Skip to content
Photo: Mario Gogh on Unsplash
Data
From marketing tactic to infrastructure: who is buying
Ad holding companies came first, then software platforms, now consultancies and private equity. The first half of 2026 set a record for creator-economy deals.
Updated
- 70creator-economy acquisitions in the first half of 2026, up 23% on a year earlierQuartermast Advisors, Jul 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- 100+deals projected for the whole of 2026Quartermast Advisors, Jul 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- 27.1%of first-half deals bought media businesses, the largest categoryQuartermast Advisors via Net Influencer (opens in a new tab)
- 8of the 50 platforms in this atlas now belong to another companyIntelligentHQ research, Nov 2026
Creator-economy acquisitions
Quartermast revises earlier periods as deals come to light. Source: Quartermast Advisors (opens in a new tab).
Show the figures as a table
| Period | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 69 | netinfluencer.com (opens in a new tab) |
| 2024 | 69 | netinfluencer.com (opens in a new tab) (first reported as 65 in Jan 2025) |
| 2025 | 81 | netinfluencer.com (opens in a new tab) (Jan 2026 report; H1 2026 coverage cites 87 for 2025) |
| H1 2024 | 30 | tubefilter.com (opens in a new tab) |
| H1 2025 | 52 | tubefilter.com (opens in a new tab) (implied ~57 by the H1 2026 +23% figure) |
| H1 2026 | 70 | netinfluencer.com (opens in a new tab) |
What was bought, first half of 2026, % of 70 deals
Source: Quartermast Advisors via Net Influencer (opens in a new tab).
Last reported valuations
-
ElevenLabsAI-native creation
$22bn
$300m employee tender, Sep 2026 (opens in a new tab)
-
SynthesiaAI-native creation
$4bn
$200m Series E, Jan 2026 (opens in a new tab)
-
ShopMyManagement and commerce
$1.5bn
$70m Series C, Oct 2025 (opens in a new tab)
-
SubstackOwned audience
about $1.1bn
$100m Series C, reported by the New York Times, Jul 2025 (opens in a new tab)
-
HeyGenAI-native creation
$500m
$60m Series A, Jun 2024 (opens in a new tab)
-
AgentioMarketplaces
$340m
$40m Series B, Nov 2025 (opens in a new tab)
-
beehiivOwned audience
about $225m
$33m Series B, a CB Insights figure; beehiiv did not disclose it, Apr 2024 (opens in a new tab)
Figures are press-reported or company-announced, not audited.