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- Influence Weekly #409 - College Dropout Builds Clipping Agency Driving Billions Of Views For Brands, Musicians
Influence Weekly #409 - College Dropout Builds Clipping Agency Driving Billions Of Views For Brands, Musicians
DoorDash Launches Creator Program For Short-Form Videos
Nii Ahene
October 03, 2025
Spotlight Stories
College Dropout Builds Clipping Agency Driving Billions Of Views For Brands, Musicians
DoorDash Launches Creator Program For Short-Form Videos
Sephora Strategies: With Its New Storefront Platform, Sephora Comes For A Piece Of The Creator Economy
How TikTok Sorority Rush Videos Create Profitable Social Media Influencers
Great Reads
University of Kansas freshman Evan Stanfield founded Clipping Culture in February 2025 after dropping out of college with $20. The agency connects brands with over 12,000 creators who produce short-form content using performance-based pricing as low as 10 cents per thousand views, compared to $10-25 for traditional Meta or Google advertising.
The company generated over 190 million views for artist bbno$ with a $9,000 budget and claims to have produced more than one billion total views across campaigns. Clients include Yung Gravy, Ski Mask the Slump God, the Rolling Stones, and Logan and Jake Paul's HBO Max show. Minimum campaign budgets start at $3,000.
Creators in the network earn between $10,000-20,000 monthly, with top performers making over $100,000. The agency caps payments at $100-200 per video regardless of viral performance. Stanfield plans to expand into cryptocurrency and e-commerce sectors while developing specialized divisions like Crypto Clippers and CEO Clippers targeting specific market segments.
ByteDance will retain approximately 50% of TikTok's U.S. profits despite selling majority ownership to American investors under President Trump's negotiated deal, according to sources familiar with the arrangement. The Beijing-based company structured this through dual revenue streams: licensing fees estimated at 20% of incremental revenue generated by its algorithm technology, and profit sharing from its remaining equity stake.
ByteDance will hold up to 20% equity in the U.S. entity while collecting substantial algorithm licensing fees. At $20 billion in revenue, ByteDance could receive up to $4 billion in licensing fees alone. The U.S. consortium, including Oracle Corp., Silver Lake Management, and Abu Dhabi-based MGX, will control roughly 80% ownership.
Vice President JD Vance cited a $14 billion price tag for the U.S. business, substantially below previous analyst projections of $35-40 billion. House China committee chair John Moolenaar expressed concerns about continuing algorithm licensing from ByteDance, noting the law prohibits cooperation on recommendation algorithms between ByteDance and any TikTok successor.
Twitch launched its "Monetization for All" initiative in July 2025, eliminating traditional barriers that previously restricted revenue tools to established creators. The program extends subscription services, virtual currency, and community features to streamers from their first broadcast, targeting the platform's 21 million active streamers including 9.5 million who joined in 2024.
The Amazon-owned platform lowered Affiliate status requirements from 50 to 25 followers and reduced streaming hour thresholds from 8 to 4 hours. Chief Product Officer Mike Minton said the changes provide earlier financial validation for creators building audiences. Twitch reported paying over $1 billion to streamers in 2024 across its ecosystem of 105 million monthly visitors.
Gift subscriptions generated more than $550 million in revenue in 2024, representing what Minton called the platform's most successful feature. The rollout began in the United States with plans for global expansion throughout the year. Twitch aims to shift from perceived gaming niche to mainstream platform supporting content in 35 languages.
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Campaign Insights
DoorDash launched a creator program that compensates users for posting short-form videos of restaurant meals on its app. The program accepts applications from creators in 20 U.S. cities including Atlanta, Austin, Miami, and San Francisco, with expansion planned by year-end. DoorDash did not disclose specific monetization details for qualifying creators.
The food delivery company also rolled out "Going Out," allowing DashPass members to earn in-store rewards when dining at restaurants. During testing, customers received an average of $9 in value per order. The feature is available at thousands of restaurants across select U.S. and Australian markets.
The Influencer Marketing Factory released a report tracking the creator economy's expansion into live events. StubHub data showed influencers, podcasters, and authors sold 500% more event tickets in 2025 compared to 2024, with creator events priced 40% lower than traditional entertainment. The EventTrack 2025 Report found 74% of Fortune 1000 marketers planned to increase event budgets this year.
A survey of 1,000 U.S. respondents revealed 41% of social media users attended at least one in-person influencer event in the past year. Among non-attendees, 34% expressed interest in future events. Most consumers considered $10-50 appropriate pricing for workshops and meet-and-greets.
Notable creator events included Salish Matter's skincare launch at American Dream Mall, which drew 87,000 fans despite a 10,000-person capacity. The Sidemen's charity soccer match filled Wembley Stadium with 90,000 attendees while drawing 14 million YouTube viewers. Jake Paul scheduled a boxing match at Atlanta's State Farm Arena, streaming on Netflix. Forbes data cited in the report indicated 95% of Gen Z and Millennials wanted to transform online interactions into real-world experiences.
Uganda launched an influencer-driven tourism campaign through its diplomatic missions abroad in September 2025, partnering with content creators from the United States, South Africa, France, and Spain. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordinated the initiative with the Uganda Tourism Board and Uganda's Embassy in France.
The campaign brought eight international influencers to Uganda for a five-day familiarization trip, where they experienced gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, wildlife safaris in Queen Elizabeth National Park, and the Rwenzori Marathon. Participants created social media content showcasing these attractions.
TANKE, the contracted media agency, executed the campaign designed to increase awareness of Uganda in Europe, which officials identified as a key tourism market. Ambassador Doreen Ruth Amule in Paris stated the initiative aimed to position Uganda among the world's top tourism destinations.
The campaign represents Uganda's diplomatic missions' pivot toward commercial and economic diplomacy, according to Ambassador Paul Amoru in Pretoria.
Sephora launched My Sephora Storefront in September, partnering with technology platform Motom to allow creators to curate product selections and earn 15% commission on purchases. The program targets creators with at least 3,000 followers on YouTube, TikTok, or Instagram, offering a 15-day attribution window starting October 6.
The platform competes with TikTok Shop and Amazon's expanding beauty offerings. Charlotte Tilbury joined Amazon's Premium Beauty store in September, while Phlur generated $1.2 million in TikTok Shop sales in May. TikTok announced universal links in July, allowing creators to earn commission on TikTok Shop links posted across platforms.
Sephora's commission rates trail competitors like Shopmy, which offers up to 30% commission. According to The Digital Department's 2025 Creator Report, 89% of creators monetize through brand partnerships compared to 58% using affiliate links. LTK's 2025 report found 73% of Gen Z and 57% of millennials rely on creators for purchase decisions.
NILENT, an edtech company focused on Name, Image, and Likeness education for college athletes, launched its gamified learning platform in late 2021. Co-founded by Steven Simmons and Peter Hassen, the platform delivers 3-5 minute video modules on financial literacy, mental health, and brand building taught by professional athletes.
The platform operates on a token-based reward system where athletes earn redeemable points for completing educational modules and passing quizzes. Rewards include gift cards to retailers like Dick's Sporting Goods and Amazon, plus airline miles. Athletes must create social media content featuring their rewards and thanking sponsoring brands.
NILENT redesigned its approach after discovering that traditional 10-15 minute educational formats failed to engage college athletes. The company adopted what it calls a "Masterclass meets TikTok" model with Netflix-style interface and short-form content optimized for Gen Z attention spans.
The platform helps schools track compliance with state financial literacy requirements, such as New York's five-hour mandate for student-athletes before competition.
University students leveraged the viral "RushTok" sorority recruitment phenomenon into monetized content partnerships during the 2025 rush season. University of Alabama student Kylan Darnell, who gained millions of TikTok views documenting sorority rush, secured brand partnerships with companies including H&M. The beverage brand Poppi partnered with an entire University of Austin sorority last year.
Brand collaboration rates for social media creators range from $100 to $200 for nano-influencers with under 10,000 followers, $200 to $1,000 for micro-influencers with 10,000 to 100,000 followers, and over $5,000 for accounts exceeding 500,000 followers, according to industry reports. Nearly 21% of marketers spend between $10,000 and $50,000 on influencer campaigns, while half keep costs under $10,000.
Parents invested up to $10,000 in rush preparation including wardrobes and professional coaching. Darnell took a mental health break from social media in August, highlighting stress associated with the monetized rush process.
Podcast networks positioned hosts as influencers at the Interactive Advertising Bureau upfront, as advertising revenue reached $2.4 billion in 2024 and is projected to cross $3 billion this year. The IAB reported podcasting returned as the top growth channel in digital media after slowing in 2023.
iHeart Digital Audio Group CEO Conal Byrne told advertisers that podcasting represents a "totally new influencer platform" featuring psychologists, historians, researchers, comedians, and athletes. The company highlighted talent including Jay Shetty and shows from the NFL's official podcast network.
The Daily Wire, a conservative media company founded by Ben Shapiro, presented at the upfront for the first time. The company reported over 1 million paying subscribers and more than 50 million monthly podcast downloads. New advertisers in the past year included Paramount, Meta, Oracle, and Amazon.
YouTube remains the most popular podcasting platform, helping drive advertising revenue through video content. Industry executives described podcasting as "audio-first" but "eyes-optional" as video integration continues expanding across the medium.
YouTube captured 78% of Generation Alpha viewers in September 2025, according to research from Precise TV, which surveyed 2,000 U.S. children and their parents. Precise TV is a contextual intelligence platform company that helps brands deliver video campaigns to young audiences and families. Usage remained consistent across age groups: 74% for children aged 2-5, 82% for those aged 6-9, and 78% for those aged 10-12.
YouTube Shorts reached 53% of children, while video-on-demand services and mobile games captured 72% and 68% respectively. Children preferred mobile devices for YouTube viewing, with 66% using phones and 60% using tablets, though 62% of the youngest cohort watched on TV screens.
Co-viewing behavior presented advertising opportunities, with 49% of children watching YouTube with parents and 77% of parents reporting influence from their children during shared viewing. The research showed 47% of parents saw their last children's purchase advertised on YouTube, while 59% of children requested products after seeing YouTube advertisements.
YouTube and Delta Air Lines announced a multi-year partnership in September 2025 that integrates YouTube content into Delta's seatback entertainment systems. The collaboration provides passengers with curated content from YouTube creators and podcasts, addressing customer demand as YouTube was the top platform passengers streamed via in-flight Wi-Fi.
Beginning in October 2025, eligible Delta SkyMiles members received two-week free trials of YouTube Premium, the platform's ad-free subscription service. The partnership includes curated YouTube Music playlists during boarding, developed with Delta flight attendants.
The YouTube integration supports Delta's broader technology upgrades announced at CES 2025. Delta partnered with Thales Avionics to introduce next-generation hardware featuring 4K HDR QLED displays and increased storage capacity starting in 2026. The centenary-celebrating airline positioned the collaboration as delivering premium content discovery opportunities for passengers, with periodically updated featured content suited for in-flight viewing while maintaining existing YouTube access through personal devices via Delta's Wi-Fi services.
Gen Z discovers TV and movies through social media clips, not traditional streaming, forcing Hollywood to rethink its marketing strategy. Twenty-two-year-old Max Peterson runs Clip, a Discord-based operation connecting brands with sixteen thousand teenage "clippers" who create bite-sized content from full episodes and films.
Since January, Peterson has distributed over five hundred thousand dollars to clippers who've generated billions of views across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Research shows seventy-one percent of Gen Z finds content recommendations through short-form video. Major studios and streamers now pay clipping services to flood social feeds with their content, though many remain uneasy about manufacturing virality.
The practice raises questions about intellectual property value when shows get chopped into viral snippets. One film marketing executive admits there's no organic social reach anymore, as clipping becomes essential for reaching younger audiences.
The Big 3 Podcast - October Recap Podcast Now Out!
Join us for The Big 3 by Influence Weekly, where hosts Ceci Carloni and Nii Ahene deliver expert commentary on the creator economy's most impactful business developments. Each month, they offer insider perspectives on industry-shifting stories, unpacking what these changes mean for brands and marketing professionals in the creator economy
Interesting People
YouTube streamer iShowSpeed concluded his 35-day "Speed Does America Tour" on September 30 in Hollywood, drawing hundreds of fans who followed him around Hollywood Boulevard. The 20-year-old content creator, whose real name is Darren Watkins Jr., maintained a continuous livestream format throughout the tour that began August 28.
During his Los Angeles visit, Speed's livestream peaked at more than 63,000 concurrent viewers as he visited Disneyland, Venice Beach, and UCLA campus. Social media posts showed him posing with what appeared to be his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, though official records confirm he was not among the 2025 inductees.
The tour faced operational challenges, including a September 14 incident at Houston's Galleria mall where security escorted Speed from the premises, resulting in a location ban. That Houston livestream generated more than 2.1 million views. Speed has built a digital presence with more than 44 million YouTube subscribers, more than 41 million TikTok followers, and nearly 5.7 billion channel views.
Hypetap, a Melbourne-based influencer marketing agency founded in 2013, appointed two senior executives to newly-created roles in its London office. Chris Davis joined as Managing Director while Albertine Brandon took the Account Director position.
Davis brought over 15 years of media and marketing experience from previous roles at GloMotion Studios, Brainlabs, Gleam Futures, and MailOnline. Brandon arrived with nearly a decade of influencer marketing expertise from Dentsu Creative and Influencer. She oversees client relationships with Lee Kum Kee, Depop, and TripAdvisor.
The appointments supported Hypetap's expansion in Europe, Middle East, and Africa markets. The agency counts Coca-Cola, Kraft Heinz, Colgate-Palmolive, and Asahi among its global clients. Hypetap established its UK presence in 2024 and launched Hypetap Intelligence platform, which analyzes over 10 billion data points for audience insights and campaign measurement. The company opened a new Sydney office in August under Managing Partner Shane Holmes.
Castmagic acquired Flowsend to expand its AI-powered content creation platform, marking the content operating system company's first acquisition. Flowsend specializes in transforming audio and video into written content while maintaining brand voice consistency.
The deal combines Castmagic's video creation tools and team collaboration features with Flowsend's transcription technology and brand voice capabilities. Flowsend customers gained access to Castmagic's integration with over 100 applications, while Castmagic enhanced its transcription accuracy.
The acquisition targets the growing AI adoption in content creation. Industry research from Wondercraft showed over 80% of content creators now use AI tools in their workflow, with nearly 40% using AI throughout their entire creation process. Video dominates as the primary content format, with 52.5% of creators focusing on it.
Marketing and advertising professionals exhibited particularly high engagement, with 85% currently using AI tools and more than 40% incorporating them into their workflows. The deal positions Castmagic to serve creators and enterprises seeking to scale content production.
Terry Lashley, a former military logistics specialist, transitioned from the Army to become a full-time content creator in 2020 after starting his social media journey in 2016. The single father creates parenting content focused on his experiences raising three daughters, building audiences across TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.
Lashley made the career shift when revenue streams became viable around 2020, moving from treating content creation as a hobby to a full-time business. He partnered with talent management company Illuminate Social, working with managers Taylor and Diamond to handle business operations while he focuses on content creation and fatherhood.
His content strategy shifted from comedy skits to authentic parenting advice after experiencing what he described as an internal conflict about not showing his genuine self. Lashley monetizes through platform partnerships starting with YouTube, expanding to brand collaborations across multiple social media channels. He approaches each platform differently, using TikTok for conversational content, Instagram for curated posts, and YouTube for long-form videos.
Twitch streamer Kai Cenat became the first creator to reach one million subscribers on the platform on September 28, achieving the milestone 27 days into his month-long "Mafiathon 3" subathon event that began September 1. Twitch acknowledged the record on social media.
The 23-year-old streamer hosted celebrities during the event including Kim Kardashian, Ray J, and Snoop Dogg, who contributed over 46,000 gifted subscriptions. Cenat announced the subathon with a trailer featuring actor Michael B. Jordan, calling it the final installment in his trilogy of record-breaking streaming events.
The achievement occurred as Twitch faces competitive pressure, maintaining 54.2% market share but recording its lowest quarterly viewership since 2020 according to Stream Hatchet's Q2 2025 report. Cenat expanded his revenue streams through a Fortnite Icon Series skin launched in September via collaboration with Mercedes-AMG. His previous "Mafiathon 2" generated approximately $3.6 million in subscription revenue alone, with total earnings potentially exceeding $20 million including sponsorships.
Former OnlyFans CEO Amrapali Gan raised $2.7 million for Vylit, a new creator platform set to launch in December 2025. Windmill Chain Fund anchored the funding round, with angel investors including Manifest Financial and Amaze CEO Aaron Day.
Vylit will allow topless content but not the explicit material permitted on OnlyFans, positioning itself between mainstream platforms and adult content sites. The platform incorporates AI image generation technology, enabling creators to generate and sell AI-created images of themselves to followers. Gan co-founded Vylit with Kailey Magder, with approximately six employees planned.
The platform targets creators without large existing followings and aims to address discoverability challenges Gan identified during her OnlyFans tenure. Vylit enters a competitive market where OnlyFans reported $7.22 billion in gross subscriber payments for fiscal 2024, maintaining 4.63 million creator accounts. The company also faces competition from Subs.com, launched by OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely in May 2025.
Travel YouTuber Harry Jackson accidentally documented Nepal's government collapse while riding his motorcycle from Thailand to the UK. Jackson arrived in Kathmandu on September 8 unaware of ongoing protests, when nearly two dozen people were killed by authorities that day.
Jackson filmed protesters storming parliament grounds and setting fire to the building on September 9. His video received over 30 million views on YouTube alone, becoming a primary international source covering the demonstrations. The protests resulted in over 70 deaths and 21,000 injuries across two days.
The youth-led demonstrations successfully forced Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to resign after he had retaken office the previous summer. Nepal's president dissolved the government and scheduled new elections for March. Former chief justice Sushila Karki was named interim prime minister.
The protests began after Nepal's government banned 26 social media platforms on September 4, following months of anger over political corruption. Jackson operates the @wehatethecold channel across YouTube and Instagram, documenting his motorcycle journey for his travel vlog audience.
Industry Roundtable
YouTube has unveiled dynamic ad insertion for long-form videos, transforming how creators and brands approach sponsorships on the platform. This new feature will enable creators to swap, remove, or replace sponsor segments after videos are published, effectively turning their content libraries into a renewable source of advertising inventory.
According to an official blog, the platform is shifting from permanent "burned-in" sponsorships to swappable slots that creators can manage over time. YouTube's September 16 announcement revealed that this change will enable creators to "remove the sponsorship when the deal is complete, resell the slot to another brand or eventually sell the same slot to multiple brands in different markets – transforming your videos into living assets."
As part of this significant shift in creator monetization, we sought the insights of 21 industry experts on the potential impact of this feature on the creator economy. Each leader addressed a critical question: "How do you think this new feature will impact partnership deals for brands and creators?"
Industry News
Meta launched "Vibes," a dedicated feed for AI-generated videos within its Meta AI app and meta.ai platform on September 29. The feed allows users to browse, create, and share short-form AI videos with personalization features that adapt to user preferences over time.
Users can generate videos from scratch, modify existing content, or remix discovered videos while incorporating new visuals, adding music layers, and adjusting visual styles. Content created on Vibes can be shared across Meta's ecosystem, including Instagram and Facebook Stories and Reels.
Meta partnered with AI image generators Midjourney and Black Forest Labs for the initial Vibes release while continuing to develop its own AI models, according to Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang. The launch follows Meta's June restructuring of its AI operations into "Meta Superintelligence Labs" with four specialized groups focusing on foundation models, research, product integration, and infrastructure.
The platform represents Meta's broader strategic investment in artificial intelligence capabilities for content creators.
Former executives from Google, YouTube, and BBC launched HERA, the UK's first female-focused video podcast network, in October 2025. The company completed its initial seed funding round under the UK's Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme and opened a second seed stage under the Enterprise Investment Scheme as operations began.
HERA operates through three revenue streams: original show production, brand partnerships, and a membership program called HERA Club that provides training and mentorship for female and non-binary podcast hosts. The founders cited market gender imbalance, noting 80% of top UK Spotify podcasts were hosted solely by men while only 20% featured female hosts.
Edison Research reported 51% of UK adults now consume podcasts monthly, up from 41% in 2021, representing approximately 25 million people. The global podcast industry generated $7.3 billion in revenue last year. HERA develops proprietary AI tools to support creators and streamline workflows, targeting women who are expected to control 75% of discretionary spending by 2030.
Linqia, an influencer marketing company, launched a creator-led retail media service that integrates influencer content directly into retail advertising networks. The platform targets retail environments including Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Kroger as an alternative to traditional brand advertisements.
The launch followed market research showing 71% of consumers purchased products within days of seeing creator content on Meta platforms. A previous Linqia campaign with Albertsons Media Collective generated engagement rates four times higher on Facebook and triple on Instagram compared to standard campaigns.
The service operates through three components: creator content development using Linqia's influencer network, direct integration into retail ad ecosystems through partnerships, and closed-loop measurement providing attribution and sales data. Linqia reported 53% campaign volume growth in Q1 2025 compared to the previous year, with partner spending increasing 40% year-over-year. The company previously launched Creator Ads and IRL offerings in April 2025.
TikTok and the Southbank Centre launched Crescendo, an accelerator program for UK-based classical music content creators on TikTok in October 2025. Applications remained open through October 2025 for ten spots in the inaugural cohort, with a selection panel including violinist Esther Abrami and politician Baroness Thangam Debbonaire.
The program emerged amid growing classical music engagement on TikTok, with the #ClassicalMusic hashtag reaching nearly one million posts, representing a 60% increase over the past 12 months. Selected creators receive free access to Southbank Centre performances and rehearsals, exclusive behind-the-scenes content opportunities with resident artists, and mentorship from TikTok's team.
The partnership marks the first collaboration between the UK's largest arts center and TikTok specifically targeting classical music creators. Creators will gain long-term involvement through the Southbank Centre's Ambassador Scheme and collaboration opportunities with both organizations' digital teams. A celebratory event for successful applicants was scheduled for January 2026.
Twin Galaxies formed its Creator Competition Committee on October 1, partnering eight gaming creators with over 20 million collective fans. The competitive gaming platform, operating since 1981 as a record-keeping organization, recruited Karl Jobst, Wirtual, Muselk, SmallAnt, RoyalPear, Jessetc, Keeoh, and Enyu to design competitions and advise on platform development.
Logitech G sponsored Wirtual's Trackmania precision challenge that launched October 1. Karl Jobst hosted a Displate-sponsored DOOM competition. Twin Galaxies reported that its previous Logitech AIM & RUN challenge generated 3.3 million engagements and over 1 million hours of brand exposure, with 96% participant retention interest.
The platform uses proprietary TGSAP technology combining peer review with transparent record-keeping. Twin Galaxies plans to expand the committee with additional creators to increase gaming community representation. CEO Jace Hall said the initiative extends the company's infrastructure to new audiences while maintaining established adjudication standards.
Manifest Financial acquired Nucreator, an AI-powered brand partnership platform, to expand its creator financial services ecosystem. The deal integrates Nucreator's partnership discovery technology with Manifest's existing banking and financial management services for content creators.
Nucreator uses intent-based signaling to identify brands actively spending with similar creators and provides verified contacts of decision-makers. The system automates personalized outreach and shifts creators from passive recipients to active deal seekers. Ben Marks, Nucreator's founder, joined Manifest Financial as Chief Revenue Officer.
The combined technology will roll out to users over the coming months. This follows Manifest Financial's business banking platform launch in April. The acquisition represents Manifest's strategy to build comprehensive creator economy infrastructure, combining fintech and banking services with monetization tools.
Manifest Financial was founded by Michael Cavallaro and Manny Alvarez. The company positioned brand partnerships as the largest revenue opportunity for creators while noting the process remained time-consuming and inefficient.
Kick partnered with creator network OTK and the Texas Ranchers Major League Pickleball team to host the "OTK Creator Smash Pickleball Invitational" on October 11 at Austin Pickle Ranch in Austin, Texas. The event featured pickleball professionals Felicity Di Laura and Wyatt Stone competing alongside creators including Asmongold, EsfandTV, and Sodapoppin.
The tournament represented Kick's strategy to diversify beyond gaming content, which comprises the majority of its viewership. The livestreaming platform surpassed 1 billion hours watched in Q2 2025, marking a 28.1% increase from the previous quarter and capturing 3.74% of the overall livestreaming market.
KICK Studios co-produced the event with talent management agency Elevate and OTK. The livestream aired at 11 a.m. Central on OTK's Kick channel and included team reveals, bracket overviews, competition rounds, off-court challenges, player interviews, and concluded with a trophy ceremony and MVP Award announcement.
The Business of Creativity, a Whalar Group company, launched "Beyond Your Limits," a seven-week online course for athletes to develop personal brands beyond their playing careers. The program partnered with Greg Hoffman, Nike's former Chief Marketing Officer who spent 27 years at the company.
The self-paced course features video content from Hoffman, downloadable exercises, and covers brand building, storytelling, identity creation, team assembly, and monetization strategies. Enrollment opened at beyondyourlimitscourse.com for individual athletes, college teams, and professional clubs worldwide.
The launch follows Whalar Group's $20 million acquisition of The Business of Creativity in May 2025. The Business of Creativity was founded in 2022 by advertising executive Sir John Hegarty, Ben Lee, and Immy Groome, offering digital courses, executive consulting, and global events focused on creativity in business performance.
Whalar Group operates six divisions across the creator economy and reports distributing over $300 million to content creators since 2016. The New York-based firm raised capital at a $400 million valuation from investors including Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, producer Neal H. Moritz, and Shopify.
TikTok launched Travel Ads in September 2025, a catalog-based advertising format that uses artificial intelligence to connect travel brands with users ready to book trips. The system operates through TikTok's Smart+ platform and employs a custom travel intent model to identify in-market audiences, then matches them with flights, hotels, and destinations.
The platform offers three creative formats. Single Video pairs hero videos with up to 10 personalized travel cards that appear two seconds after play begins. Catalog Video combines catalog content with auto-generated travel cards. Catalog Carousel presents scrollable product images with clickable tags.
Early results showed performance improvements across travel brands. Accor reported 9% higher return on ad spend and 54% lower cost per click. Melia saw return on ad spend increases of 156% in Spain, 178% in the U.S., and 291% in the U.K. Etihad recorded 17% more flight bookings and $232 higher return on ad spend per booking. Expedia Group deployed the format across its Expedia, Vrbo, and Hotels.com brands. The launch follows TikTok's August partnership with Booking.com for direct hotel bookings.
Patreon launched a search for a Senior Strategic Partner Manager to oversee its highest-earning creators as the platform reached $10 billion in creator payments since its 2013 founding. The position offers $144,000-$216,000 plus equity and requires seven years of customer success experience and four years in the creator economy.
The role will manage top-earning creators, lead growth strategy sessions, and analyze performance data. The manager will report to the Head of Top Creator Management and work hybrid schedules in New York, San Francisco, or Los Angeles.
Patreon now supports 25 million paid memberships and 300,000 creators, generating over $2 billion annually. The platform added 100 million free memberships and expanded beyond payments with features including community chats and live video testing.
CFO Carlos Cabrera stated the company has "barely scratched the surface" with market penetration below 0.5% of total creators. Podcast creators received $472 million in 2023, while users watched 80 million hours of video content last year.
The creator economy scheduled nine industry conferences across November 2025, spanning Europe, North America, Asia, and South America. FollowMe Paris expected 3,500 participants and 100 speakers from Warner Bros, Meta, TikTok, and Booking.com for its European influencer marketing trade show on November 3-4.
Web Summit in Lisbon drew technology leaders November 10-13, featuring creator economy content from Meta, Picsart, and Replit executives. Argentina hosted its first dedicated creator conference, Tent Creator Summit, expecting 6,000 industry professionals and 3,000 creators on November 13.
The Interactive Advertising Bureau offered virtual creator economy training on November 11, priced at $299 for members, noting projected creator revenue of $17.76 billion in 2025. Other events included W.I.F.I Conference focusing on women influencers in Tokyo, RESONATE podcast festival in Richmond, and Unity's developer conference in Barcelona.
The Digital Marketing World Forum in Amsterdam attracted over 2,000 attendees with dedicated influencer marketing tracks, while Jordan's World Social Media Forum brought together 500 media professionals. Individual ticket prices ranged from $199 for virtual events to $599 for developer conferences.
Registration Required
ByteDance hired Jorge Reyes and three other content curators in Mexico City in late 2018 to introduce TikTok to Latin America and Spain. Operating from a WeWork office, the team shaped TikTok's For You algorithm by selecting which videos to promote or remove, teaching the system what content would resonate with Spanish-speaking users.
The curators used a tool called "heating" to override normal recommendations and guarantee videos received specific view counts ranging from 5,000 to 5 million. This manual intervention helped convert YouTube creators and other influencers by manufacturing instant engagement on their first TikTok posts. When Jorge joined, only 12 percent of videos were labeled as "diverse" beyond dancing and lip-syncing content.
ByteDance spent nearly $1 billion marketing TikTok and other apps in the first year, approximately $3 million daily. The company launched TikTok Rewards in 2019, paying users cash for referrals, which generated both authentic and fraudulent downloads through click-farming operations. By 2019, TikTok became among the world's most downloaded apps, with the algorithm learning from millions of new users' viewing behaviors rather than relying primarily on manual curation by teams like Jorge's.
Instagram head Adam Mosseri warns that AI-generated content will flood the platform whether Meta wants it or not, presenting challenges the company isn't prepared to handle. Speaking at Meta's Connect conference, Mosseri acknowledged Instagram has reached three billion users but can't currently track how much AI content users see. The platform's detection models can't keep pace with rapidly evolving AI technology from competitors like OpenAI and Google. Meta relies on self-labeling, though many users don't comply.
While CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls AI content "very exciting" for shareholders, Mosseri expressed concern about deepfakes and misinformation. The most likely scenario involves AI-enhanced rather than fully generated content, making authenticity verification difficult. Meta has labeling policies for its own AI tools but no industry-wide standards exist. For creator economy professionals, this signals a fundamental shift in content creation and authenticity verification, potentially disrupting traditional influencer models as AI-generated content becomes indistinguishable from human-made work.
Clyx, a friendship-focused social app, raised $14 million in Series A funding led by Blitzscaling Ventures. The round included investors Simon Sinek, Formula 1 driver-turned-VC Nico Rosberg, Venmo cofounder Iqram Magdon-Ismail, and former Facebook privacy executive Chris Kelly.
Founded in 2020 by 25-year-old Harvard graduate Alyx van der Vorm, Clyx helps users discover local events and attend them with friends using AI technology. The app launched in Miami in 2022 and London in 2023, reporting 50,000 active users joining events and 200,000 browsing events.
Clyx generates revenue through a 2% commission on in-app ticket sales, paid event boosts, brand sponsorships, and tickets to company-owned events. The startup partnered with Sony to promote film premieres and worked with Miami wine bar Lagniappe on advertising campaigns.
The company plans to expand to New York and São Paulo in September 2025, using the funding for product development, engineering hires, and marketing. Clyx also announced plans to launch a dating app in Brazil.
Jimmy Kimmel's Tuesday night monologue has generated over twenty-one million views on YouTube, dwarfing traditional broadcast reach after ABC affiliate owners Sinclair and Nexstar preempted the show across roughly seventy stations. The episode marked Kimmel's return following Disney's brief suspension over his comments about political fallout from Charlie Kirk's murder. While Disney reinstated the show after protests and subscription cancellations, Sinclair and Nexstar continue blocking it on nearly a quarter of ABC's affiliate network.
The massive YouTube numbers demonstrate shifting media consumption patterns, as streaming viewership has eclipsed broadcast and cable combined. Late-night clips particularly resonate with younger audiences on digital platforms, though viewers over sixty-five represent YouTube's fastest-growing demographic since 2023. Both broadcast groups face FCC scrutiny over ownership deregulation petitions, with Nexstar seeking approval for a merger controlling eighty percent of American households.
Martina Calvi launched scrapbook stickers as a side project two years ago but quickly built a full-time e-commerce business after gaining hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers. She's part of a growing movement of craft creators turning hobbies like scrapbooking, journaling and crochet into major brands and media platforms. These DIY makers are becoming powerful tastemakers, with audiences rivaling traditional fashion influencers.
The trend is fueled by TikTok tutorials, Instagram reels and Pinterest mood boards. As artificial intelligence makes perfection more accessible, human-made work is gaining value. Imperfection, tactility and the maker's hand have become aspirational qualities. The shift represents a fundamental change in influence, where craft authenticity competes with polished fashion content. These creators are redefining cultural tastemaking by emphasizing handmade processes over manufactured perfection, capitalizing on audience appetite for tangible creativity in an increasingly digital world.
Sephora launched My Sephora Storefront, dedicated creator storefronts within its commerce ecosystem powered by partner Motom. The platform allows creators to operate customized shoppable environments where checkout occurs within the creator's curated space rather than redirecting to generic homepages.
Condé Nast introduced Vette, a similar creator-led storefront platform leveraging Vogue's editorial authority. Motom, co-founded by Wendy Wildfeuer, Matt Diamond, and Tim Trevathan, also powers programs for Chewy, American Eagle, and Macy's.
At Macy's, Motom's Style Crew program scaled to over 300 creators, generating 21 million impressions, nearly 3,300 posts, and a 57% year-over-year revenue increase. Motom's clients reported conversion rates 10 times higher than traditional affiliate programs alongside increased average order values.
The development represents a shift from affiliate marketing to creator commerce infrastructure. NielsenIQ reported 41% of U.S. beauty and personal care sales now occur through e-commerce. ShopMy has driven over $500 million in brand sales while LTK facilitates over $5 billion annually with 40 million monthly shoppers.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell met with YouTube CEO Neal Mohan and platform creators at the 49ers-Cardinals game in San Francisco, signaling the league's push into digital distribution. Goodell emphasized the NFL's strategy of reaching audiences on dominant platforms, stating a Super Bowl on streaming is "certainly possible." The league has consistently pioneered distribution innovation, from early television broadcasts to Monday Night Football, cable exclusives, satellite packages, and streaming-only games.
Three weeks ago, the NFL aired its first game on YouTube. The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue reported from the suite meeting, where both parties demonstrated mutual interest in deepening their partnership. YouTube appears ready to accommodate the NFL's needs as the platform grows its sports content. For creator economy professionals, this represents YouTube's expanding role beyond traditional influencer content into premium live sports, potentially reshaping digital media economics and creator opportunities around major sporting events.