From what I've heard in the Patreon updates from several YouTubers I watch, it's that YouTube ad revenue has dropped precipitously in the past year. Like, it's

From what I've heard in the Patreon updates from several YouTubers I watch, it's that YouTube ad revenue has dropped precipitously in the past year. Like, it's down to 20% of the peak 2020/2021 income. Now everyone is relying on diversified income like merch/brand deals and other projects or just living off of Patreon support. If you've already made lots of money so that you can retire, it seems obvious that just quitting is better than burning yourself out further for pennies. The same thing is happening in podcasting - podcast advertising has almost completely dried up.