All the fundraising deals in the creator economy (from Q2 2025 to Q2 2026)
Download our beautiful pitch about the creator economy
In our creator economy deck, you will find everything you need to understand the market
Creator economy startups announced 58 funding rounds worth $2.86 billion from Q2 2025 through Q2 2026.
Creator economy funding mainly supported AI tools that help people produce videos, music, images and other digital content.
Funding remained highly concentrated, with the ten largest creator economy rounds capturing almost 66% of all capital.
And if you want to better understand this new industry, you can download our pitch covering the creator economy.
Insights
- Creator economy startups raised $2.86 billion across 58 deals, but the ten largest rounds captured 65.7% of all funding.
- Content-production software attracted about 63% of creator economy funding, supported by strong investor interest in AI video, music, voice and editing tools.
- Q4 2025 was the strongest quarter, with $1.04 billion raised across 14 creator economy funding deals.
- Q2 2026 reached $441.1 million, but Suno alone contributed $400 million, or 90.7% of the quarter’s total.
- Q1 2026 recorded 13 creator economy deals but only $185.7 million, showing strong startup formation with fewer large rounds.
- The average creator economy deal was $49.2 million, although several very large AI funding rounds pushed this figure higher.
- Only three creator economy rounds were below $2 million, and all three were announced during Q1 2026.
- Fourteen creator economy rounds exceeded $50 million, showing that investors continued to support a small group of established market leaders.
- Creator commerce, advertising and monetization startups raised about $752 million, led by Whatnot, ShopMy, Agentio and FanBasis.
- India and Southeast Asia produced several creator economy startups, but most funding rounds above $50 million went to North American companies.
This market map, featured in our creator economy deck, highlights top companies and startups in the creator economy
Summary table of the funding deals in the creator economy (last 5 quarters)
We define the creator economy as people and small teams who build an online audience and earn money from the content or ideas they produce.
We include video and audio creators, writers, streamers, educators, community builders and other audience-first creators, plus the platforms, tools and services that help them create, grow and monetize.
We exclude traditional media companies, gig workers like drivers or delivery couriers, and small businesses whose main activity is selling products or services rather than making content for an audience.
You can also read our detailed analysis to understand how funding activity in the creator economy has evolved over the last few years.
Also, you should know that we have a dedicated page, updated weekly, with all the latest fundraising deals in the creator economy.
| Name | What they do | Amount in $ | Quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runway | Provides generative video models and editing tools for filmmakers and digital creators. | $308M | Q2 2025 |
| Manychat | Helps creators turn social-media conversations into leads, sales and customer relationships. | $140M | Q2 2025 |
| Animaj | Builds digital children’s franchises using creator-led intellectual property and automated production. | $85M | Q2 2025 |
| Cartesia | Develops fast voice-generation models for interactive audio and creator applications. | $64M | Q2 2025 |
| Krea | Offers one workspace for generating and editing images and videos. | $47M | Q2 2025 |
| LiveKit | Provides real-time audio and video infrastructure for livestreaming and interactive applications. | $45M | Q2 2025 |
| Hedra | Creates character-led videos from text, images and audio. | $32M | Q2 2025 |
| Dubverse | Helps video creators dub and localize content into multiple languages. | $30M | Q2 2025 |
| FanBasis | Helps creators sell memberships, services, products and experiences. | $20M | Q2 2025 |
| Loti AI | Finds and removes unauthorized deepfakes and misuse of creators’ likenesses. | $16.2M | Q2 2025 |
| Delphi | Helps experts create interactive AI versions of their knowledge and personality. | $16M | Q2 2025 |
| Creatify | Generates short video advertisements from product links, scripts and brand materials. | $15.5M | Q2 2025 |
| Capsule | Provides AI-assisted video editing for creator, marketing and media teams. | $12M | Q2 2025 |
| TYB | Helps brands build communities and collaborate with fans and creators. | $11M | Q2 2025 |
| Nectar Social | Uses AI agents to turn social-media conversations into engagement and sales. | $10.6M | Q2 2025 |
| Cheehoo | Develops AI-assisted animation and production tools for artists and content teams. | $10M | Q2 2025 |
| Linguana | Localizes YouTube channels so creators can reach and monetize new audiences. | $8.5M | Q2 2025 |
| Respondology | Moderates harmful comments and manages online conversations for creators and brands. | $5M | Q2 2025 |
| Superfiliate | Provides affiliate and creator-marketing software for consumer brands. | $2.1M | Q2 2025 |
| Chai Shots | Produces and distributes short serialized mobile dramas for Indian audiences. | $5M | Q3 2025 |
| Moonvalley | Develops generative video models trained on licensed content for professional creators. | $84M | Q3 2025 |
| Substack | Helps independent creators publish content and earn money from subscriptions. | $100M | Q3 2025 |
| STAN | Connects Indian gaming creators, players and fans through communities and rewards. | $8.5M | Q3 2025 |
| Higgsfield | Creates cinematic AI videos for advertising, social media and digital storytelling. | $50M | Q3 2025 |
| PixVerse | Provides AI video-generation software for creators and social-media users. | $60M | Q3 2025 |
| CreatorDB | Provides creator discovery, influencer data and campaign analysis for brands. | $4.67M | Q3 2025 |
| ShopMy | Helps creators operate affiliate storefronts and manage brand collaborations. | $70M | Q4 2025 |
| Wonder Studios | Supports independent entertainment creators with AI production tools and financing. | $12M | Q4 2025 |
| Whatnot | Lets creators sell collectibles and consumer products through livestreams. | $225M | Q4 2025 |
| Mantayay | Operates creator networks and livestream-commerce services across Southeast Asia. | $5M | Q4 2025 |
| Agentio | Automates creator advertising campaigns across YouTube, Meta and other platforms. | $40M | Q4 2025 |
| Suno | Generates complete songs from written prompts for musicians and creators. | $250M | Q4 2025 |
| Palo AI | Provides research, analytics and content ideas for online creators. | $3.8M | Q4 2025 |
| Mirelo | Generates synchronized sound effects for videos and AI-media workflows. | $41M | Q4 2025 |
| Fixated | Provides talent management, production and distribution services for digital creators. | $50M | Q4 2025 |
| Humanz | Helps brands discover creators and manage influencer campaigns and payments. | $15M | Q4 2025 |
| GammaTime | Distributes short serialized dramas created for mobile audiences. | $14M | Q4 2025 |
| Snappr | Connects businesses with photographers and manages visual-content production workflows. | $28M | Q4 2025 |
| Kuku FM | Offers Indian-language audio stories, podcasts and serialized microdramas. | $85M | Q4 2025 |
| Synthesia | Generates avatar-led videos without cameras, actors or conventional production. | $200M | Q4 2025 |
| Fanvue | Helps creators sell subscriptions and paid content directly to fans. | $22M | Q1 2026 |
| MITO AI | Provides a collaborative workspace for producing AI-native videos and commercials. | $4.5M | Q1 2026 |
| Mirage | Provides AI video creation and editing tools for social-media creators. | $75M | Q1 2026 |
| Flora | Connects image, video and text models in one visual creative workspace. | $42M | Q1 2026 |
| Mozart AI | Offers a generative audio workstation for musicians, producers and music creators. | $6M | Q1 2026 |
| Luupli | Helps creators co-create, distribute, own and monetize social content. | $0.6M | Q1 2026 |
| Wishlink | Connects Indian creators’ recommendations and storefronts with online purchases. | $17.5M | Q1 2026 |
| Mogul | Helps musicians find missing royalties and correct music-catalogue registrations. | $5M | Q1 2026 |
| AKEDO | Helps creators produce and monetize collections of digital content. | $5M | Q1 2026 |
| Devotion | Automates influencer, ambassador and creator programs for brands. | $4M | Q1 2026 |
| Levellr | Turns online community conversations into structured audience insights. | $2.5M | Q1 2026 |
| Deaku | Provides creator analytics, planning, communication and team collaboration tools. | $0.61M | Q1 2026 |
| Fanon | Lets fans create and share alternative stories and fictional universes. | $1M | Q1 2026 |
| Pickmybrain | Helps experts monetize interactive AI versions of their knowledge. | $2.1M | Q2 2026 |
| ComfyUI | Provides node-based workflows for AI image, video and audio generation. | $30M | Q2 2026 |
| Clouted | Tests short-form videos through creator networks to identify viral content. | $7M | Q2 2026 |
| K25.ai | Provides interactive livestreaming and prediction experiences for creators and gaming audiences. | $2M | Q2 2026 |
| Suno | Generates music and supports collaborative creation for artists and online creators. | $400M | Q2 2026 |
In our creator economy deck, we identify pain points entrepreneurs should prioritize
How has funding activity in the creator economy changed over time?
Q4 2025 was the most active quarter, with $1.04 billion raised across 14 deals, including large rounds for Suno, Whatnot and Synthesia.
Q1 2026 raised the least capital because the creator economy recorded many early-stage deals and only one round above $50 million.
Creator economy funding increased by 137.5% from Q1 2026 to Q2 2026, but Q2 2026 funding was still 49.8% below Q2 2025.
Without the largest one or two rounds in each quarter, creator economy funding was much more stable and remained focused on small and medium-sized deals. Q2 2026 would have been the weakest quarter without Suno’s $400 million round.
| Quarter | Number of deals | Total raised ($) | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | $878M | Runway and Manychat contributed more than half of the quarter’s creator economy funding. |
| Q3 2025 | 7 | $312M | Substack, Moonvalley and PixVerse accounted for most of the quarter’s capital. |
| Q4 2025 | 14 | $1.04B | Several large rounds created the strongest and most balanced quarter in the period. |
| Q1 2026 | 13 | $186M | Deal activity stayed high, but most creator economy rounds were relatively small. |
| Q2 2026 | 5 | $441M | Suno supplied more than 90% of the quarter’s creator economy funding. |
| All quarters | 58 | $2.86B | Creator economy funding was led by a limited number of large AI and commerce rounds. |
This chart, included in our creator economy deck, breaks down beehiiv’s strategy in the creator economy
Which startups in the creator economy raised the largest rounds over the last months?
These startups raised the most recently in the creator economy:
- Suno raised $400 million to improve its music models, develop licensing systems and build more collaborative creation products.
- Runway raised $308 million to train new video models, expand computing infrastructure and support AI-powered filmmaking.
- Suno raised $250 million to improve music generation, strengthen licensing infrastructure and reach more users.
- Whatnot raised $225 million to enter new markets, add product categories and improve tools for livestream sellers.
- Synthesia raised $200 million to improve avatar video models and expand professional video workflows.
- Manychat raised $140 million to add AI features and expand its messaging automation platform internationally.
- Substack raised $100 million to expand video, mobile applications, payments and international operations.
- Animaj raised $85 million to acquire children’s franchises and make digital-content production faster.
- Kuku FM raised $85 million to expand its Indian-language audio catalogue and produce more serialized stories.
- Moonvalley raised $84 million to scale its licensed video model and support professional filmmakers.
And, yes, we do cover most of them in our our beautiful pitch about the creator economy.
You may also want to check our ranking of the most funded startups in the creator economy as well as our list of the most valued startups.
This chart, included in our creator economy deck, shows annual funding in creator economy startups
Is the creator economy shifting toward smaller or bigger deals?
The average creator economy funding round was $49.2 million across the five-quarter period.
The quarterly average ranged from $14.3 million in Q1 2026 to $88.2 million in Q2 2026. A few very large creator economy rounds caused most of this difference.
Without the largest rounds, the creator economy would show a steadier market built mainly around seed, Series A and medium-sized growth deals.
| Quarter | Number of deals | Average deal size | Deals below $2M | Deals above $50M |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | $46.21M | 0 | 4 |
| Q3 2025 | 7 | $44.60M | 0 | 3 |
| Q4 2025 | 14 | $74.20M | 0 | 5 |
| Q1 2026 | 13 | $14.29M | 3 | 1 |
| Q2 2026 | 5 | $88.22M | 0 | 1 |
| All quarters | 58 | $49.24M | 3 | 14 |
This chart, included in our creator economy deck, compares the main business model options for creator monetization platforms
How concentrated was funding activity in the creator economy?
Creator economy funding was highly concentrated, and the largest deal represented at least 24% of funding in every quarter. Q2 2026 was the clearest example, because Suno captured 90.7% of the quarter’s capital.
This concentration shows that creator economy investors supported many startups, but reserved the largest checks for established AI production and commerce platforms.
| Quarter | Number of deals | Top 1 | Top 3 | Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | 35.1% | 60.7% | 89.7% |
| Q3 2025 | 7 | 32.0% | 78.2% | 100.0% |
| Q4 2025 | 14 | 24.1% | 65.0% | 96.6% |
| Q1 2026 | 13 | 40.4% | 74.8% | 98.8% |
| Q2 2026 | 5 | 90.7% | 99.1% | 100.0% |
| All quarters | 58 | 14.0% | 33.5% | 65.7% |
This chart, featured in our creator economy deck, illustrates the revenue mix across customer segments in the creator economy
Which categories in the creator economy received the most funding?
Content-production software raised about $1.79 billion, or roughly 63% of all creator economy funding. Investors made large bets on AI video, music, voice and editing tools that can serve millions of creators.
Creator commerce, advertising and monetization raised about $752 million, or roughly 26% of the total. These businesses connect creator activity with measurable sales, advertising and subscription revenue.
Creator platforms, services and infrastructure raised about $318 million, or roughly 11% of funding. This category had many deals, but most rounds were smaller than the leading AI production rounds.
| Category | Number of deals | Total raised | Startups and amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Content-production software | 23 | About $1.79B | Suno ($650M), Runway ($308M), Synthesia ($200M), Moonvalley ($84M), Mirage ($75M), Cartesia ($64M), PixVerse ($60M), Higgsfield ($50M), Krea ($47M), Flora ($42M), Mirelo ($41M), Hedra ($32M), Dubverse ($30M), ComfyUI ($30M), Creatify ($15.5M), Delphi ($16M), Capsule ($12M), Cheehoo ($10M), Mozart AI ($6M), AKEDO ($5M), MITO AI ($4.5M) and Wonder Studios ($12M) |
| Creator commerce, advertising and monetization | 15 | About $752M | Whatnot ($225M), ShopMy ($70M), Agentio ($40M), FanBasis ($20M), Fanvue ($22M), Wishlink ($17.5M), Humanz ($15M), Nectar Social ($10.6M), TYB ($11M), CreatorDB ($4.67M), Devotion ($4M), Superfiliate ($2.1M), Mogul ($5M) and Pickmybrain ($2.1M) |
| Creator platforms, services and infrastructure | 20 | About $318M | Manychat ($140M), Animaj ($85M), Substack ($100M), Kuku FM ($85M), Fixated ($50M), LiveKit ($45M), Snappr ($28M), Loti AI ($16.2M), GammaTime ($14M), STAN ($8.5M), Mantayay ($5M), Chai Shots ($5M), Clouted ($7M), Palo AI ($3.8M), Respondology ($5M), Levellr ($2.5M), Luupli ($0.6M), Deaku ($0.61M), Fanon ($1M) and K25.ai ($2M) |
This chart, included in our creator economy deck, shows how audience growth distribution tool technology has evolved over time
Who are the biggest investors in the creator economy?
Andreessen Horowitz was the most active disclosed creator economy investor, with five recorded deals across AI production, publishing and livestream commerce.
Menlo Ventures participated in four disclosed creator economy investments, including major funding for Suno and Higgsfield.
Lightspeed Venture Partners appeared in three creator economy deals involving music, voice and collaborative video tools.
AlleyCorp appeared in three disclosed investments connected with creator advertising and commerce.
Bain Capital Ventures backed Krea and ShopMy, covering both AI production and creator commerce.
BOND invested in Substack and Whatnot, two large creator platforms with strong monetization models.
Benchmark participated in two Agentio financings connected with automated creator advertising.
Craft Ventures also participated in two Agentio financings.
Y Combinator appeared in the Moonvalley and Whatnot investor groups.
Greycroft invested in GammaTime and Whatnot, covering mobile storytelling and livestream commerce.
Disclaimer: this investor list may be incomplete; we focus on publicly disclosed lead and prominent recurring investors, so some frequent minority participants may be underrepresented. “Total funded” does not represent the amount personally invested by an individual investor. Instead, it refers to the aggregate amount raised across all fundraising rounds in which the investor participated.
| Investor | Number of deals | Total funded | Startups |
|---|---|---|---|
| Andreessen Horowitz | 5 | $445M | Hedra, Krea, Mirelo, Substack and Whatnot |
| Menlo Ventures | 4 | At least $400M | Suno, Higgsfield, ShopMy and ComfyUI |
| Lightspeed Venture Partners | 3 | At least $319M | Suno, Cartesia and MITO AI |
| AlleyCorp | 3 | At least $110M | Agentio, ShopMy and creator-commerce follow-on participation |
| Bain Capital Ventures | 2 | $117M | Krea and ShopMy |
| BOND | 2 | $325M | Substack and Whatnot |
| Benchmark | 2 | At least $40M | Agentio and an earlier or follow-on financing |
| Craft Ventures | 2 | At least $40M | Agentio and an earlier or follow-on financing |
| Y Combinator | 2 | $309M | Moonvalley and Whatnot |
| Greycroft | 2 | $239M | GammaTime and Whatnot |
This chart, included in our creator economy deck, shows how platform monetization has driven growth in the creator economy over time
Related blog posts
- A complete list of funding deals in the creator economy
- Which companies have raised the most funding in the creator economy?
- How strong is fundraising in the creator economy right now?
