WME has signed Hikaru “GMHikaru” Nakamura, a professional chess player and streamer, for worldwide representation in all areas. Nakamura’s business will be expanded across digital, literary, brand partnerships, non-scripted television, licensing, and other areas.
Nakamura has a sizable following on Twitch, where he has 1.4 million followers and is the platform’s top chess streamer. He also hosted and helped create Twitch’s Chess.com Pogchamps tournament, which drew 30 million viewers.
He’s also on YouTube, where he has 1.3 million followers and has uploaded over 1,800 videos in the last two and a half years. Nakamura has won five US championships as a top-ranked speed chess player.
Nakamura will compete in the 2022 Candidates Tournament in Spain on June 16th. The winner will compete in the Chess World Championship 2023 as a Challenger against Norwegian grandmaster Magnus Carlsen.
UTA had previously represented Nakamura.