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- Influence Weekly #413 - Delta Partners With Creators To Transform In-Flight Entertainment Experience
Influence Weekly #413 - Delta Partners With Creators To Transform In-Flight Entertainment Experience
Whatnot Raises $225 Million As Investors Bet On Live Shopping
Nii Ahene
October 31, 2025
Spotlight Stories
Whatnot Raises $225 Million As Investors Bet On Live Shopping
Delta Partners With Creators To Transform In-Flight Entertainment Experience
NASCAR Partners With Night To Launch ‘NASCAR 25 Creator Series’ Featuring Top Gaming Streamers
CreatorWeek 2025 Transforms Macao Into Hub For Content Creators
Great Reads
Meta, TikTok, and Snap announced they will comply with Australia's social media ban for users under 16, despite opposing the legislation. The platforms will begin implementing the law on December 10, 2025, including deactivating underage accounts.
Meta plans to contact approximately 450,000 underage users across Instagram and Facebook, while TikTok identified 200,000 affected accounts and Snap counted 440,000. The companies will offer users options to delete their data or store it until they turn 16.
Australia's Communications Minister confirmed YouTube's inclusion in the ban after research showed 37% of surveyed children encountered harmful content on the platform. The Online Safety Amendment Act 2024 imposes fines up to AU$49.5 million for platforms failing to prevent underage access.
The platforms will use automated behavior-tracking software to identify users under 16 who claim to be older. Both Meta and TikTok will refer incorrectly flagged users to third-party age-estimation tools for verification.
Livestream shopping platform Whatnot raised $225 million in Series F funding led by DST Global and CapitalG, doubling its valuation to $11.5 billion. The Los Angeles-based company has raised approximately $968 million total since its 2019 founding.
Whatnot reported Gross Merchandise Value exceeded $6 billion in 2025, more than doubling from $3 billion in 2024. The platform generated an estimated $359 million in revenue in 2024, representing 102% year-over-year growth. Whatnot earns revenue through an 8% commission on U.S. sales plus 2.9% payment processing fees.
The company operates a livestream marketplace where sellers host video auctions and fixed-price sales across categories including collectibles and fashion. Fashion became the fastest-growing segment and is expected to become the largest category within two years. Whatnot reported 62% of sellers remain exclusive to its platform despite competition from TikTok Shop.
The funding will support international expansion and operational scaling. Whatnot's European seller base grew 600% year-over-year in 2024, with Australia launching next month.
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Delta Air Lines launched a strategic partnership with YouTube to offer ad-free creator content through its in-flight entertainment systems, available on seatback screens and personal devices. The partnership, first announced at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year, features content from creators including MrBeast, Kinigra Deon, Michelle Khare, and Mother Goose Club.
The collaboration delivers creator content without advertisements, differentiating it from standard YouTube viewing experiences. Delta spent one year developing the initiative, working with YouTube to curate diverse content for its global customer base. Julieta McCurry, VP of In-Flight Entertainment and Connectivity at Delta, said the airline's data showed customers wanted personalization and creator-driven content.
Creators receive no direct compensation for making their YouTube content available on Delta flights but gain exposure to new audiences. Delta evaluates content performance monthly, matching its review process for other entertainment programming. The partnership capitalizes on air travel's unique viewing environment, where passengers have uninterrupted engagement opportunities.
Pocket.watch secured a licensing deal with Hulu to produce "Rabbit Hole," a 10-episode creator-led series set to premiere exclusively in the U.S. in 2026. The entertainment company, which focuses on transforming digital creators into mainstream properties, assembled 12 creators with a combined 421.8 million followers across social media platforms.
The cast includes Topper Guild with 111.2 million followers, Zhong with 78 million, Artist ZHC with 56.9 million, and Jesser with 42.9 million followers. Additional creators bring expertise in magic, stunts, gaming, and lifestyle content. The variety show format targets Generation Alpha audiences with challenges, animation, gaming, and music elements.
This project extends Hulu and pocket.watch's existing partnership, which already includes 37 titles featuring more than 20 digital creator brands. Pocket.watch operates a content library with tens of thousands of creator-led videos distributed across 43 platforms, generating hundreds of millions of monthly viewing hours and previous Emmy-nominated content.
NASCAR partnered with creator media company Night to launch the "NASCAR 25 Creator Series," a four-event competitive streaming series running from October through February featuring eight content creators competing for $100,000 in prize money. The series promotes the new "NASCAR 25" game from iRacing Studios.
The participating streamers include TimTheTatman, CouRageJD, YourRAGE, Emiru, ExtraEmily, Agent00, RayAsianBoy, and StableRonaldo, who collectively reach tens of millions of fans across Twitch, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. They compete in four two-person teams for a $100,000 team grand prize plus $20,000 in performance bonuses.
The series features 32 live streams across creator channels and a master broadcast on NASCAR's official Twitch channel. Night, a creator media company that focuses on entertainment-focused competitive content, emphasized entertainment value over pure racing competition. NASCAR VP Nick Rend said the series aims to connect younger fans to the sport through creators they follow. NASCAR's gaming initiatives reached more than 25 million unique players year-to-date.
Sephora launched My Sephora Storefront in September 2024, an affiliate program allowing creators to display products on Sephora's website and earn sales commissions. The beauty retailer reached 1,000 live creator storefronts, exceeding internal projections for the remainder of the year.
The program targets creators with more than 3,000 followers on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Sephora offers 15% commission on storefront sales, matching rates from competing platforms ShopMy and LTK, which range between 10-30%. At a Los Angeles launch event two weeks prior, more than 200 creators signed up immediately.
The move positions Sephora to compete directly with third-party affiliate platforms and Amazon Storefront in the creator commerce space, projected to reach $16 billion by 2028. Condé Nast announced plans to launch its own creator storefront called Vette in 2025. Brent Mitchell, Sephora's VP of social media and influencer marketing, said the company maintains a waiting list of brands seeking participation in the program for 2026 expansion.
K1 Circuit partnered with RACER Creator Awards as the Official Karting Partner and Community & Culture Category Sponsor ahead of the November 20, 2025 awards ceremony. K1 Circuit, owned by K1 Speed, operates a 1.1-mile outdoor karting facility in Winchester, California with premium garages and restaurant facilities.
The RACER Creator Awards celebrate automotive and motorsports content creators across digital platforms. K1 Circuit will sponsor the Community & Culture category, which recognizes creators who foster connection and inclusion within car culture communities.
Award winners will receive access to a VIP Experience Day at K1 Circuit's Winchester facility, featuring high-performance karting sessions and networking opportunities. The specific date for this event has not been announced.
The partnership reflects broader integration between the creator economy and motorsports marketing. According to motorsports industry analysis, creators serve as alternative promotional channels for brands beyond traditional media, bridging insider access with fan engagement particularly around events like Formula 1 race weekends.
Tubi partnered with Kevin Hart's entertainment company Hartbeat to develop four exclusive creator-driven films for 2026, marking the first exclusive content slate for Fox Corporation's streaming platform. The deal features digital creator Kinigra Deon and the "85 South Show" team comprising DC Young Fly, Chico Bean, and Karlous Miller.
The partnership begins with "Sundown," a supernatural thriller written, directed by and starring Deon, alongside "85 South: Dead End," a horror-comedy featuring the podcast trio. Two additional films remain unannounced. Tubi appointed former TikTok executive Kudzi Chikumbu as VP of Creator Partnerships in its expansion efforts.
Digital-first creator content on Tubi grew to nearly 10,000 titles from 5,000 episodes reported in August. The platform serves 100 million monthly active users. While Tubi's creator program previously focused on non-exclusive content, this Hartbeat deal represents the company's shift into financing and developing exclusive creator projects through its Tubi for Creators initiative.
Indie singer Sophia James created a viral TikTok marketing experiment that generated over 76 million views for her final "Group 7" video. James launched the campaign on October 17, posting a series of videos set to her song "So Unfair" as a self-described "science experiment" to manipulate TikTok's algorithm and promote her music.
The strategy involved placing viewers into exclusive numbered groups based on which video they encountered first. James posted seven videos total, with the fourth video introducing the group concept by telling viewers "If you're seeing this you are in Group 4." The early videos performed modestly, but the seventh video exploded across the platform.
The campaign attracted notable participants including Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who used the trend to promote her new book. James reported that "So Unfair" saw increased listener counts across streaming platforms following the viral success, with the boost extending to her broader music catalog as well.
HelloFresh partnered with TikTok chef Tini Younger to launch meal kits benefiting anti-hunger nonprofit No Kid Hungry, amid SNAP benefit cuts affecting 42 million Americans. The meal kit delivery company will donate $1 for each of two fall-themed meal kits sold during the weeks of November 8 and November 15, committing up to $50,000.
Younger, who has 14 million TikTok followers and previously gained 103 million views for a Thanksgiving mac and cheese video, created recipes including sundried tomato-stuffed chicken and chicken cutlets with butternut squash sauce. HelloFresh named Younger its first Hunger Hero last year to promote the cause to her audience.
No Kid Hungry, launched in 2010 by nonprofit Share Our Strength, has raised over $100 million since inception. Share Our Strength reported $121 million in revenue for its 2024 fiscal year. The campaign addresses food insecurity affecting 1 in 5 children in the U.S., totaling 14 million kids.
Australia's Treasury Wine Estates quadrupled its influencer marketing investment through an expanded partnership with Social Soup, extending the collaboration from 19 Crimes to include Pepperjack and Squealing Pig wine brands. The initial 19 Crimes campaign exceeded reach targets by 200% and grew the brand's social following by nearly 50%.
Social Soup, an influencer marketing agency, implemented a three-pronged approach combining mid-tier and micro creators with consumer-led in-store trials and reviews. The partnership now incorporates Social Soup's Shop & Scan technology for product sampling and integrates creators into live brand activations, including events at Snoop Dogg's recent Grand Final afterparty.
The expansion aligns with Treasury Wine Estates' rollout of its new global premium division, Treasury Collective, which unites priority brands including 19 Crimes, Squealing Pig, Pepperjack, and Matua. However, the increased marketing investment comes amid business challenges for Treasury Wine Estates, which scrapped its fiscal 2026 earnings guidance in October due to uncertainties in its Penfolds and Treasury Americas divisions.
Several prominent Sims 4 content creators left Electronic Arts' Creator Network program following EA's sale to Saudi Arabia. James Turner, Jesse McNamara, and Kayla Sims exited the affiliate program that allows creators to monetize mods and content related to the game.
McNamara stated she asked to leave the EA Creator Network and would not purchase or create content around future releases due to the sale. Sims called the situation "a nightmare for our community," noting that nobody supports the sale and it puts creators in a difficult position who built careers around a game they cannot control.
The EA Creator Network operates as an affiliate program where content creators can earn money from Sims 4-related content and mods. The departures highlight tensions between gaming companies' business decisions and their creator community partnerships. McNamara acknowledged her privileged position in being able to leave the program easily compared to other creators who may be more financially dependent on such partnerships.
Interesting People
Steven Bartlett's holding company Steven.com closed an eight-figure investment round at a $425 million valuation in October 2025. The funding was led by Slow Ventures and Apeiron Investment Group, representing what the company called Europe's largest creator holding company fundraising to date. Bartlett maintained more than 90% ownership while gaining capital to scale his divisions including FlightStory, FlightCast, and FlightFund.
Steven.com employs more than 100 people across offices in London, Manchester, Los Angeles, and New York. The company's flagship property, "The Diary of a CEO" podcast, reports 13 million YouTube subscribers, 70 million monthly views, and recently surpassed one billion YouTube views. The show adds approximately 600,000 new YouTube subscribers monthly.
Earlier in October, Bartlett launched FlightCast.com, described as a podcast hosting platform built for video with AI capabilities. Through his media division FlightStory, Bartlett works with creators including Trevor Noah, Davina McCall, and Paul Brunson.
The Luxury Life Curator: How Swetta Kathuria Built A Following Showcasing Las Vegas's High-End Scene
Las Vegas luxury lifestyle creator Swetta Kathuria built her social media presence over three and a half years by focusing on high-end restaurants, hotels, and fashion content across Instagram and TikTok. Originally from New Delhi, India, Kathuria moved to the United States 15 years ago and began content creation organically without initial monetization goals.
Kathuria partnered with Real Vegas Magazine to manage their social media and create "Top 10" content pieces about Las Vegas luxury experiences. She reports that paid collaborations only began this year after years of receiving comped experiences and product partnerships.
Her content strategy involves an 80-20 split between brand focus and personal presence, emphasizing quality production over trend-following. Kathuria expanded into travel content eight months ago and plans to target destinations including Italy, Greece, and tropical locations next year. She aims to partner with Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton properties while maintaining her luxury market positioning.
Twitch streamers are confronting mental health challenges as parasocial relationships intensify on the world's largest streaming platform. At TwitchCon 2025, streamer Emiru reported being assaulted by a fan during a meet-and-greet, highlighting the dangers of one-sided emotional bonds viewers form with creators. London neuroscientist Maryam Matter notes people now spend seven hours daily online, creating unprecedented boundary issues. Streamers face constant harassment from anonymous "keyboard warriors" while managing viewer expectations across Twitch's 100,000 active channels.
Creator Psyculturists transforms negative comments into teachable moments, while streamer Briggsy advocates aggressive blocking and regular offline breaks. Despite challenges, streamers report meaningful impact – viewers credit them with inspiring mental health treatment. Industry advice emphasizes authenticity over chasing popular content, with experts stressing creators must establish firm boundaries to protect their wellbeing while serving 31 million daily platform visitors.
RichTok influencers are transforming luxury content on social media, with Becca Bloom leading the pack at 4.7 million TikTok followers and 2.7 million on Instagram. The daughter of Chinese IT company founders, Bloom went viral for her Lake Como wedding featuring custom Oscar de la Renta and regularly posts content like serving cat food on Versace plates. Columbia University student Skyelar Chase follows with 1.6 million TikTok followers, earning comparisons to Gossip Girl's Blair Waldorf through her private jet travels and Hermès shopping hauls.
Singapore's Chloe Liem, dubbed the "Van Cleef Princess," has 1.2 million followers watching her luxury jewelry tours while studying finance at NUS. Mei Leung gained fame revealing she spent $85,000 in one month in New York, while Bling Empire star Jaime Xie leverages her billionaire father's cybersecurity fortune into nearly $100,000 annually from brand partnerships. These creators capitalize on viewers' aspirational psychology, building parasocial relationships through unapologetic wealth displays.
Prime Hydration, the energy drink launched by YouTube influencers Logan Paul and KSI in 2022, recorded a 70% drop in UK revenue from £112.2 million to £32.8 million in 2024, according to Yahoo Finance. The brand initially achieved rapid growth through viral marketing stunts and celebrity endorsements, leveraging the founders' combined 100 million social media followers.
The decline followed waning consumer novelty, lawsuits alleging misleading caffeine content claims, and operational challenges including inventory gluts and discounting pressures. Prime competed against established beverage companies like Gatorade and Red Bull in the sports drink market.
Paul and KSI expanded into meal kits with their Lunchly collaboration alongside MrBeast, though nutrition experts raised concerns about health claims. The company faced supply chain issues and quality control problems as sales momentum slowed throughout 2024, reflecting broader challenges celebrities encounter when transitioning from digital influence to consumer product manufacturing and distribution.
Industry News
Twitch CEO Dan Clancy issued a public apology on October 24, 2025, after streamer Emiru was sexually assaulted by a fan at a TwitchCon meet-and-greet in San Diego. Clancy admitted on Twitch's official X account that the platform "failed, both in allowing it to occur, and in our response following."
The incident validated concerns from female streamers who had expressed hesitation about attending TwitchCon due to security issues. Clancy initially drew criticism during a TwitchCon interview with reporter Taylor Lorenz, where viewers interpreted his comments as deflecting blame onto Emiru and her security team.
In his follow-up statement, Clancy announced several policy changes including a comprehensive review of TwitchCon's safety approach, analysis of meet-and-greet structures, and examination of IRL streaming practices at the convention. The controversy adds to previous TwitchCon incidents including Adriana Chechik's injury in 2022 and Kick-related disruptions in 2024, raising questions about Clancy's leadership position at the Amazon-owned platform.
PR software platform Muck Rack released "The State of Creator Journalism 2025" study showing one-third of journalists now publish independently outside traditional newsrooms. The survey of 1,515 journalists, conducted from April 4-30, 2025, found that 522 self-identified as creator journalists.
Creative freedom drives the movement, with 57% citing editorial autonomy as their primary motivation compared to just 9% seeking financial opportunity. Despite this independence focus, 63% of creator journalists earn some income from their work, though 39% earn nothing and 31% make less than 10% of their annual income from self-publishing.
Creator journalists rely heavily on social media, with 31% rating it "very important" to their work versus 19% of traditional journalists. Personal websites serve as the primary publishing channel for 53%, followed by email newsletters at 41%. Most creator journalists (78%) have audiences under 10,000 subscribers.
The study found creator journalists value PR relationships more than traditional journalists, with 32% versus 21% considering PR professionals "very important" to their success.
The Interactive Advertising Bureau restructured its 2026 events calendar, creating a dedicated fall week focused on creator-driven media. The organization launched three consecutive events running September 15-17, 2026: the new IAB CreatorFronts, the repositioned IAB Podcast Upfront, and IAB PlayFronts covering gaming and immersive media.
The IAB Podcast Upfront moved to September 16, 2026, maintaining its fall timing after returning from the IAB NewFronts in 2024. The NewFronts shifted earlier to March 23-26, 2026, positioning closer to traditional television upfronts held in May.
IAB CEO David Cohen cited the need for marketplaces in both spring and fall cycles to accommodate broadcast scheduling and digital investments. The Podcast Upfront retains its invite-only format for brand marketers, agency professionals, and podcast companies. The restructuring reflects IAB's recognition that creator environments, podcasts, and gaming have become mainstream advertising channels rather than niche options.
Talent management agency Night acquired marketing firm Experiential Supply Co. in October 2025 to merge digital creator management with real-world marketing capabilities. Los Angeles-based Experiential Supply, founded by Jasen Smith in 2017, has created high-profile activations including horseback-riding apes for "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" and a 60-foot Titanosaurus in Manhattan for "Jurassic World Rebirth."
The acquisition reflects growing demand for in-person events in the creator economy. The Influencer Marketing Factory reported that influencers, podcasters, and authors sold 500% more event tickets in 2025 compared to 2024, with creator events priced approximately 40% lower than traditional live entertainment. Their survey found 41% of U.S. social media users attended at least one in-person influencer event in the past year.
Night's roster includes creators Kai Cenat and Sam & Colby who already host live events. The move follows similar industry consolidation, including entertainment executive Ari Emanuel's recent $2 billion fundraise for Mari, a venture focused on acquiring live events businesses.
Creator Television, the streaming network owned by ad-tech company Sabio Holdings, launched its ad-supported video-on-demand service on Plex and Xumo Play platforms in October 2025. The expansion marks Creator TV's debut in the AVOD space following earlier distribution deals for its free ad-supported television channels.
The new AVOD service offers on-demand content across desktop, mobile, and connected TV applications on both platforms. Plex operates as a global media streaming company, while Xumo Play is a free streaming service from the joint venture between Comcast and Charter Communications.
Creator TV's AVOD catalog features original programming from social media personalities including "Trey Kennedy Are You For Real?," "Julie's Fine, Everything's Fine" with Julie Nolke, "Jenny Lorenzo Presents Latinos Be Like," and "Daphnique Springs Single Female." The company plans to expand its premium on-demand content catalog in coming months.
This launch complements Creator TV's existing FAST channel distribution agreements announced earlier this year with Amazon Fire TV Channels, Anoki LiveTVx, Plex, Sling Freestream, and Xumo Play.
Macao hosted its inaugural CreatorWeek 2025 from October 24-28, drawing more than 180 creator groups worldwide to establish itself as a hub in the Asian creator economy. The Macao Government Tourism Office co-organized the event with Branded, featuring 50 keynote speakers and 20 live acts across multiple venues.
The conference on October 27-28 at Grand Lisboa Palace Resort brought together representatives from Google, Bilibili, Meta, YouTube, Red, and Douyin alongside creators including the Stokes Twins and Alan Chikin Chow. They discussed monetization strategies and cross-cultural collaboration between Eastern and Western creator communities.
The event expanded beyond typical conferences with wellness workshops at MGM's Fantasy Box and fan engagement sessions at The Londoner Macao featuring 40 creators including Apl.de.Ap and Steven He. Galaxy Macau hosted live performances by K-pop group XODIAC, Japan's Psychic Fever from EXILE TRIBE, and the Philippines' Mikey Bustos. Local community tours paired international creators with ambassadors to generate collaborative content showcasing Macao globally.
Adobe released its first "Creators' Toolkit Report" at the Adobe MAX conference, surveying 16,000 creators across eight countries. The report found 86% of creators now use AI tools for creative work, with 76% reporting AI accelerated their business or follower growth.
Australian creators showed higher adoption at 90%, with 82% reporting business acceleration from AI use. Creators primarily use AI for editing and enhancement (55%), generating new assets (52%), and ideation (48%). Sixty percent maintain multiple AI tool portfolios.
Despite widespread adoption, 69% of creators expressed concerns about their content being used to train AI systems without permission. Cost remains the primary barrier to adoption at 38%, followed by unreliable output quality at 34%.
The survey revealed strong interest in agentic AI systems, with 70% of creators expressing optimism about proactive AI assistance. Mobile devices have become central to content creation, with 72% of creators using them frequently and 75% planning to increase mobile production.
China's Cyberspace Administration began enforcing new regulations on October 25 requiring influencers discussing professional topics to hold formal qualifications in those fields. Content creators addressing medicine, law, education, or finance must provide proof of expertise through degrees, certifications, or professional credentials.
Platforms including Douyin, Bilibili, and Weibo must verify influencer credentials and ensure content includes proper citations and disclaimers. The regulations also banned advertising for medical services and products, including supplements and health foods.
The rules emerged as UNESCO research revealed only 36.9% of digital content creators verify information before sharing, while 41.7% use popularity metrics as primary credibility indicators. Chinese authorities simultaneously launched a campaign targeting content that "incites excessively pessimistic sentiment," with Weibo suspending over 1,200 accounts for "spreading rumors" about the economy.
Spain introduced similar "Influencer Law" requirements in 2024 for creators earning over €300,000 annually or having more than 1 million followers.
ShopMy secured $70 million in Series F funding led by Avenir Growth Capital, valuing the New York-based commerce platform at $1.5 billion. Bain Capital Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Menlo Ventures participated in the round, alongside strategic investors including Sofia Richie, Gregg Renfrew, and Aimee Song.
The company, founded in 2020 by Harry Rein, Tiffany Lopinsky, and Chris Tinsley, operates a curator-driven commerce infrastructure connecting premium brands with tastemakers. ShopMy reported over $1 billion in annual platform sales through curator recommendations and maintained profitability since 2024 while achieving 200% year-over-year revenue growth.
The platform works with 185,000 selected tastemakers and 1,200 premium brands. Since launching its consumer platform in August, ShopMy created 30,000 "Circles" - personalized shopping feeds curated by multiple creators - and accumulated 150,000 wishlisted products. The company evolved from individual creator storefronts to a multi-curator platform that replaces algorithm-based recommendations with human curation for premium product discovery.
Oxford Road, a podcast advertising agency, released survey findings showing advertisers are withholding close to $1 billion in podcast spending due to measurement inconsistencies across platforms. The agency polled 75 marketers, including six of the top 10 podcast spenders.
Seventy-six percent of brands said they would increase podcast spending if YouTube attribution were standardized with audio platforms. Nearly 25 percent would boost spending by 50 percent or more, totaling approximately $1 billion in additional ad dollars according to Oxford Road's calculations.
Fifty percent of respondents cited performance data limitations as their main spending constraint. The measurement challenges emerged as podcasting shifted from RSS feeds with trackable pixels to platforms like YouTube, Apple, and Spotify that use different attribution methods.
Oxford Road CEO Dan Granger noted advertisers struggle with shows distributed across three platforms using incompatible measurement systems. Fifty-five percent of marketers also want consistent podcast definitions as video content blurs traditional audio boundaries, with some buyers avoiding simulcast podcasts due to internal budget conflicts.
YouTube sponsorships jumped 54% year-over-year in the first half of 2025, according to data from Tubefilter's Gospel Stats. The research tracked 65,759 sponsored videos generating 19.1 billion views, up 28% from the same period in 2024.
Ground News led brand sponsors with 1,863 integrations, showing 202% growth. Squarespace, BetterHelp, and DraftKings followed as top sponsors by volume. MrBeast ranked as the leading creator for sponsored content with 1.4 billion views on brand-supported videos.
YouTube responded to the growth by launching a feature allowing creators to dynamically insert branded segments. The tool enables easier updates, resales, and tracking of sponsored content. CEO Neal Mohan emphasized creator benefits when asked about potential revenue sharing from brand deals, though he did not confirm commission plans.
The surge represents growth in creator-driven advertising operating outside YouTube's traditional ad network and is not reflected in Google's reported platform revenue figures.
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Livestream shopping platform Whatnot raised $225 million at an $11.5 billion valuation, doubling its worth in less than a year as investors bet on the QVC-for-TikTok-era model. The Los Angeles startup, founded in 2019 by Grant LaFontaine, has surpassed $6 billion in platform sales, doubling 2024's numbers. Starting with Funko figurines, Whatnot now hosts sellers offering everything from Pokémon cards to plants across nine countries.
Users spend over 80 minutes daily watching streams, with the company taking eight percent commission per sale. CapitalG and DST Global led the round, joined by Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. The U.S. livestream shopping market is projected to reach $49 billion this year, growing to $60.6 billion by 2028, though growth rates are expected to slow. Whatnot faces competition from Amazon, TikTok Shop, and other platforms capitalizing on the format's success in China, where livestream commerce is more culturally embedded.
The Creators Association of Southeast Asia launched in Jakarta in October 2025, backed by influencer Vina Muliana, communications firm Vero, talent agency Mantappu Corp, and the Indonesian Beauty Vlogger Community. CASA aims to establish fair collaboration standards across Southeast Asia's creator market, which includes 12 million creators in Indonesia alone who produce up to one million pieces of content monthly.
The initiative addresses widespread payment issues in the creator economy. A Tipalti/Wakefield study found 87% of creators in the US and UK experienced late payments, incorrect payments, or non-payment. Asia-Pacific creators face similar challenges, with payment terms often extending 30 to 60 days or longer.
CASA's founders described the group as a "pre-union" network focused on codifying fair payment terms and standard contracts. The global creator economy tracks toward $480 billion by 2027, with Asia-Pacific reaching $41.6 billion, yet nearly two-thirds of creators rely on part-time work and almost half earn under $15,000 annually.
Prime Hydration, cofounded by YouTubers Logan Paul and KSI, generated $1.2 billion in sales during its first full year in 2023. The creators chose equity over royalties, with KSI and his management team owning 25% of the company, according to sources with direct knowledge.
Prime's sales declined in 2024, with UK revenues falling 70% from £112 million to £33 million. The company cited moderating consumer interest and fading social media buzz. A supplier sued Prime last year, alleging sales fell below expectations.
Industry experts warned that 97% of creators should avoid launching their own brands. Scott Van den Berg from HotStart VC said most creators lack sufficient audience to build billion-dollar companies.
Talent manager Eric Bogard recommended creators pursue mixed compensation models combining equity with royalties or marketing commissions. Food influencer Landon Bridges exemplified this approach with his Lava Sauce brand, earning royalties per bottle sold rather than relying solely on equity. The brand reached Amazon's top 10 hot sauces after selling 600 bottles in 48 hours during April.
Companies are turning employees into internal influencers as traditional marketing evolves beyond hiring external creators. Brands like Delta, Lego, and Portillo's are launching formal programs where workers create content for corporate channels and personal accounts. Portillo's aims to have an internal influencer at every location, while DHL's #YellowUnited campaign encourages couriers to film themselves on routes. Companies offer training on content creation and audience engagement, though most employees aren't paid extra for social media appearances.
Brand strategist Lachlan Williams notes employees are among consumers' most trusted sources due to their insider knowledge and authenticity. The strategy requires balancing creative freedom with brand messaging – too much control makes content feel inauthentic, while too little risks brand damage. VML's Chelsea Thompson-O'Brien emphasizes proper vetting processes without stifling creativity. DHL creator Balazs Balogh says teams align on core messages but maintain creative freedom. Success depends on genuine employee enthusiasm, as forced participation creates dissonance between marketing claims and reality.
Viral Nation Chief Commercial Officer Nicholas Spiro is leveraging psychological principles and artificial intelligence to reshape creator partnerships in 2025. The social transformation agency developed Secure, an AI platform that analyzes video content frame-by-frame rather than just text-based content.
Secure addresses brand safety concerns by examining creators' entire historical catalogs and includes a scoring system based on Motion Picture Association ratings. The platform evaluates content as G, PG-13, and other ratings automatically. Viral Nation operates through three divisions: a full-service social and influencer agency, talent management, and the proprietary AI technology platform.
Spiro, who previously worked at Meta, Snapchat, and Twitter, advocates for brands to give creators more creative control. He cited one creator who endured "30 rounds of edits" on sponsored content, arguing this approach diminishes the authentic connection creators have with their audiences. His commercial strategy focuses on three priorities: revenue outcomes, platform partnerships, and operational rigor. Viral Nation positions itself as enabling brands to scale creator partnerships while maintaining brand safety standards.