For the next piece in our 2026 predictions series, we asked a range of experts from across the ad industry what changes they predict for the creator economy next year. What kind of content will dominate, and how will the sector compete with traditional media?

It has been another huge year for the creator economy: as we approach the end of 2025, the sector’s global value is projected to hit over £190bn. The US remains a leading market, with ad spend expected to reach a total of hit USD$37bn (£27.80bn) by the end of this year. 

It’s a thriving industry: despite the economic uncertainty, average annual influencer marketing investment has increased by 171% year-over-year. 

Creators now play a role in almost any industry you can think of: travel, fitness, fashion, beauty, culinary, gaming, language learning, finance…the list goes on. What’s more, the creator economy has undergone a professionalisation: creators are now running their own businesses, becoming strategic partners for brands.

As the creator economy evolves amidst an ever-changing ad landscape, how are things shaping up for the future? Like with most industries, AI is playing a major role in developments. 

AI technologies have been able to assist creators in several ways, such as providing data-driven insights and analysis on user behaviour and market trends to help shape their strategies. 

But where there are benefits, there are also challenges. According to research from Billion Dollar Boy, more than six in ten creators are worried that virtual influencers are increasing competition. And surprisingly, consumer favourability appears to be high, with 76% of consumers trusting virtual influencers for product recommendations. Could we see competition intensify between real and virtual influencers in the coming years? 

Elsewhere, what kind of content will dominate? How will we see the battle of short versus long-form content play out? 

Plus, how will the creator economy compete with traditional media? 

We asked experts from across the ad industry what could shape the creator space next year, and what the space is likely to look like. 

From the margins to the mainstream: The next era of storytelling 

The convergence of creators and media isn’t a passing trend. It’s the blueprint for the next era of storytelling.

The creator world has quickly moved from the margins to the mainstream and is cementing its growing dominance in the mix. Creators aren’t simply influencers, their impact limited to social feeds. They’re genuine media powerhouses shaping the future of news, entertainment and commerce.

Reuters Institute recently found that the under-35s are more likely to consume news content via creators than they are through traditional channels (48% vs 41%). Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Substack and YouTube are primary audience destinations, driving demand for authentic, personality-led storytelling and opening new avenues of opportunity for media owners and brands alike. Our channels alone have already delivered over 70M views for brands.

This influence lingers too: IPA research found creator campaigns drive higher long-term ROI than linear TV or paid social. Because of this, more and more brands are turning to creators, highlighted by Unilever's recent announcement to increase its investment in creators by 20x.

Media owners can take advantage of this seismic shift by adopting a creator-centric approach to their content and developing innovative ways to work with creators whilst retaining IP. However, with concerns around transparency, ownerships and brand safety in this space, publishers can provide an invaluable service to brands by helping them to tap into the power of creators within a trusted and tested environment whilst bringing journalistic rigour and decades of experience in news, entertainment and lifestyle storytelling to the table.

The question isn’t a matter of when creator and media convergence takes place, but how quickly they can innovate together. Publishers are perfectly placed to explore this new frontier. 

Hannah Blake, Managing Director Creator & New Media, DMG

Brands must let creators do what they do best 

In 2025, brands have increased influencer spend by reallocating from paid and digital advertising budgets and this is set to accelerate – fuelled by recent IPA research that Influencers have comparable short- and long-term ROI to channels like linear TV.

The most successful creators today are media moguls in their own right. They have gone ‘pro’, pioneering the new era of TV in which streaming distribution on social platforms has overtaken the broadcast model, creating and serialising content and episodic dramas. Moreover, AI has further democratised the creator economy. Emerging creators are now able to create content with easy-to-use apps like CapCut, and leverage the algorithm to reach even the sub-atomic fringes of culture, rally niche communities and gain the critical mass to fame.

In 2026, opportunities abound for brands to tap into the cultural power of creators and the relationships they build with their fan communities. However, you can borrow their influence if – and only if – you respect their intuition. Brands must let creators do what they do best and co-create by featuring the brand in a natural and non-disruptive way. Creators thrive by knowing what works best to retain their fans, so let them do their thing. Sometimes, we forget that we are not in the business of advertising, but the business of people. There are many devils in the detail, so in 2026, brands will also need to partner with end-to-end specialists who can help them to identify the right creators, and measure success across social, digital, and affiliate marketing.

Ci En Lee, Senior Media Strategist, Publicis Media Singapore 

Reckoning with visibility obsession 

I predict that 2026 will be the year the creator industry finally reckons with its visibility obsession. I think brands will start to realise that booking recognisable TikTokers and chasing fast cultural wins does not always build long-term influence or strong ROI. Consequently, I think budgets will shift back toward creators who offer community, credibility, and craft.

I think we’ll also see a rise in hybrid creator–media models, where founders and creators produce higher-quality editorial content that competes directly with traditional media. Whereas, the micro creators who built their careers on Instagram will need to adapt to TikTok’s pace and personality-driven style or risk being squeezed out.

And finally, I think we’ll see a rise in long-form YouTube content as creators push back against short-term algorithms and invest in deeper storytelling that builds loyalty, trust, and genuine audience retention.

Charlotte Stavrou, Founder, SevenSix Agency 

Advertisers will treat creators inside games as a mainstream channel in their media mix

As gaming accelerates its rise as an important entertainment medium, 2026 will mark a tipping point where advertisers treat creators inside games as a mainstream channel in their media mix.

‘In-Game Creators’ – modders, map-makers, server owners, and app developers – are rapidly becoming the primary gateway to billions of players across thousands of premium attention environments. A major signal came last year when Roblox partnered with Google, and The Trade Desk onboarded Overwolf as the first premium gaming platform to join OpenPath, giving buyers direct, programmatic access to hundreds of top games through world-leading creator ecosystems.

This shift is reinforced by the growing emphasis on attention quality. Adelaide’s AU attention metric rose sharply in importance last year, and as AI-generated 'slop' continues to erode the value of social media environments, advertisers will move budget into in-game creator worlds where lean-forward gameplay consistently delivers higher attention and stronger brand impact. 

Nathan Lindberg, Head of US Brand Partnerships, Overwolf Ads 

By 2026, creators and media will not just converge — they will be indistinguishable

By 2026, I do not think creators and media will just converge; they will be indistinguishable. The smartest publishers are already behaving like talent managers, building creator-led IP, not just renting eyeballs with display inventory. At the same time, the most sophisticated creators are small media companies, with audience data, formats, distribution strategies and commercial leads.

The real shift will be ownership. Instead of publishers commissioning creators for one-off campaigns, we will see long-term joint ventures where formats, audiences and revenue are shared. Success will belong to the brands and publishers who treat creators as creative directors and co-founders of franchises, not as media lines on a spreadsheet. In that world, the question is not if creators and media will converge, it is which creators you want at the centre of your editorial strategy. Those who move first will lock in the most valuable relationships early.

Mark Keisner, Chief Strategy Officer, Multiple

Engagements and views are dropping off as KPIs, replaced by a demand for real impact

Media landscapes will keep fragmenting in 2026, but there’s no need for pearl clutching. This is an opportunity - one that makes the role of media strategists more vital than ever. We’re moving towards distributed influence: marketing activity that’s no longer siloed, but living and breathing as a single organism.

Influencer briefs are shifting, too. Engagements and views are dropping off as KPIs, replaced by a demand for real impact. ROI and sales are now the markers of success. To deliver this, creator work needs to be embedded into brand creative platforms, tap into native shopping features, and yes, co-create alongside media amplification rather than sit apart from it.

Creator activations that align with performance realities while still doing what creators do best: telling stories, shaping culture, and activating a loyal community of advocates.

Chloe Singleton, Performance Director, eight&four