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The surface level read on the appeal of VTubers tends to be a somewhat dry analysis of the convergence of Japanese cultural trends. The idea of and "idol" and the idealized "anime girl" are strongly aligned, and add to that an increased capacity for fan interaction and its no wonder the trend took off. But obviously that only explains their popularity in Japan, so what about western audiences? Well, I think that the unique circumstances of the early VTuber scene lead to a culture particularly conducive to attracting a particular western audience. The language barrier meant there was initially very little moderation, and the anonymity provided by an avatar meant that VTubers were largely immune to social backlash. Couple that with the fact that most VTubers rose extremely quickly, and didn't yet have the experience to cultivate a particular image over such long streams, nor to consistently deliver cookie-cutter "quality content" and what we got was a kind of youtuber much more raw than we were familiar with. More personality focused, edgier, lower "quality" but more creative and funny content. What we got was old Youtube. Youtube before moderation, social media mobs, and "influencers" cultivating a perfect image lead it to become dull and stale. Due to most VTubers being supported by their fans, Youtube before it got corrupted by the needs of advertisers to be "safe" and constantly shill things. Youtube before it became a mass production pipeline of crap to feed to the masses, when people were still experimenting with what the medium had to offer. I think that VTubers appeal to the west in part because these qualities are inherently desirable, and in part because we remember what we once had. The popularity of VTubers is the echo of a dead Youtube, and I think it's a beautiful thing.
