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TOGETHER WITH |
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It's Monday and Meta is giving away free AI shades. According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, all legally blind US veterans can claim a complimentary pair of Ray-Ban Meta glasses. |
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Today’s News |
⚾ MLB launches “Players Studio” 🛑 Spotify removes 57K AI episodes 🤝 LinkedIn debuts a Creator Marketplace 🏋️♀️ A bodybuilder drops a cookie line 🎙️ This week on the podcast…
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PLAY BALL |
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Major League Baseball wants in on creator content. |
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The MLB’s “Players Studio” will turn sluggers into content creators |
The launch: With its lengthy 162-game schedule, Major League Baseball often struggles to generate as much buzz as other sporting events—and the all-encompassing hype surrounding the World Cup, NBA Finals, French Open, and Stanley Cup Finals isn’t helping. |
To fix that problem, the MLB Players Association is leveling up its presence in the creator economy. As the 2026 season got underway, a deal between the league and TikTok foreshadowed an increased amount of creator-led baseball content. Now, in an effort to turn its biggest stars into recognizable celebrities, the labor union representing professional Major and Minor League players is using its business arm MLB Players Inc. to launch MLB Players Studio, a new content company focused on talent incubation, brand partnerships, and original programming. |
The content: MLB Players Inc. has enlisted content studio Portal A to produce four original series set on the diamond. Catching Up will turn games of catch into interviews, Set Up Man will spotlight MLB pranksters, 6th Tool Sessions will explore players’ off-field passions, and Lore Drop will bring notable moments from baseball history to TikTok. |
To go along with those originals, the baseball organization is also creating opportunities for current and former players by working with sports representation and marketing agency Athletes First. After forging connections between brands and NFL players, Athletes First is now rounding the bases. |
One program that exemplifies the MLB Players Studio strategy is Werth Talking About, a video podcast hosted by Jayson Werth. The former Philadelphia Phillies fan favorite will bring frank conversations to the MLB’s All-Star Game. When fans and players gather in Philly next month for the Midsummer Classic, Werth and his microphone will be there with bells on. |
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Artlist is partnering with Insidious producer Steven Schneider to develop an AI-hybrid feature film |
Paranormal Activity and Insidious producer Steven Schneider is joining forces with AI production platform Artlist and AI studio Secret Level to develop a fully union-compliant AI-powered feature film. |
Terrarium is an AI-hybrid horror feature written and directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Jason Zada and produced by Christina Lee Storm (Nate Parker’s Newborn, Jurassic Punk) for Secret Level. |
Artlist will serve as financier and Executive Producer on the film, marking its official entry into feature filmmaking. |
Terrarium is the latest step in Artlist’s mission to fuel creative innovation. |
Artlist’s AI platform empowers individual creators and global brands like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon by providing all of the latest AI tools and leading models for AI video, image, voiceover and music. The platform combines AI with intuitive workflows to scale confidently and achieve high-end production through a secure, professional-grade AI ecosystem. |
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The cinematic capabilities of Artlist’s AI tools are on full display through Artlist TV, a content hub featuring original entertainment, short films, and series produced by Artlist and independent creators. |
Now, Artlist TV is opening submissions to visionary creators with a story to tell. Are you ready to create your own Artlist TV original? |
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HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰 |
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Spotify is giving drug-promoting episodes the boot. |
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ON THE MARKET |
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LinkedIn wants to connect brands and creators. |
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LinkedIn is leveling up its influencer push with the launch of its own Creator Marketplace |
The context: Since launching a native video player in 2017, LinkedIn has spent the better part of a decade chasing creator partnerships and implementing the necessary infrastructure to realize those deals. |
In 2021, the platform introduced a $25 million accelerator and a Creator Mode designed for influencers. Soon after, LinkedIn started onboarding big names like MrBeast while simultaneously supporting homegrown creators. |
Fast forward to 2026, and LinkedIn’s revenue-sharing program is turning attention into dollars. There are now entire companies—such as Creator Authority—that are primarily focused on the business of LinkedIn influencer marketing. |
The marketplace: Those companies will be pleased to hear about the launch of the Creator Marketplace, an in-platform hub that connects brands with the LinkedIn influencers who can best meet advertisers’ campaign goals. |
“As a LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Partner with alpha access, we’ve tested this against live client briefs. We’re excited to see it come to fruition and it’s a big signal of LinkedIn investing in the creator ecosystem.” |
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Marketers can find vetted creators through the Marketplace by searching for specific topics. They can also amplify and monetize relevant creator discussions by employing LinkedIn’s Thought Leader Ads. Creators, meanwhile, can put their profiles into the Marketplace to receive attention from top brands. |
For LinkedIn, the Creator Marketplace follows the prevailing trends of the hub’s namesake industry. According to a Pressroom post, 83% of surveyed B2B marketers are looking for credibility in their brand messaging, while 70% of marketers are turning to peer voices and experts in lieu of brand-produced content. |
Both of those data points show that brands need an easy way to connect with LinkedIn users. In theory, that’s exactly what the Creator Marketplace will provide. |
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CREATOR COMMOTION |
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It’s not every day you get flexed on by a grandma. |
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Marlene Flowers is a 69-year-old champion bodybuilder. Here’s how she got swole: |
The creator: Marlene Flowers was 65 when she entered her very first bodybuilding competition. More than a decade earlier, she’d founded an auto repair shop alongside her second husband and, after their separation, became its sole proprietor. Over the next several years, Flowers did everything from running the front office and managing employees to diagnosing cars herself. |
All that work eventually caught up with her—and her body. So, she began exercising; first at home and then, at the suggestion of her son Ryan, by lifting weights at the gym. |
It wasn’t long before Flowers “started bulking up.” That progress attracted the notice of other gym-goers, who encouraged her to enter competitions. At age 65, she followed their advice, competing in the Women’s Classic Physique division in spring and enrolling for another competition in the fall. |
Somewhere in between, Ryan set up accounts across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram (all under the name “Granny Guns“) to document Flowers’ impressive accomplishments and continued #gains. |
These days, the bodybuilder-turned-creator has over 2 million followers on both TikTok and Instagram, and another ~120K on YouTube. With support from the team at Viral Nation, she films, edits, and posts all her own content, much of which is aimed at inspiring people to keep their bodies healthy. |
The brand: Flowers also recently released her own product, Granny’s Protein Cookies. The brand officially launched last week with five flavors: chocolate chip, white chocolate, peanut butter, snickerdoodle, and s’mores. |
For now, the cookies are available for purchase on Flowers’ Granny Guns website, and some local gyms have also agreed to stock them. |
So, what’s next for Flowers? The bodybuilder plans to return to competitions later this year and also has a memoir kicking around, which she says needs a polish before going out on submission. |
FYI: Viral Nation is a Tubefilter partner. |
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LISTEN UP 🎙️ |
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Is YouTube finally a true social network? |
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This week on the podcast… |
The episode: On the latest installment of Creator Upload, hosts Joshua Cohen and Laurn Schnipper dive into YouTube’s decision to bring back DMs—and how the move could completely rewrite the way the algorithm pushes creator content. |
Also on the discussion board is Accenture's massive acquisition of the Whalar influencer agency, plus CAA's newly formed $250M creator business fund and Hollywood's sudden embrace of TikTok-style short-form series. |
Tune into the full episode on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to find out more. |
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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Drew Baldwin, Sam Gutelle, James Hale, and Josh Cohen. |
