Abstract
Many companies have been trying to take advantage of the entertainment boom on the internet and are searching for the best ways to make money from content creators. Among these are Virtual YouTubers, who have been growing in English-speaking spaces. This paper compares their popularity and influence in Portugal and the USA, while reflecting on their impact on viewers. To accomplish this, we created a survey, which obtained 102 answers, 46 being from Portuguese people and 44 being from U.S. citizens. We noted that only 37% of Portuguese people had heard of VTubers before and only 13% watch them on a weekly basis. On the other hand, every respondent from the USA was familiar with VTubers, with 86.4% watching them regularly. When asked about how VTubers affected the respondents’ personal lives, some stated that it was merely a form of entertainment, however, many U.S. citizens reported that they watch VTubers to fulfill their need for social interaction or cope with loneliness. Thus, it is evident that these creators are much more popular in the USA. Lastly, we conclude that VTubers can have a positive impact on people's lives, but they also serve as an unhealthy escape from reality at times. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024.

Abstract
Nowadays, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are faced with the crucial challenge of establishing and supervising strategies and policies that are essential for decisions in various areas and at various levels. Within this context, the importance of Business Intelligence (BI) has increased significantly, emerging as an essential tool for analysing and managing data. This BI capability enables HEIs to make more informed choices in line with their global strategies. This research focuses on developing a roadmap for the effective implementation of BI systems in HEIs. Using a Design Science Research (DSR) methodology, this work proposes a structured and adaptable roadmap that covers the key factors from the design to the implementation of BI systems in HEIs. This roadmap includes not only a reference architecture for BI systems but also a set of dashboards. The roadmap was validated through a case study at the University of Tras-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), involving exploratory analysis and feedback from experts. This study stands out for its practical and theoretical approach, offering a strategic and practical guide for the adoption of BI systems in HEIs, thus responding to a need identified in the academic literature.