Creators
State of Play
Revised Nov 1, 2026The moment. Every platform with a TV screen wants long-form creator video. Tubi and TikTok launched the Creatorverse Incubator, with Tubi investing in 12 creators to develop 10 original series; Instagram is testing videos up to 90 minutes and landing on Apple TV, still with no ad-revenue share; Netflix hired Steve Wilson, a 15-year Apple veteran, to run podcast acquisition on top of more than 60 video podcasts; Banijay struck a partnership with Don’t Tell Comedy and its 14 million followers. Creators are meanwhile organizing like the companies buying from them: Ad Age has top creators restructuring under holding companies with their own CEOs, the SBA gave creator businesses an official classification code, and XR Extreme Reach, which handles over 80% of US commercial talent payments, launched XR Pay for Creators.
The tension. The distribution is being bid up and the business underneath is thinning. Simon Owens flags Business Insider’s report that Netflix may be cooling on video podcasts even as it hired someone to buy them. Digiday has nearly 60% of Americans getting news from social media while news creators call it the hardest category for brand deals. The Ankler’s Natalie Jarvey reports newsletter growth slowing industry-wide, with Taylor Lorenz saying she lost a third of her paid subscribers, and a recipe business with 130,000 email subscribers still lives on unpredictable Google and Facebook traffic. The Verge has Google’s AI Overviews dismantling the bargain where publishers fed the index in exchange for clicks, and Adweek has media buyers warning that Meta blocking links to TikTok cuts into creator campaigns that run across both.
Who’s moving. Tubi and TikTok, incubating 10 creator series. Instagram, at 90 minutes and on Apple TV. Netflix and Steve Wilson, on podcast acquisition. Banijay America, with Don’t Tell Comedy. The SBA, filing creators under NAICS code 5121. XR Extreme Reach, paying creators through Hollywood’s pipes. Beast Industries and Mastercard, on creator finance. Bill Owens, leaving 60 Minutes for Newpress. Meta, blocking links to TikTok. The Ankler’s Natalie Jarvey, on subscriber fatigue. The Daily Mail, running 12 to 15 generative engine optimization tests. Airwave, taking ad sales in-house.
What the desk is watching. Whether Instagram pays creators a share for the 90 minutes it is asking for, and whether Netflix’s podcast hire settles which way its podcast strategy is going.
Creators trade brand deals for cap-table stakes and sweat equity
Digiday’s Alyssa Mercante reports that the creator economy is moving past one-off brand deals into angel investing and sweat equity, with platforms like Cherub and agency JERi building infrastructure to get creators onto startup cap tables.
Zuckerberg tells Stern AI labs need no industry-wide safety coordination
The New Things’ Joanna Stern reports that Mark Zuckerberg, ahead of Meta’s Connect keynote unveiling new audio-only Ray-Ban glasses and AI features, told her each AI lab should self-police safety rather than coordinate industry-wide.
Samsung TV Plus adds creator channels from Fearne Cotton, Mark Rober
Deadline’s Jesse Whittock reports that Samsung TV Plus struck deals for new FAST channels, including Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place and a Golf Life channel in the UK with 208 Studios, plus expansion of Luke Nguyen’s World and a dubbed Mark Rober TV in Latin America.
OpenAI’s influencer blitz for ChatGPT more than doubled in two months
Business Insider’s Dan Whateley and Sydney Bradley report that OpenAI more than doubled sponsored Instagram posts promoting ChatGPT, from 61 in June to 141 in August, according to HypeAuditor data.
MIPCOM pivots from pure TV sales to creators, brands and AI
Deadline’s Stewart Clarke reports that MIPCOM boss Lucy Smith is repositioning the Cannes TV market beyond distribution deals, pushing into vertical drama, branded entertainment and AI.
Kalshi dominates NFL TikTok chatter without a league sponsorship
The Measure’s John Cassillo reports that Chartbeat data shows Kalshi was tagged in eight of the top ten most-seen NFL TikTok videos since kickoff.
Brands push creators to start holiday content in July, Modern Retail finds
Modern Retail’s Gabriela Barkho reports that brands like Starbucks and Mellow Sleep are now recruiting creators as early as July for holiday campaigns, pushed by earlier sales events like Prime Big Deals Day, with concepts due by September even for Q4 launches.
Ankler: AI search traffic isn’t rescuing publisher referrals after all
The Ankler’s Sean McNulty notes an Axios study found AI chatbots aren’t sending meaningful click-through traffic to news sites, undercutting the industry narrative that AI search would replace lost Google referrals with a new distribution channel.
Jake Paul’s Anti Fund tops $180 million, with checks up to $30 million
The Ankler’s Natalie Jarvey reports that Jake Paul’s venture firm Anti Fund, co-founded with Geoff Woo in 2021, now manages more than $180 million and holds stakes in OpenAI, Anduril, The Boring Company and Polymarket, among more than three dozen other companies.
OnlyFans launches podcast hub, joining Patreon and Substack in creator audio
OnlyFans has launched a community page for podcasts, giving creators like Harry Jowsey and Jiaoying Summers dedicated pages for video episodes, most available free without a subscription. New comedy and sports community pages are also coming.
T-Series holds YouTube’s global viewership crown for a third straight week
T-Series logged 985.1 million weekly views to stay atop Tubefilter’s Global Top 50, on pace for a month-long reign, while kids’ content fills six of the next seven spots and 37 of the top 50 channels lean on YouTube Shorts.
Fashion and beauty creators shouldn’t be typecast
Modern Retail’s Gabriela Barkho reports that at Glossy Pop NYC, veteran creators and athletes described shifting from single-lane influencers into strategic brand partners with input on product and creative.
Cream Skim: Channel 4 makes Nivea-backed branded format for YouTube, not TV
C21Media’s Miquita Oliver reports that Channel 4 has partnered with Nivea’s Black & White deodorant on a branded entertainment format built for its YouTube channel rather than linear TV.
Women athletes lean on creator playbook to close the pay gap
Digiday’s Alyssa Mercante reports that Women’s sports revenue is climbing but individual athlete pay lags, so athletes are building creator businesses to close the gap.
Hey Hoser! YouTube unveils nine-show Canadian creator slate at TIFF
Tubefilter’s Sam Gutelle reports that YouTube announced nine original programs from Canadian creators at a TIFF-adjacent event, spanning sports, food, reality and scripted comedy. Kareem Rahma will also bring Subway Takes north of the border with Subway Takes Toronto, set to premiere in 2027.
Chris Paul Dunks with Data, launches NBA analysis series backed by Genius Sports data
Chris Paul’s Ohh Dip!!! Entertainment, with Connor Schell’s Words + Pictures, will produce a 30-to-45 minute digitally native series using Genius Sports’ official NBA data and visualization tech, distributed mainly through Paul’s social channels.
Creators start pitching AEO metrics, not just view counts
Digiday reports that creator pitches are shifting toward proving citation in AI-generated answers, not just audience reach.
NPR signs Newton and Roose for new AI video podcast
Inside Radio reports that NPR is launching “Machine Gods,” a twice-weekly video podcast on AI hosted by Casey Newton and Kevin Roose, debuting in October.
IAB study: young shoppers want AI to cite creators, but it rarely sways purchases
IAB’s Creator Signal survey of 2,200 AI shoppers found 65% of Gen Z and millennials prefer chatbot recommendations that cite creators, while just 29% said creator citations actually increased their likelihood to buy.
Spotify triples podcast partner program reach to 35 countries
TechCrunch’s Ivan Mehta reports that Spotify is expanding its ad and Premium revenue-sharing program for podcasters beyond the U.S., Europe and Australia into 35 total regions, including Brazil, Mexico, Spain and Italy. Podcasters keep sponsorship revenue and can distribute shows elsewhere.
Libsyn signs All Chewed Up network for hosting and ad sales
Libsyn struck a hosting and advertising partnership with All Chewed Up, the lifestyle network from Carla Hall, Clinton Kelly, and Michael Symon built around shows like Chewed Up and Why’d They Wear That?!?.
Design Anthology built a luxury media brand by refusing to scale
Simon Owens’s Media Newsletter reports that Design Anthology, founded in 2014 to cover Asia-Pacific design, has grown into print, digital subscriptions, advertising, events, and a YouTube channel with more than half a million subscribers.
Disney signs development deal with YouTube kids giant Like Nastya
Deadline’s Denise Petski reports that Disney inked a content and development pact with Like Nastya, its first such deal with a major kids creator, covering an animated preschool series for Disney Jr. and Disney+ plus new live-action content for kids, tweens and teens.
IAB’s Creator Fronts exposes how fractured creator ad budgets remain
Next in Media’s Mike Shields reports that at the IAB’s inaugural Creator Fronts, the trade group forecast creator ad spending will eclipse $44 billion this year and pushed for standardized ways to find, contract and measure creators.
Perplexity builds out creator-marketing role with multi-million budget
Digiday’s Krystal Scanlon and Seb Joseph report that Perplexity quietly filled a creator-marketing lead role paying $175,000 to $225,000, overseeing campaigns past 100 creators and reviewing “builds” made with Perplexity Computer for authenticity.