Hey Creatorverse readers,
“There’s no magic button.”
That remark about AI from Nik Kleverov, the co-founder and CCO of the AI-focused storytelling platform Native Foreign, best summed up the tone of TheWrap and What’s Trending’s first ever AI Creator Day. A deep dive into how the creator ecosystem interacts with the emerging technology, the daylong event at UCLA was the precursor to TheGrill 2026.
There was overall a positive tone to the day (and way more hype-up screaming than you would expect). Most of the attendees were either creators who use generative AI to make content or professionals directly connected to the AI industry. But though the event was more pro-AI than the average theater full of hundreds of people, there was a note of caution woven throughout the event. Repeatedly, panelists emphasized that AI is here to stay, and the top studios are already using it. If you’re not, you may already be behind.
Jon Flynn, the executive vice president and head of FoxNXT for Fox Entertainment, revealed that Fox Entertainment has seen creatives incorporate potential AI savings into their pitches. Don Allen III, director of A.R.T (Asteria Research and Technology), said that he’s started using AI to make personalized client briefs and cautioned AI storytellers “If you’re going to tell AI stories, then you have to have really good stories.” But perhaps one of the most surprising stories came from comedian Vincent Marcus, a creator who has embraced the AI character creation tool Cantina to showcase his characters.
“The technology is already here. I do voice acting as well, and so I’m already preparing for my job to not exist,” Marcus said. “I recognize that could limit job opportunities in the future, and it would be ignorant for me to not get ready for that.”
Of course, the nature of the event attracted a very specific crowd. But for even the most AI-opposed individual, the fact that AI has changed the creator ecosystem remains true. Even if you’re staunchly opposed to this technology, Google’s AI overlays are difficult to avoid. All of the major social media platforms — YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and Snap — have AI tools for creators directly integrated into their services, and AI-powered data analytics tools have revolutionized how many creators approach their channels. And if you manage to avoid all of that, there are still deepfakes to worry about.
This isn’t to say that every creator is approaching AI with rose-colored glasses. As the Hank Green debacle demonstrated, audiences are more sensitive to creators using AI than ever before. One professional I spoke to on the brand side told me they fully avoid creators who use AI, simply because when these creators post content, the comments become more about AI usage than the actual brand.
But as creators remain on the front lines of media’s evolution, it’s clear that they’re grappling with this divisive yet potentially time-saving tech at a rate faster than almost anyone else.
Now onto the rest.
Kayla Cobb
Senior Reporter
kayla.cobb@thewrap.com
What’s New
Guy Raz’s “How I Built This” leaves NPR for Vox Media
“How I Built This,” the podcast that Guy Raz has hosted for a decade, is moving to Vox Media as the show expands into video, live events and more episodes. As part of this deal, Raz acquired full full ownership of the franchise. Vox Media will handle sales, marketing, distribution, business operations and live-event support under the new partnership. The financial terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed.
Fun fact: Raz is one of Oren Rosenbaum’s clients, a partner and co-head of UTA Creators, who spoke with me yesterday at AI Creator Day. Check out our conversation here.
Jubilee is partnering with CNN on a town hall with Texas US Senate candidate James Talarico
Jubilee, the digital media company behind viral shows like “Surrounded” and “The Split,” is partnering with CNN on a political event. The two will host a town hall featuring James Talarico, the Senate candidate who recently made headlines after the FCC under the Trump administration pressured networks to pull an interview he did on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The YouTube version of the interview ended up scoring 13 million views, so that didn’t really work out.
CNN anchor Erin Burnett will lead the interview ahead of November’s midterm elections. Jubilee will help CNN develop the programming around the town hall, which will first air on CNN before Jubilee posts the full interview to its 11-million-subscriber YouTube channel.
Meta and YouTube restore ads for Alex Gibney’s Elon Musk documentary
After facing a wave of backlash and negative press attention, both Meta and YouTube are now running ads for Bleecker Street’s “Musk,” which focuses on the owner of X.
“This was an error and we’re restoring the ads,” a Meta spokesperson told TheWrap. As for YouTube, a representative for the company pointed out that the trailer for the doc has always been available on the platform. “When submitted as an ad, it was temporarily restricted by our system,” a representative for YouTube said in a statement. “Following review the ad has been cleared to run.”
Platform Updates
Instagram is bringing an AI video assistant tool to Edits
A conversational AI chatbot is coming to Instagram’s Edits, the platform’s competitor to the video editing software CapCut. The offering is designed to give creators personalized advice about their account instead of generic feedback. YouTube launched a similar offering last year with its Ask Studio option.
TikTok settles teen addiction lawsuit in Alabama for $100 million
Another day, another social media settlement. TikTok has agreed to pay the state of Alabama $100 million as part of a settlement tied to a case about the negative effects of social media on children and teenagers. As part of the settlement, TikTok will make several changes on the platform for teen users in the state, including the option for underage users to select a non-personalized content feed.
Speaking of the rise of social media addiction lawsuits, YouTube has declined to be part of Meta’s $18 billion child safety lawsuit. One of the conditions of Meta’s multi-state settlement was that its rivals, YouTube and TikTok, would also pay about $6 billion each. “We’re a very different platform [from Meta],” Neal Mohan said last week. As for TikTok, the platform has reportedly removed Meta ads following pressure from the other company.
Some Cantina accounts have already reached over 200,000 followers on the platform
That’s an insight that the senior director of partnerships Katherine Rundell revealed during AI Creator Day. Chances are high you’ve encountered the AI-powered character creation platform before. A lot of people in my feed have been sharing truly unhinged Cantina-fueled breakup videos. But, hey, I’m talking about it.
Movers and Shakers
Curry Barker’s “Anything But Ghosts” will premiere in May 2027
The follow-up to Barker’s “Obsession” will be out next spring, May 7 to be exact. “Anything But Ghosts” comes from Focus Features and Blumhouse-Atomic Monster and is being described as a horror-comedy. Barker serves as the director and co-writer of the movie.
Law & Crime adds six creators to its fall 2026 slate
Law & Crime, the digital network with over 7.7 million YouTube subscribers that covers live court videos, has added six creators to its lineup of shows. Those shows include “Boze vs. The World” from creator Ericka Bozeman, “Code 3” from Drop Dead Serious’ Ashleigh Banfield, “Court Junkie” from podcast host Jillian Jalali, “Justice with Matt Johnson” with the award-winning correspondent, “MissInformation” hosted by journalist Marcella Baietto and “Court Wars” from Court TV anchor Cody Thomas.
A.J. Gentile accuses Night of violating the Talent Agencies Act and owing him over $700,000
The host of the conspiracy theories podcast “The Why Files” A.J. Gentile is accusing Night Media of violating the Talent Agencies Act, an act that states only companies registered as agencies in California can negotiate employment for clients, which includes brand deals and sponsorships. Gentile claims the company owes him $743,988 in commissions. A management firm founded by Reed Duchscher, Night represents several top creators like Kai Cenat and Hasan Piker.
@infiniteelliott Episode 5 #theapologytour ♬ original sound – elliott walker
Who to Watch
Elliott Walker
Walker’s (578,000 TikTok followers) apology tour is exactly my kind of warped. Each episode of his TikTok series follows Walker as he apologizes to a different person in his life, which seems sweet but is actually unhinged. Walker’s sins range from catfishing a date to starting a fire in college and blaming a close friend for arson, causing her to get kicked out of college. No apologies happen, but this one is guaranteed to make lovers of cringe comedy laugh.
Bonus Content
- Meta’s Best Month Since 2013 Has It on Cusp of $2 Trillion Level (via Bloomberg)
- The Hottest New Hangout for Middle Schoolers is NPR’s Comment Section? (via TechCrunch)
- Black Twitter Is Thriving — on Threads (via Wired)
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This report provides a weekly deep dive into the creator economy. It highlights key trends, political and technological developments, data points and industry leaders all with the goal of making you smarter about this constantly evolving space.