It’s Monday, and humanoid robots put to work at a Chinese supermarket are “slacking off.” Why bust your circuits when you can just quiet quit like all those humans who programmed you?

THE BIZ

The firm: Mike Lee and Darren Yan are the leaders of ISO, a new talent management firm with a starting roster of 90 top creators.

Lee previously held the title of Head of Gaming and Livestreaming at UTA Creators and will now serve as ISO’s CEO. Yan—who raised up some of the hottest talents on platforms like Twitch during his tenure as FaZe Clan’s Chief Talent Officer—is taking on the role of ISO’s Head of Music.

The duo’s new firm touches categories like beauty, food, and art, but its roots are deepest in the gaming and streamer communities. Its current talent roster includes big names like PlaqueBoyMax, Jasontheween, Ironmouse, Lacy, Vanillamace, Kyedae, jessechrisss, Angelo Marasigan, and RDCWorld. Some of those creators, like PlaqueBoyMax and Lacy, were previously members of FaZe Clan. Others, like Ironmouse and Vanillamace, have history with UTA.

The global approach: ISO is also making inroads into East Asia with international talent like Vietnam’s Son-Tung MTP and China’s Xin Liu, and plans to innovate on the brand-facing side of its business.

ISO’s core team has experience at companies like the NFL, Red Bull, and Fanatics, which are on board as talent partners. Matt Alsberg, ISO’s Head of Talent, previously held roles at PlayStation and Twitch.

With a wealth of ideas and an abundance of talent up and down its roster, ISO is ready to become a management company with deep knowledge of the creator ecosystem. Influence Media Partners is backing the firm as it takes shape.

CONSUMER TRUST

The stats: Only one in four U.S. adults believes content creators consistently disclose brand ties when promoting a sponsored product. That data comes from a Morning Consult survey of around 2,000 people, which was conducted for Business Insider.

Overall, Morning Consult found that older folks were less inclined to trust creators. 53% of Baby Boomers said creators “rarely or never” clearly disclose paid deals, while just 21% of Gen Zers said the same thing.

Morning Consult also asked respondents whether creators should have to disclose paid sponsorships at all. Across all age groups, the majority of people said yes—but a surprisingly large number (12% of Boomers, 18% of Gen Xers, 22% of Millennials, and 23% of Gen Zers) disagreed.

The context: Those respondents might look more kindly on some of the creators surveyed in a recent report from SheSpeaks. As cited by BI, 14% of creators admitted to SheSpeaks that they don’t always disclose brand ties, and 18% said that within the past year, a brand had explicitly asked them not to disclose that they had been paid.

That behavior clashes with Federal Trade Commission regulations, meaning it could open violative creators and businesses up to hefty fines. And while disclosures might seem like a drag, most viewers actually find the transparency they bring reassuring.

Consistency and audience connection are important, too. Emily Steele, CEO of creator marketing platform Hummingbirds, told BI that creators need to have meaningful and engaging content outside of brand deals for their audiences to be open when they endorse a product.

“There are creators who only post UGC or sponsored content without any cohesion around what they’re posting about and why,” she said. “Why would I, as a follower, trust you when I feel like all you post is a paid brand deal?”

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

The demands: Does the European Union have the authority to mandate changes to TikTok’s For You Page? The continental body is making that claim.

The E.U. announced last week that the FYP’s addictive design violates the Digital Services Act (DSA) which it passed in 2022 as a mechanism to regulate the world’s biggest social media companies. The DSA is particularly focused on negative mental health consequences that can affect kids when they scroll through their feeds.

Officials cited the law when they requested the development of a depersonalized TikTok algorithm, which the app subsequently rolled out. Now, the E.U. is turning its attention to the FYP.

A press release discusses the “rabbit hole effect” of TikTok’s infinitely scrolling vertical feed, which is filled with personalized recommendations. One point of contention is the “not interested” icon, which has long been cited as an ineffective form of control.

The context: TikTok will get a chance to present documents and plead its case to the E.U.—but if the app is ultimately found liable for its addictive feed, it could be compelled to pay up to 6% of its global annual revenue in fines.

The validity of that fee structure could provide TikTok with its strongest defense. It previously joined forces with Meta to mount a legal challenge against the enforcement mechanism that undergirds the DSA, and a court ruled in its favor.

That counterattack mirrors Big Tech’s legal strategies in the United States, where TikTok is one of several companies fighting laws that accuse social media feeds of perpetrating psychological ills.

CREATOR UPLOAD 🎙️

The episode: On the latest installment of Creator Upload, host Lauren Schnipper and guest Jamie Gutfreund dive into the battle between Hollywood creator agencies and Madison Avenue for brand budgets before turning their attention to Instagram’s long-form push.

Tune into the full episode to find out how the transition from "Creator 1.0" to "Creator 3.0" is changing the way brands spend their media dollars.

It’s all right here on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen.