Nicole Lapin

Now, I'm sure we are all so, so happy for him.

But let's talk about what this means for the rest of us.

Like I said, the creator economy is not niche anymore.

It's one of the fastest growing markets in the world.

But the good news is because it's turning into such an established industry, you won't have to be an influencer that spends 40 hours counting to 100,000 in order to get a piece of that growth.

Just like you don't have to be an AI engineer to get a piece of the AI industry.

That's because institutional money is paying attention.

Creator economy startups raised over $767 million between 2023 and 2024.

Traditional media companies, private equity firms, and venture funds are all circling.

So here are three ways to benefit from the growth of the creator economy.

Option one, the infrastructure layer.

Full disclosure here, this is where I think the risk reward is least understood.

Companies like Patreon, Substack, and other subscription-first platforms are enabling an entirely new revenue model for creators.

Recurring subscription income that doesn't depend on ad algorithms.

Most of these companies are private, but as the space matures, IPOs will come and these will be worth watching closely.

In the meantime, you can look at publicly traded companies building creator tools, analytics platforms, production software, content management systems.

But many of these companies are racing to own the market.

When it comes to business competition, there's no such thing as a tie.

It's not like three competitors get three equal slices of the pie.

It's a winner takes most model.