BRIDGE Summit 2025 Creator Economy Track to discuss who really gets paid when the world goes viral

From December 8–10, 2025, at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), the Creator Economy Track at BRIDGE Summit 2025 will bring together more than 80 global voices from amongst the Summit’s 400 global speakers — including leading creators, founders, investors, and platform builders — for over 50 discussions examining how the world’s fastest-growing creative economy, valued at over $250 billion and projected to surpass half a trillion dollars by 2027, is being monetized, governed, and reshaped by those who own audiences instead of assets.

As one of the seven content tracks shaping the Summit’s agenda, the Creator Economy Track will examine how influence has become capital, identity has evolved into intellectual property, and attention now functions as the world’s most traded commodity.

By spotlighting the forces redefining ownership, legitimacy, and value, the Creator Economy Track will bring together the leading voices of this new order — creators, entrepreneurs, cultural leaders, and investors — to advance BRIDGE Summit’s mission to advance the creation of systems that allow creative enterprise to scale without losing independence.

Themes and sessions shaping a creator-led future

The modern creator will no longer be an influencer but an industry. How Creators Are Building the Next Entertainment Giants will investigate the rise of creator-led conglomerates, while Viral Economics will dissect how digital narratives will move markets and shape public behavior faster than institutions can respond. Who’s Cashing In on the Attention Boom? and The Price of Influence in a Platform World will examine how algorithms will define visibility and value in creator economies.

As focus becomes a scarce resource, Reclaiming Focus in the Age of Infinite Scroll will explore cognitive fatigue and digital wellness. What It Takes to Break YouTube Monetization will reveal the mechanics of sustainable creator income, while What Happens when Creators Become Policymakers? will question legitimacy and power in a world where influencers may hold public office.

Creativity will also evolve from short-form virality to long-form world-building. The Creator Economy’s Next Chapter is Written in Film will highlight cinematic storytelling as a tool for universe-building and brand expansion. The Weight of Being Seen will reflect on exposure and resilience, while Curating Feeds that Heal will explore empathy and ethical design in content creation.

Creators as the New Broadcasters will map the ascent from bedroom studios to billion-view empires, Creators Go from Lights, Camera to Business will follow media mogul trajectories beyond Hollywood, and The Future of Media Has One Employee will redefine enterprise through the lens of individual-led global companies.

Story, impact, and narrative power will be deconstructed at their core. The Human Code of Storytelling will examine the universal architecture of narrative influence, while When the Messenger Becomes the Movement will dissect how creators themselves become the message, the medium, and the movement. Performing for a Cause or Standing for One? will challenge the politics of advocacy, identity, and accountability in the age of moral virality.

The conversation will also extend to accountability and cultural influence. Navigating Cancel Culture and Creative Freedom will tackle expression and consequence, The New Global Aesthetic will spotlight cultural innovation from Lagos to Bogotá, and Intellectual Property Is Personal Now will reframe individuality as the most valuable creative asset.

The next generation is no longer waiting to inherit the future — they are uploading it. Building a World Where Every Kid Can Create will reframe creativity as a universal right, while Taste as a Cultural Bridge will explore how food will function as language, identity, and shared experience in the digital age.

Creators, founders and architects of the new digital economy will take the stage

The Creator Economy Track at BRIDGE Summit 2025 brings together a powerhouse roster of global innovators shaping the future of digital influence, monetisation, storytelling, platform economies, and talent ecosystems.

Representing the commercial infrastructure of the creator industry are Aryeh B. Bourkoff, Chairman & CEO of LionTree; David Freeman, Global Head of Digital Media at Creative Artists Agency (CAA); Darnell Strom, Partner and Head of Europe at United Talent Agency (UTA); Andrew Graham, Head of Business Development at CAA Creators; and Joe Marchese, Co-Founder and General Partner at Human Ventures and Casa Komos Brands Group (CKBG), and Chairman of Groundswell.io.

Platform founders and ecosystem builders taking the stage include Drew Baldwin, Founder & CEO of Tubefilter and Creator/Executive Producer of the Streamy Awards; Katie Carroll, Global Head of Community Programs at LinkedIn; Douglas Kendyson, Founder & CEO of Selar; David Page, CEO and Co-Founder of Viewture; Lewis Crosbie, CEO of KOMI; Ben Casnocha, Co-Founder of Village Global; Gustaf Lundberg Toresson, COO of Antilop and Founder of Sequel; Danny Cortenraede, Founder and Managing Partner of InStudio Ventures; Leonard Stiegeler, Founder of Pulse Africa; Dr. Lee Bofkin, Co-Founder and CEO of Global Street Art; Max Reisinger, Founder of Creator Camp; Driss Slaoui, Founder and CEO of Welovebuzz; Adil Taouil; Maaz Sheikh; Daniel Mac; Ziad Ahmed; Maha Abouelenein; Mohamed Aboulnaga; Faisal Al Agel; Fidias Panayiotou; Ant McCormack; Dillon Lawson-Johnston; Farhad Meher-Homji; Teilo Berquier; Nick Moar; Roshaun Diah; Omar El Aawar.

Among the world’s most influential digital storytellers and cultural voices participating are Joe Hattab, documentary filmmaker and digital storyteller; Amit Sharma (Crazy XYZ), one of YouTube’s most recognised creators; Zachery Dereniowski, motivational speaker and viral content creator; Omar “FruitFlan”, storyteller and digital personality; Amine Aouni, documentary director, content creator and Founder of Ostol Production; Justyna Gawlik (Overheard Historian), Content and Strategy Lead at Overheard; Abena Amoakoaa Sintim-Aboagye (Chef Abby’s), culinary content creator; Shaheen Khalil, celebrity chef and Founder of YABA; Sara Al Refai, Managing Director of Edraak Media; David Goldenberg, digital content producer; Omar Kaskas, journalist, AI strategist and digital media innovator; Amro Maskoun, content creator; Andrew Zimmern, award-winning chef and global food advocate; Bisher Najjar, content creator and storyteller; Gurpreet Singh, entrepreneur and investor; Abu Julia; Osamah Esam; Farrah Matalka; Dana Al Ashkar; Reham Aiaad; Mike Alnaji; Will Hatcher; Michelle Khare; Abir El Saghir.

Championing resilience, advocacy and social impact in the creator economy are Dr. Abdullah Alawi, physician and social media educator; Annastasia Seebohm, international CEO and changemaker; Liv Stone, professional para-surfer and motivational influencer; Ashraf Ibrahim.

Together, these voices represent the seismic shift redefining ownership, distribution, identity, and revenue models across the global creator economy — from boardrooms and talent agencies to platforms, stories, and culture.

A new economic order, written by individuals

The Creator Economy Track will embody BRIDGE Summit’s wider vision: building a world where creative power, economic value, and cultural legitimacy are not inherited by institutions but constructed by individuals — and sustained by systems, policy, and capital that empower them to scale without losing ownership of who they are.

Hosted in Abu Dhabi, BRIDGE Summit 2025 will reinforce the UAE’s role as a global capital for the creator economy, digital entrepreneurship, and cross-cultural innovation.

When millions follow the creator, not the institution, one truth will emerge: the future will not belong to platforms, governments, or corporations — it will belong to those who build worlds out of ideas.

BRIDGE Summit 2025 will bring those world-builders together.