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Top Creator Economy Startups 2021

A new economy is emerging on the Internet. Creative people from all over the world are turning their hobbies and passions into professional endeavors by making videos, art, music, and courses for loyal fans millions of miles away. Startups are powering this creative revolution by making it easy for creators to find an audience, manage their income, sell products, and engage with their communities. Below are the most exciting startups building for the Creator Economy right now. Like all companies on Startup Search Lists, these Creator Economy startups are backed by great venture firms, growing fast, and hiring now. Thank you to all of our judges who helped select the companies for this year's list.

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Judges

Li Jin

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Josh Constine

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Tiffany Zhong

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Rex Woodbury

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Companies

Figma

Helping teams create, test, and ship better designs from start to finish.

Backed by Andreessen Horowitz

OpenSea

Marketplace for cryptogoods.

Backed by Coatue

Discord

Voice, video, and text communication platform for communities of gamers.

Backed by Spark Capital

Monthly

Monthly creates hands-on, one-month classes with the world’s best creators.

Backed by Floodgate

Creative Juice

The financial network for creators.

Backed by Slow Ventures

Islands

Platform to help creators monetize across content, community, and commerce.

Backed by Plug and Play Ventures

Karat

Giving influencers access to a line of credit backed by their social media following.

Backed by Coatue

Substack

Making it easier for writers to start and monetize email newsletters.

Backed by Andreessen Horowitz

100 Thieves

Operating top e-sports teams and lifestyle brands.

Backed by Sequoia Capital

Foundation

Blockchain-based art marketplace intended for creators, curators, and tastemakers.

Backed by Designer Fund

Collective

First, online back-office platform designed for self-employed people.

Backed by General Catalyst

Rarible

Create, sell, and collect digital items.

Backed by Venrock

Descript

Allowing audio and producers to collaborate, edit, mix, and master their content more effectively.

Backed by Andreessen Horowitz

Cameo

Allowing celebrities to sell personalized video messages to fans.

Backed by Kleiner Perkins

Linktree

Providing a link in bio platform that makes users' online content more discoverable & easy to manage.

Backed by Index Ventures

Beacons

Operator of a payments platform intended to make influencer marketing effective for every brand.

Backed by Y Combinator

Luma

Event hosting platform designed to host virtual classes.

Backed by Atelier

Patreon

Allowing creators to get paid directly by their fans through content subscriptions.

Backed by New Enterprise Associates

Streamloots

Connecting viewers and streamers inside a thematic and interactive experience.

Backed by Bessemer Venture Partners

Curated

Collaborative shopping platform designed to bring the personal touch of an in-store specialty shopping experience to customers.

Backed by Forerunner

Zora

Crypto-driven marketplace.

Backed by Coinbase Ventures

Pico

Audience relationship management platform with email signup, payment, and membership widgets for websites.

Backed by Village Global

Fourthwall

Helping creators launch fully-branded websites where fans can support them by shopping and donating.

Backed by Initialized

Kapwing

Empowering people to create videos from any device.

Backed by Kleiner Perkins

Pearpop

Content creation platform designed for brands and consumers without the hassle of wires, negotiations and legal agreements.

Backed by Bessemer Venture Partners

Spline

Building a tool to create and publish 3D web experiences.

Backed by Chapter One Ventures

Landr

Offering recording artists a suite of tools across production, mixing, mastering, and distribution.

Backed by Warner Music Group

Splice

Streamlining the process of music creation and sharing.

Backed by Union Square Ventures

Grin

Managing relationships between influencers and brands.

Backed by Bullpen

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