It’s Monday and Twitch might be the go-to for U.S. gamers, but YouTube Gaming dominates a whole continent: Asia.

ROBLOX EVERYWHERE

The dev updates: Roblox is giving game developers more ways to make and distribute games—and faster access to the money they earn along the way.

At the latest annual Developers Conference, Roblox said that in the past 12 months, game developers and UGC item creators have collectively earned $1.7 billion. In Q2 2026 alone, players from 180 countries fueled those earnings by spending a total of 29 billion hours playing games on Roblox.

Now, Roblox has announced a series of updates that will help “usher in the next chapter of growth for creators.” At the top of the list is the planned introduction of “Roblox Everywhere,” a system that will let developers turn their games into standalone apps on PCs, mobile devices, and gaming consoles.

These games will still be built on Roblox’s development engine, and Roblox will provide underlying technical infrastructure and services to apps. Roblox also plans to introduce “Play on the Web,” an offline gaming mode that will let users play titles directly within Google Chrome “with no app or install required.”

The fintech reveals: Those new distribution methods will (hopefully) contribute to developers’ earnings. And Roblox has a major update there, too.

The platform has unveiled Roblox Wallet, a creator earnings account that “lets creators earn directly in real currency, get paid automatically each business day, and move funds to other Roblox accounts or an external account, with richer earnings analytics in Creator Hub.” Wallet accounts are provided by fintech company Airwallex US, LLC.

Roblox is also introducing Roblox Card, a debit card connected to Wallet accounts that lets creators “spend their available balance anywhere the card is connected” (meaning they won’t have to transfer Robux payouts to their own bank accounts).

Roblox says Wallet and Card will open up to U.S.-based creators later this year, and begin expanding globally in 2027.

PLATFORM DRAMA

The ads: Last month, Meta brought its legal battle against dozens of state attorneys general to an end with the announcement of a $17 billion settlement.

As part of that agreement, platforms like Facebook and Instagram will introduce a variety of new trust and safety features, including stricter time limits for underage users, silenced notifications during school hours, and a “night mode” that limits access during predawn hours.

But if Meta is going to pay up and implement sweeping safety changes, then it wants its competitors to face the same penalties. The Facebook parent company has committed to paying an additional $5 billion if other Big Tech firms adopt similar trust and safety features—and it’s pushing hard for that outcome.

Beyond a general statement aimed at its Big Tech colleagues, Meta has plugged its new “industry standard” through social media ads that ran on rival platforms. At least, some of them.

According to Axios, Meta tried to run TikTok ads promoting its settlement—but they were denied earlier this week because the platform’s guidelines do not permit paid political ads. TikTok described Meta’s ads as “political content,” and stated that “the nature of political ads is not something we believe fits the TikTok experience.”

The response: Per Axios, Meta said that “it’s disappointing” that YouTube and TikTok have “chosen not to engage.” Given those companies’ previous policies, however, it’s not surprising that they have resisted Meta’s push.

In their own ways, YouTube and TikTok have fought back against attempts to place severe limitations on their respective platforms. There’s no reason Meta should expect them to start playing nice now.

GAME ON

The collab: IKEA has touched down in Skyrim. Rather than teaming up with Skyrim developer Bethesda itself, however, the Swedish company tapped well-known modder studio Kinggath Creations to add a little furniture-themed flair to the game.

Since coming out way back in 2011, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has received occasional updates—but in general, Bethesda has made a business model of providing a semi-baked game and expecting community modders to finish it off. Post-release, modders expand a game’s world by designing downloadable additions like extra gameplay mechanics, environment tweaks, cosmetic packs, weapons, and even original, full-fledged characters, companions, and quests.

That’s where IKEA’s Kinggath collab comes in. As of this week, any hard-journeying Skyrim player will now have a chance to rid themself of the eternal pain of being over-encumbered. IKEA’s modpack includes Kallax Storageborn, an insta-summonable companion that can contain all your items, from legendary swords to potions to a few thousand wheels of cheese.

The modpack: The catch? Kallax Storageborn is, quite literally, a sentient set of shelves. Kinggath took a model of IKEA’s eight-cubby Kallax bookshelf and gave it the honor of being voiced by What We Do in the Shadows fan favorite Matt Berry.

On top of limitlessly holding all your stuff, Mr. Storageborn is complemented by two new IKEA-themed dungeons, an IKEA boss fight, an Allen key-shaped weapon for players to use, a Meatball Helmet for them to wear, and meatball consumables—all made by Kinggath Creations.

Players can acquire Mr. Storageborn and IKEA’s other accoutrements for free in the Creations menu within Skyrim.

WATCH THIS 👀

The episode: On the latest installment of Creator Upload, hosts Lauren Schnipper and Josh Cohen dig into the questions swirling around YouTube's new public view counts—namely, whether or not they’re vastly inflated.

Also on the discussion board is the end of one era (RIP Amelia Dimoldenberg's Chicken Shop Date) and the start of another with former UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer’s new Twitch talk show.

Tune into the full episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to find out more.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Drew Baldwin, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen.