The Diary of a CEO host is now valued at $425M?!

Steven Bartlett’s latest raise to build the next Disney and what it signals for creators and the future of media.

Author

Shira Lazar
November 02, 2025

In partnership with

Steven Bartlett has never been shy about ambition. This week, the Diary of a CEO host turned entrepreneur and investor announced a major eight-figure raise that values his company, Steven.com, at $425 million. His pitch is to build the “Disney of the creator economy.”

Steven.com today is far more than a podcast brand. The company spans media production through FlightStory, a creator-tech platform called FlightCast (built with a former MrBeast engineer), and a $100M venture fund backing startups like Groq and Huel. It also works with established talent like Trevor Noah. In other words, this is not a personality vehicle. It is the blueprint for a creator-led media and technology group. (Hat tip to Chris Erwin, one of the leading M&A strategists and analysts in the creator economy, for his breakdown of the Steven.com structure in his newsletter.

And he is not alone in that aspiration. Dude Perfect used similar language when they raised more than $100 million to build out their universe. Even MrBeast has leaned into the media-franchise narrative as he expands from YouTube into restaurants, snacks, and production infrastructure.

So why does every major creator suddenly want to be Disney?

Because the ecosystem is shifting faster than traditional media can keep up. Forecasts show creator-led content revenue growing roughly 20% year-over-year and surpassing traditional media channels in certain ad categories by as early as next year. Investors (especially creator specific ones like Slow Ventures who participated in this round) have finally accepted what audiences signaled long ago: creators aren’t a side show, they’re the main event.

But here’s the part many miss: Disney isn't a personality brand. Disney is infrastructure, distribution, multi-platform IP, and a repeatable creative system. Mickey Mouse was the ignition point, not the business model. And that business model stretched across screens, products, and physical worlds through parks and experiences that deepen loyalty, emotion, and lifetime value.

Bartlett knows this. He didn’t stop at a hit podcast; he bundled his holdings, including FlightCast, Flight Story, and his venture fund, under one structure, and is now building software and tools designed to help creators scale beyond themselves.

Still, there are pressure points here. 

Creator-led brands carry “key person” risk. And Bartlett has already faced public criticism, including BBC reporting on health misinformation guests and past concerns from the Advertising Standards Authority about ad disclosures tied to brands he invests in. As creators grow into media companies, scrutiny grows with them.

That’s what made the Dude Perfect, MrBeast, and Hot Ones journeys instructive. Once they built format IP that didn’t rely on the founder’s personality alone, they unlocked TV deals, franchise licensing, product lines, and global distribution. Hot Ones went from niche YouTube series to a Soros-backed media property with international broadcast formats.

Bartlett's own path proves the point. He began as a creator. Then he built a media platform. Now he’s building a creator-to-company pipeline and betting that the next era of the internet belongs to those who don’t just build audiences, but build the infrastructure and formats that turn audiences into franchises.

In other words, this moment is not about creators leaving platforms. It is about creators graduating from content to companies.

What makes this moment different is that creators are not just making content, they are acquiring talent, raising capital, and building software. They are not waiting for legacy media to hand them a seat. They are building the table.

Why this matters

Whether you are a creator, founder, operator, or simply watching this space, this shift is your cue to think bigger about what media can be. The future is not just about views or viral moments. It is about trust, community, and the ability to build worlds that people want to belong to.

AI is making content easier to produce, but trust and connection cannot be automated. The next era belongs to creators who turn audience relationships into systems, formats, and experiences that live across digital and real life. You are not just creating content. You are building the foundation of a modern media company.

My Hot Take: I understand why everyone uses the Disney comparison. It gives investors something familiar to grab onto. Scale. IP. A universe of characters that turn into products, experiences, and lasting value.

But this new era is not about rebuilding the past. It is about inventing something that did not exist before.

Disney began with a character. Creator companies begin with a relationship.

Disney scaled with studios. Creators scale with trust, technology, and community in real time.

Disney built worlds from imagination. Creators build worlds with the audience right beside them.

Shira Lazar

There is a lot of excitement around big raises and building massive infrastructure. That can be one path. But there is another powerful path too:

  • Lean teams.

  • High ownership.

  • Direct community connection.

  • Sustainable margins.

  • Creative control instead of capital control.

Scale can create legacy. But in an unpredictable economy, staying nimble and in control can create longevity too. The future winners are not guaranteed to be the biggest. They will be the ones who are most trusted, most adaptable, and most rooted in their communities.

You can call it the next Disney if it helps explain the ambition. The truth is more exciting. We are not trying to build a newer version of the old thing. We are building the first version of something entirely new.

Other headlines to check out:

AI

Creator Economy

Web3 

🎧 New Episode of The AI Download: The Future of Creativity is Here: Why AI Will Not Replace Artists, It Will Expand Them

In this episode of The AI Download, recorded live at the Aspen Ideas: Economy, I sat down with Audible CEO Bob Carrigan and AI poet Sasha Stiles, whose work has appeared at MoMA, to talk about how to protect creativity in the age of AI.

We explored how AI is expanding creative possibilities, from voice models that empower narrators rather than replace them to artists using machine intelligence as a new kind of poetic instrument.

What became clear is that we’re at a Gutenberg-level moment for creativity. Technology is no longer simply a tool; it’s a collaborator. The question isn’t whether AI will change art. It already has, and this episode brings your real-world examples of how this is being implemented by Audible, as well as a reknowned artist.

🎙️ Listen now to get caught up on the AI headlines you need to know plus insights on future of life, creativity and culture. 

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