently, for example, three Nijisanji VTubers were confirmed for the cast of "THE RIBBON HERO". The end of VEE thus affects not only a single agency structure but part of the broader Japanese virtual entertainment market.