The data from creator communities is fairly consistent on this: starting a brand new channel with livestreams instead of pre-recorded videos usually slows growth rather than accelerating it. YouTube doesn't have enough signal on you yet to push a live to anyone who hasn't subscribed, and if you don't have subscribers, nobody shows up.
The creators who reported success with early livestreaming were running passive formats like ambient or 24/7 content - which is a specific play, not really applicable to most of us building expertise-based channels.
The advice that comes up most is to build to around 100 engaged subscribers through regular videos first, then introduce livestreams as a retention and community tool rather than a discovery one.
If you're in the early stages, your time is better spent on a well-titled video than a live session with three viewers and a chat that's moving slowly.
Has anyone here found a different approach that actually worked early on?