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Creator Economy

More Creators Have Trouble With Facebook Payments; TikTok’s New Trust & Safety Leader

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 9, 2023 2:21pm PDT
You have to wonder what’s going on with the systems Meta Platforms uses to pay creators. Some this week have seen an alert that their accounts are restricted from making money due to “unusual activity.” That follows a glitch we covered last week that vastly inflated Facebook creators’ estimated earnings from posting Reels with licensed music.... You have to wonder what’s going on with the systems Meta Platforms uses to pay creators. Some...
Navin Chaddha and Jenny Lefcourt. Photos via Getty
Deals

Venture Firms Still Writing Small Checks Despite $271 Billion in ‘Dry Powder’

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Aug 7, 2023 6:00am PDT · 4 comments
In 2019, Sean Park—a co-founder of Anthemis Group—was on the road 200 nights a year, traveling to Boston, London and other tech hot spots to meet with startups. Even after Covid-19 curtailed travel, Park, who is also the firm’s chief investment officer, was swamped with Zoom meetings with entrepreneurs he was thinking about... In 2019, Sean Park—a co-founder of Anthemis Group—was on the road 200 nights a year,...
Photo by Shutterstock. Graphic: Shane Burke
Creator Economy

Snafus on Patreon, Facebook Stymie Creator Payouts

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 3, 2023 3:27pm PDT
What is going on this week? In two separate instances, creators on membership site Patreon and Facebook-owner Meta Platforms report they’ve had issues with payments. These snafus highlight the precarious nature of creators’ income, particularly when multiple companies are involved in payouts.Let’s start with Patreon. The San Francisco startup on... What is going on this week? In two separate instances, creators on membership site Patreon and ...
Cameo CEO Steven Galanis. Photo by Getty
At Cameo, Deep Layoffs Followed a Dash for Cash
By Kaya Yurieff, Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Jul 21, 2023 6:08am PDT · 4 comments
Cameo CEO Steven Galanis. Photo by Getty
Exclusive

At Cameo, Deep Layoffs Followed a Dash for Cash

By Kaya Yurieff, Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Jul 21, 2023 6:08am PDT · 4 comments
Last week, things finally seemed to be stabilizing for employees of Cameo—an online marketplace where people can pay supporting cast members of “Seinfeld” and other celebrities to record personalized video messages. After two rounds of layoffs in 2022 that had gutted the size of its staff, Cameo had flown dozens of employees to... Last week, things finally seemed to be stabilizing for employees of Cameo—an online...
Photo via Shutterstock
Creator Economy

How Instagram Can Keep Threads Growth Going

By Kaya Yurieff · Jul 17, 2023 2:46pm PDT
On Friday, my colleague Sylvia and I published a behind-the-scenes report on how Instagram, after mulling a Twitter-type rival years ago, quickly moved to launch its text-based app Threads after Elon Musk took over Twitter. What struck me from our reporting is how much Instagram focused on creators from the start—even more so, according to some... On Friday, my colleague Sylvia and I published a behind-the-scenes report on how Instagram, after...
Table by Shane Burke
Creator Economy

Creator-Focused AI Startups Draw Investor Dollars (Chart)

By Isabelle Sarraf · Jul 3, 2023 2:54pm PDT
Artificial intelligence advances are piquing investor interest in creator economy startups, according to our latest update to the Creator Economy Database.Since we reported preliminary funding for creator economy startups in mid-June, we’ve tracked eight more funding rounds raised in the second quarter. Three back startups that use AI-based... Artificial intelligence advances are piquing investor interest in creator economy startups,...
Grindr and Motto founder Joel Simkhai. Photo-collage by Clark Miller; photo of Simkhai by Gregory Scaffidi/Courtesy Motto.
The 1:1

Fifteen Years After Founding Grindr, Joel Simkhai Has ‘Unfinished Business’

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 30, 2023 11:00am PDT · 3 comments
On a sweat-soaked New York afternoon over Pride Weekend, a short line formed outside a dark bar on the Lower East Side. After checking customers’ IDs, a boyish-looking bouncer at the front door asked if they’d downloaded the app they needed to get in: “Do you have Motto?” I pulled up the app, its home screen affixed with... On a sweat-soaked New York afternoon over Pride Weekend, a short line formed outside a dark bar...
David Dobrik. Photo by Cibelle Levi.
Why David Dobrik Is Going All in on Snapchat and Pizza
By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2023 2:00pm PDT · 1 comment
David Dobrik. Photo by Cibelle Levi.
Creator Economy

Why David Dobrik Is Going All in on Snapchat and Pizza

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2023 2:00pm PDT · 1 comment
David Dobrik first gained fame as an online influencer when he was a teen on the six-second video app Vine, then as a vlogger through his self-named YouTube channels. But in the past 18 months, he’s quietly become one of the top creators on Snapchat, where he posts 80 to 100 times a day and has 7.4 million subscribers. It’s a sign of how Snap... David Dobrik first gained fame as an online influencer when he was a teen on the six-second video...
Creator Brian Brushwood. Photo: Bizarre Magic, Inc.
Creator Economy

After Vine and Google+ Shut Down, a Creator Embraces Email

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 7, 2023 3:00pm PDT
Brian Brushwood’s online career illustrates how regularly social apps go up in smoke. The magician, who spent 15 years touring college campuses, started to post video clips of his life on the road online in 2006. He amassed more than one million followers on six-second video app Vine and one million followers on Google+. Then, both shut... Brian Brushwood’s online career illustrates how regularly social apps go up in smoke. The...
The Great Pickleball Gold Rush
The Weekend

The Great Pickleball Gold Rush

By Jon Steinberg · May 20, 2023 6:00am PDT
Hi, welcome to your Weekend.Not everyone can be Josh Harris, the private equity mogul who just dropped $6 billion to purchase the NFL’s Washington Commanders. Most people who want a piece of a pro sports franchise have to start a little lower. Enter pickleball. A sport you probably hadn’t heard of before it became a thing around five... Hi, welcome to your Weekend.Not everyone can be Josh Harris, the private equity mogul who just...
The Weekend Newsletter
What happens when Silicon Valley logs off—the trends, people and companies shaping tech culture.
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Creator Economy

Facebook Doubles Down on Reels; Montana Bans TikTok

By Isabelle Sarraf · May 17, 2023 3:20pm PDT
Facebook has been doubling down on its creator efforts this week, emphasizing Reels above all else.The flagship Meta Platforms app held the first in a series of livestreams it’s calling Reels School on Wednesday. Facebook invited creators who have found success posting short-form videos to the site to educate other Reel makers on strategy and... Facebook has been doubling down on its creator efforts this week, emphasizing Reels above all...
Art by Mike Sullivan
Screentime: The Author–Investor Searching for the Internet’s Next Hangout
By Annie Goldsmith · May 13, 2023 6:00am PDT
Art by Mike Sullivan
Screentime

Screentime: The Author–Investor Searching for the Internet’s Next Hangout

By Annie Goldsmith · May 13, 2023 6:00am PDT
Despite leaving Discord last year, Amber Atherton still spends many of her working hours on the social platform. The company’s former head of community—now a partner at early-stage venture firm Patron—Atherton builds relationships with her portfolio companies in a Discord “zen garden” designed for streaming lo-fi... Despite leaving Discord last year, Amber Atherton still spends many of her working hours on the...
Left: Passes founder Lucy Guo starts her morning with a 20 mph sprint on a Barry’s Bootcamp treadmill. Right: Guo inside her $6.7 million Miami apartment. Photograph by Celia D. Luna for The Information
Show Us Everything

Think She’s Fast? You Should Borrow Her Ferrari: Welcome to Lucy Guo’s Miami

By Margaux MacColl · May 12, 2023 11:03am PDT · 35 comments
This is “Show Us Everything,” a new feature from The Information Weekend, in which company founders share intimate glimpses of their everyday lives. When Lucy Guo told me she ran a 4:50 mile, I knew we were about to have very different experiences at Barry’s Bootcamp. It was a little after 8 a.m. when a black... This is “Show Us Everything,” a new feature from The Information Weekend, in...
Stills from Pizza Later's "Pepperoni Hug Spot" commercial, Kris Kashtanova's Burning Man video and Ammaar Reshi's World War II movie trailer—all created entirely with AI.
How AI Built This

Staring at the Black Hole Sun: Generative AI Artists Deconstruct Their Viral Videos

By Margaux MacColl · May 5, 2023 11:43am PDT · 4 comments
Will AI video kill the radio star? Judging from the surge of artificial intelligence–generated beer commercials and “Star Wars”–themed Wes Anderson trailers popping up on social feeds this week, it just might. The AI video onslaught began officially in late March, when Runway, an AI startup newly valued at $1.5 billion,... Will AI video kill the radio star? Judging from the surge of artificial...
Art by Mike Sullivan.
Exclusive

TikTok Is Developing AI-Generated Video Disclosures as Deepfakes Rise

By Kaya Yurieff · May 1, 2023 11:28am PDT
Some viral TikTok videos may soon show a new type of label: that it’s made by AI. The ByteDance-owned app is developing a tool for content creators to disclose they used generative artificial intelligence in making their videos, according to a person with direct knowledge of the efforts. The move comes as people increasingly turn to... Some viral TikTok videos may soon show a new type of label: that it’s made by AI. The...
Twitter CEO Elon Musk told employees early Saturday they were welcome to subscribe to creators "and expense that back to the company.” Photo by Getty.
Twitter Intensifies Efforts to Woo Creators
By Erin Woo · Apr 29, 2023 1:02pm PDT · 2 comments
Twitter CEO Elon Musk told employees early Saturday they were welcome to subscribe to creators "and expense that back to the company.” Photo by Getty.

Twitter Intensifies Efforts to Woo Creators

By Erin Woo · Apr 29, 2023 1:02pm PDT · 2 comments
After spending six months alienating many of its biggest users, Elon Musk’s Twitter is now trying to woo creators. For the past few weeks, Twitter has been encouraging creators to sign up for its subscription product, through which users pay creators a few dollars a month to receive content that’s behind a paywall, as well as a badge... After spending six months alienating many of its biggest users, Elon Musk’s Twitter is now...
Photo: Mike Sullivan via Shutterstock
Creator Economy

Burning Questions About Instagram, LinkedIn and Creator Marketplaces

By Kaya Yurieff · Apr 4, 2023 2:38pm PDT
A few weeks ago, I asked readers to submit their questions about the creator economy. Let’s dive into a few of them today, and please keep the questions coming!1. Is Instagram dead? What should they do to stay relevant? —Anonymous subscriberAny eulogies for Instagram are premature. While the app has had plenty of stumbles in its fight against ... A few weeks ago, I asked readers to submit their questions about the creator economy. Let’s dive...
Art by Shane Burke
Creator Economy

Discord Joins the AI Stampede

By Isabelle Sarraf · Mar 9, 2023 2:00pm PST · 1 comment
Another company is jumping on the artificial intelligence bandwagon: Discord, which is infusing AI into several platform features, including its mascot bot, Clyde. The messaging app commonly used by gamers announced Thursday it’s dipping its toes into OpenAI technology, transforming Clyde into a talkative chatbot that can answer user... Another company is jumping on the artificial intelligence bandwagon: Discord, which is infusing...
Julie McNamara, Spotify’s head of global podcast studios, oversees originals and exclusives. Photo: Spotify
Creator Economy

Spotify Redoubles Podcast Efforts

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 8, 2023 2:59pm PST
Over the past two years, Spotify became known for pricey, exclusive deals with popular podcasters, including Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Emma Chamberlain. But the audio streaming company also wants to help a broader swath of podcasters, an effort that was center stage at Spotify’s annual Stream On event in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Spotify... Over the past two years, Spotify became known for pricey, exclusive deals with popular...
Photo by Getty Images.
Alphabet Needs to Replace Sundar Pichai
By Martin Peers · Feb 27, 2023 5:00pm PST · 2 comments
Photo by Getty Images.
The Briefing

Alphabet Needs to Replace Sundar Pichai

By Martin Peers · Feb 27, 2023 5:00pm PST · 2 comments
Shareholders in Alphabet are sending the company a message: It’s time for some drastic action. After a sharp slump in the past few weeks, Alphabet stock is up just 1.9% so far this year compared to the Nasdaq’s 10% rise. In contrast Facebook parent Meta Platforms, which was in the doghouse last year, has jumped 41% year to date. Alphabet and... Shareholders in Alphabet are sending the company a message: It’s time for some drastic action....