How much would you pay to game with your favorite online personality? For Imane “Pokimane” Anys, the answer for multiple people out there is “over $30,000.” Fans, AKA internet strangers, are currently in a low-key bidding war for an exclusive one-on-one gaming session with the Twitch icon as she auctions off her time for charity.
The auction was arranged by popular YouTuber Connor “CDawgVA” Colquhoun to raise money for the Immune Deficiency Foundation, a group that provides educational resources and advocacy for people suffering from chronic illness and infections. “Enjoy a gaming session with Pokimane, one of the top streamers in the industry,” reads the Tiltify page’s description. “Play your favorite games and share an unforgettable experience.”
Anys has been Twitch’s most prominent female streamer for years, and though she said she wouldn’t be re-signing with the Amazon-owned platform earlier this year, she’s continued hosting chat streams there in addition to her other endeavors. Those include a podcast and lifestyle brands like luxury cookies. ”The only time you can pay to play w/ me lmao,” she tweeted with regard to the auction.
The bids started out innocently enough. User skracer offered a single dollar to kick the auction off. Tanmanrivers followed up with $15. Someone then outbid that person by just 50 cents. But a few hours in, things quickly started to escalate from hundreds of dollars to thousands. The bidding cracked $10,000 near the end of yesterday and $30,000 shortly after. “I am scared to see how much this goes for,” tweeted Colquhoun.
The auction then went viral when other streamers, including new CEO of FaZe Clan FaZe Banks and CS:GO streamer Amirfps313, got into a bidding war that pushed the price up to $500,000. “WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING,” wrote Colquhoun. “Wtf is going on,” Anys responded on Instagram. “The donations were capped so I don’t know if this is real or what.”
It’s unclear how the auction authenticates the bids, and thus how many of them are real vs. just other content creators clout-chasing off of the stunt. When I checked the Tiltify page this morning the high bids had all been wiped, but then came back a few minutes later. At the time of writing, the top bids were dominated by user “@haryvibes on X” and user “pls sex me poki.”
At least it’s all for a good cause. The auction ends on July 19.