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It’s safe to say all of us refer to informal talking to friends or strangers as chatting. After all, that’s what the definition of “chat” is. But in the year 2024, that term now means something else entirely–that is, if you’re Gen Alpha.
The word “chat” is inundating classrooms, having spilled over into the real world from online spaces. Today, teens and tweens refer to their friends as chat, or sometimes, refer to no one in particular when uttering the word. So what does “chat” actually mean? For that, we have to go all the way back to 2011, right when Gen Alpha was being born.
What does ‘chat’ mean?
In 2011, the video game live-streaming platform Twitch was launched. Back then, Twitch was not as much of a household name as is it now, but today the platform has over 35 million unique visitors monthly. Many popular streamers, like Ninja and Pokimane, have become iconic in the digital community due to their prolific presence on Twitch.
Of course, what makes the platform so popular is the community aspect–viewers can interact in real-time with the streamers via a chat box, and a good streamer will make sure to interact back by answering their questions or reading their comments. Over the years, Twitch has evolved into a community-first biome, where viewers are given their place within the content creator’s platform.
The viewers are such an integral part of Twitch streaming that when addressing them, content creators often exclusively use the word “chat,” because of, well, the chat room.
“Chat, did you see that?”
“Chat, I can’t believe that just happened.”
“What do you think, Chat, should I go in there?”
Referring to viewers as an actual centralized being not only creates a more intimate bond with the audience but also lets them know they are being heard and given a voice.
However, as previously mentioned, the term has seeped into the real world, but not before a certain streamer popularized the iconic phrase, “Chat, is this real?”
Where did ‘chat, is this real’ come from?
The catchphrase comes from popular streamer iShowSpeed, who has over 27 million subscribers on YouTube. While Speed was banned from Twitch in 2021, he still streamed video games and other content on YouTube, where live streaming and live chatting were also available.
In a video uploaded to YouTube in 2023, Speed reacts to an AI-generated video of Elon Musk, and sarcastically asks his viewers, “Chat, is this real?” According to Know Your Meme, the phrase has ironically been used to refer to something outlandish or obviously fake since then.
Now, Gen Alpha has commandeered the use of the word when referring to a “fourth person” or fake audience. Sometimes, they may refer to their friends as chat or to invisible spectators when something wild happens. One comparison I like to use is when millennials look “at the camera” a lá Jim Halpert from “The Office.” As one TikToker commented under an explainer, it’s like an “omnipotent group of observers.”
How to use ‘chat’ IRL
Over on the r/Teachers subreddit, some older folks gave examples of how their Gen Alpha kids use the phrase.
“Should I study for the test, chat?” a user wrote as an example.
“LOL, I call my class, chat. They beg me to stop, but I persist,” one teacher shared.
While kids and netizens may use the terminology ironically, it has become quite divisive in the linguistic world. Some claim it is the “fourth person” the English language needed, while others think it’s just plain dumb. Regardless, if you ever find yourself wanting to draw the force of a metaphorical audience, feel free to ask, “Yo, chat, you seeing this?”
If you want to get this column a week before we publish it, subscribe to web_crawlr, where you’ll get the daily scoop of internet culture delivered straight to your inbox.
Want more Scrolling in the Deep? Check out our previous explainers:
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3. On the verge of crashing out?
