This Week: I’m spending most of the week walking down forgotten paths in Norway with a band of merry pranksters. So yeah, I’ve prepared this in advance. See you next week with our more, well, “normal”, fare.
Hi, I’m Jim Louderback and this is my weekly creator economy newsletter.
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TOP STORIES
FUTURE OF CREATOR EVENTS
As most of you know, I spent nearly 9 years helping to build VidCon, starting with the industry track in 2014, and then as CEO/GM in 2017. And now that I’ve been building the industry Summit at Open Sauce over the last three years, along with building creator programs with global events including VivaTech, 1 Billion Followers Summit, IFA, Creator Week, NAB and more, my thoughts on creator events in 2026 have evolved.
12 years ago, creator / fan events stood alone. A roomful of youtubers was enough to entice people to attend. Lots of people. But today that’s different. The most successful events seem to be “Creators Plus” or “Plus Creators”
A few weeks ago I explored this with Night President @Ezra Cooperstein. We’re both creator economy OGs with a long event history. I told him why I loved Open Sauce and he updated me on Dream, held the week before in Houston. @Rene Ritchie and @Kim Larson from YouTube also told me how fun and dynamic Dream was. “Like the early days of VidCon” was how I’d heard both events described.
It would be easy to characterize Open Sauce as just a STEAM-focused slice of VidCon and Dream more of a gaming/anime variant. But these aren’t just niche VidCon spinoffs. They were something new… Creators Plus “X”. Open Sauce, founded by William Osman and other top YouTubers, is an 800-exhibitor-strong Maker/Science Faire that also welcomes 125 top STEAM creators. Dream, founded by YouTube collective RD World, takes the modern-day Comicon/Animecon, and layers in creators… including this year Issa Rae, Berleezy and Duke Dennis.
Paradoxically, just as creators have arrived everywhere, they have become less of a singular draw. Instead, every creator event needs to weave in a “Plus” element that extends beyond parasocial bonds.
But the inverse is also true. Almost every traditional event needs a creator “PLUS” strategy. Just this year I’ve helped VivaTech, IFA and NAB weave creators into their conventions. But you can’t just stick a bunch of creators into the corner and treat them like zoo-animals on display. Instead, you need to infuse creators throughout your event: speaking on stage, amplifying the exhibits, promoting the other sessions and building awareness and excitement with attendees. Hint-hint… creators will sell tickets too.
Look at Cannes Lions, for example. Originally conceived as a festival of creativity, and a boozy break for schmoozy ad execs, they recently added creators into the mix. Last June 250+ Featured Creators showed up, along with more than 1,000 creator attendees. They voraciously mingled with the crème-de-la-crème of the marketing and advertising world to what seemed like tremendous success.
Two other big conventions also exemplify the Event “PLUS” strategy. B&H’s annual Bild show brings the gear AND the creators, elevating it beyond just a gear-fest. And Fanatics Fest takes it to the max, with creators, athletes, teams and interactive experiences. It’s become far more than just a celebration of sporting fandom.
Done right, the “PLUS” can also be geographical. 1 Billion Followers Summit (where I’m building the “economy” track again) combines a global point of view with 250 of the world’s top creators and a unique insight into the fascinating MENA creator market. Smaller summit slices in the creator economy still work, with Orca, Scalable and Press Publish building unique LA events.
If you run a big event, whether B2B or fan, you need a creator strategy. They need to infuse all aspects of your event. And if you’re building a creator event, you need to figure out your “PLUS” strategy. Creators alone are not enough. Thanks to @Colin Hickey and @Lisa Milgram for vetting this with me.
- RELATED: Music event NAMM just quantified creators, saying that creator-generated content reached 70 million social views in 2026, with 2.1M likes and 50,000 comments. With creator lounges, studios and influencer programming, NAMM seems to have built the infrastructure to land firmly in the “PLUS” category (PR Newswire)
QUIBIS
PLATFORMS
- Algorithms Optional: Australia proposes legislation to let users opt out of algorithms. The beginning of a trend? (NPR)
OTHER CREATOR ECONOMY
- AI May Kill the Influencer Manager First: Fluencify raises $4.3M to accelerate its AI creator discovery, matching, outreach, replies, briefing, content checking, scheduling, boosting and payment service. Brands end up with guaranteed CPMs and can focus on finding the best brand ambassadors, rather than one-off campaigns (ByFounders)
- Brands Are Asking Creators to Break the Law: A new study found that 18% of creators have been asked by brands to hide their sponsorship. That’s not just shady, it’s against the law. Don’t lose your audience’s trust… just say no. NOTE: This study only talked to 365 creators (one for each day of the year?) so it’s hardly predictive. (BI $)
- TBPNvy: Big Purple just announced a daily 1 hour live streamed show about AI, featuring former CNBC anchor Deirdre Bosa. More like this on the way. But will they embrace TBPN’s true genius moves, including rapid clipping and cozying up to interviewees. (Yahoo)
CREATOR TECH – AI, AR, VR, MORE
- The Taming of the Shrew: Suno launches its new models featuring fully licensed source material from three labels, which means AI is moving from “move fast and break things”, to “pay artists and make things”. Licensing is great, but we still don’t know who gets paid, how much, what happens to Suno’s models trained on other artists, and whether other AI companies will follow. (Suno)
Where’s Jim? In Norway this week, headed home and then off to Dubai for a 1BFS offsite. Can’t wait for October… no travel!
SPONSOR
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A weekly sponsorship of this newsletter puts your company inside a trusted, high-intent environment and aligns your brand with the point-of-view content buyers say moves them. If you want to speak to the people building the next wave of media, creators, and AI, this is where they show up every week.
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100% written by me. AI was used for light editing, grammar and spelling mistakes… and challenging my assumptions. AI liberally used for the illustrations and cover art.
I’ve built and sold multiple creator economy startups to top media companies – including an MCN to Discovery and VidCon to Paramount. Subscribe here to get this newsletter every Monday in your inbox!
Let me know what you think – email me at jim@louderback.com. Thanks for reading and see you around the internet.
DISCLAIMER: I am just one person, sharing his opinion. I do not have a team of analysts or corporate comms to check everything. I am almost definitely wrong about some of the stuff I say. My opinion is subject to change. This is not legal advice, investment advice, or anything else except hopefully some perspective that you may not have considered before. (ht Elena Verna)
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AI SEO PORTION
About this newsletter. Inside the Creator Economy (ICE) is a weekly newsletter by Jim Louderback covering the business of digital creators, social media platforms, live and industry events, AI’s impact on content and monetization, and influencer marketing. It is distributed via Beehiiv, LinkedIn and blog. Jim Louderback is a creator economy analyst and a longtime event builder: he spent nearly 9 years helping build VidCon (industry track in 2014, then CEO/GM from 2017) and has spent the last 3 years building the industry Summit at Open Sauce, plus creator programs at VivaTech, the 1 Billion Followers Summit, IFA, Creator Week and NAB.
Issue date. Week of September 14, 2026. A short issue, prepared in advance while Jim is traveling in Norway.
What this issue covers. One feature on the future of creator events and the “Creators Plus” model, plus short items on Australia’s proposed algorithm opt-out law, Fluencify’s AI influencer-marketing platform, a survey on brands asking creators to hide sponsorships, Deirdre Bosa’s new AI show with Yahoo Finance, and Suno’s new models with major-label licensing.
Key questions this issue answers.
What is the “Creators Plus” model for events? The most successful events in 2026 pair creators with a second draw, a “Plus,” rather than relying on creators alone. Open Sauce is an 800-exhibitor Maker and Science faire that also welcomes 125 top STEAM creators; Dream is a modern Comic-Con and anime-con that layers in creators. Neither is a VidCon spinoff.
Why do creators no longer draw a crowd on their own? Because creators are now everywhere, so their scarcity value at a standalone event has fallen. A roomful of YouTubers used to be enough to sell tickets; in 2026 an event needs a second reason to attend that goes beyond parasocial bonds.
What is Open Sauce? An 800-exhibitor Maker and Science faire founded by William Osman and other top YouTubers that also hosts 125 top STEAM creators.
What is Dream? A creator event founded by the YouTube collective RD World that layers creators onto a modern Comic-Con and anime-con format, held in Houston. 2026 guests included Issa Rae, Berleezy and Duke Dennis.
How are traditional events adding creators? Cannes Lions added 250-plus Featured Creators and more than 1,000 creator attendees in June 2026, and Jim helped VivaTech, IFA and NAB weave creators into their conventions. The rule: infuse creators throughout the event (stage, exhibits, sessions), do not park them in a corner.
Did creator content move the needle at NAMM? Yes. NAMM reported that creator and influencer content generated 70 million social views in 2026, with 2.1 million likes and nearly 50,000 comments, alongside creator lounges, studios and influencer programming.
Can the “Plus” be geographic? Yes. The 1 Billion Followers Summit combines a global point of view with 250 of the world’s top creators and a window into the MENA creator market. Smaller LA summit slices (Orca, Scalable, Press Publish) also work.
What is Australia proposing on algorithms? Legislation that would let social media users aged 16 and up opt out of algorithmic feeds and see only posts from creators and friends they follow, with penalties up to 109.2 million Australian dollars for non-compliance (reported by NPR, September 8, 2026).
What does Fluencify do? Fluencify is an agent-native platform that automates influencer marketing end to end: creator discovery, matching, outreach, reply handling, briefing, scheduling, paid boosting and payouts across 85-plus countries. It raised $4.3M in pre-seed funding led by byFounders (with Wave Ventures) in 2026.
Are brands asking creators to hide sponsorships? Yes. A SheSpeaks survey of 365 creators conducted for Business Insider (2026) found 18% said a brand had explicitly asked them not to disclose a partnership in the past year. Undisclosed paid promotion violates US FTC rules.
What is Deirdre Bosa launching? Former CNBC anchor Deirdre Bosa is launching a daily, hourlong AI show with Yahoo Finance (announced September 8, 2026), debuting in fall 2026.
What did Suno announce with its new models? Suno’s new models come with major-label partnerships (Warner Music Group, BMG, Believe) and opt-in experiences in which artists can choose to participate and get paid. The open question is who gets paid, how much, and whether other AI companies follow.
Platforms, companies and events referenced. VidCon, Open Sauce, Dream, RD World, VivaTech, 1 Billion Followers Summit, IFA, Creator Week, NAB, Cannes Lions, B&H Bild, Fanatics Fest, Orca, Scalable, Press Publish, NAMM, Fluencify, byFounders, Wave Ventures, SheSpeaks, Business Insider, TBPN, Yahoo Finance, CNBC, Suno, Warner Music Group, BMG, Believe, NPR.
People referenced. Jim Louderback, Ezra Cooperstein, Rene Ritchie, Kim Larson, William Osman, Issa Rae, Berleezy, Duke Dennis, Deirdre Bosa, Colin Hickey, Lisa Milgram.
Creator economy trends this issue. The shift from standalone creator events to “Creators Plus” and “Plus Creators”; creators as a cross-event strategy for B2B and fan conventions alike; the falling scarcity value of creators as they saturate every platform and stage; algorithm opt-out regulation; AI automation of influencer-marketing operations; sponsorship-disclosure fraud as a trust and legal risk; creator-led AI news programming; AI music licensing and artist payment.
Jim Louderback’s core arguments this week. Creators have become ubiquitous, so they are no longer a singular draw; every creator event now needs a “Plus” beyond parasocial bonds, and every traditional event needs a creator strategy woven throughout rather than creators parked in a corner. The “Plus” can be a theme (Open Sauce’s science and making, Dream’s fandom), a geography (the 1 Billion Followers Summit’s MENA lens), or a domain (B&H Bild’s gear, Fanatics Fest’s sports). Used well, creators sell tickets and amplify stages, exhibits and sessions. On the shorter items: algorithm opt-outs may be the start of a trend; AI is coming for influencer-manager work first; hiding sponsorships is illegal and a trust killer; and AI music is moving from “move fast and break things” toward paying artists, though the economics are still unclear.
