TOGETHER WITH

It’s Thursday and the doctor will see you now…or, at least, ChatGPT Health will. Per OpenAI, a health-focused version of the bot can now explain test results, offer diet advice, and more—especially if you don’t mind handing over your medical records.

Today’s News

CREATOR COMMOTION

Fox is launching a creator division headlined by Gordon Ramsay

The division: The Fox Corporation is bringing some of the web’s hottest food influencers to Fox Creator Studios, a “digital-first” entity that will cultivate new formats, IP, and talent. Fox announced the freshly-launched division at CES in Las Vegas, where the company’s execs are meeting with potential partners.

Fox Creator Studios will eventually span multiple categories, but Fox is initially focusing on creators who work in the kitchen—and Gordon Ramsay is at the top of the list. The culinary legend has a long-standing relationship with Fox, having hosted shows like Kitchen Nightmares and MasterChef on the network. He’s also friends with next-gen stars thanks to internet-based ventures like YouTube competition series Idiot Sandwich.

In addition to Ramsay, Fox has recruited Nerdy Nummies creator Rosanna Pansino and other standout YouTube gourmands like Sorted Food, Jolly, Food Theorists, and Little Remy Food to partner with its new division.

The context: The broad approach taken by Fox Creator Studios is a familiar strategy for Fox. The company’s push into the creator economy has included a far-reaching slate of initiatives and partnerships, with an investment in Whalar’s The Lighthouse space serving as one of its latest nods to the power of creator communities.

Meanwhile, on Fox’s owned-and-operated streaming service Tubi, creators are working with TikTok vet Kudzi Chikumbu to bring new and syndicated programs to viewers.

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HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Guggenheim Brothers Media is joining forces with Ethmar International Holding to establish a creator fund based in Abu Dhabi that will deploy between $50 million and $75 million worth of capital. (Tubefilter)
  
  

• According to media strategist Chris Landa, YouTube creators using unlicensed content are facing the highest copyright strike risk in the platform’s history. The disrupting force: Shorts. (Tubefilter)
  
  

• The TikTokification of the internet continues. According to recent reports, Disney Plus will introduce a vertical video feed later this year. (The Verge)
  
  

• All Roblox users looking to access the platform’s chat function will now need to undergo facial or ID verification to confirm their age. (TechCrunch)

POD PEOPLE

Spotify is slashing monetization requirements for video podcasters

The program update: A year ago, Spotify launched a revamped version of its Partner Program, which became the path to monetization for video podcasts. Within the first three months of 2025, the platform had distributed $100 million in payouts to creators.

Now, Spotify is not only lowering the threshold for podcasters interested in joining the Partner Program, but also introducing new creator-friendly podcasting tools and opening a makerspace in West Hollywood. The platform announced those updates ahead of the upcoming Golden Globes, which will honor podcasts with a Best Of award for the first time.

Under the Partner Program’s original eligibility requirements, creators needed to have published 12 episodes, amassed 10,000 consumption hours in the 30 days prior to their application, and had at least 2,000 unique people stream their content in the last 30 days.

The new rules are far more attainable. Going forward, creators must have published just 3 episodes, amassed 2,000 consumption hours in the last 30 days, and had at least 1,000 unique people stream their content in the last 30 days.

The resources: Podcasters who make it into the program will soon have access to multiple new tools, including one that allows creators “to update, schedule, and measure host-read sponsorships in video episodes more easily” and another that will let them “publish and monetize video podcasts on Spotify directly from participating hosting platforms—without changing workflows or re-uploading content” (per Spotify).

The first of those tools will launch in April, while Spotify says the second will be available “soon.”

Last but not least, Spotify is opening Spotify Sycamore Studios, a “state-of-the-art podcast and video production hub in West Hollywood that will serve as the new home for The Ringer podcasts, and will be available to select creators in the Spotify Partner Program” on an invitation-only basis.

STOCK TALK

Discord is going public

The IPO: Discord has privately filed for an IPO. According to Bloomberg, the chat platform has been working with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Co. for nearly a year. Its confidential filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly pinpoints this March as the date for Discord stock to go live on the NASDAQ.

Discord neither confirmed nor denied that information, but given that it’s raised $1 billion, going public seems like a natural next step—especially since fellow nerd gathering space Reddit has seen strong (if volatile) results since its own IPO in March 2024.

The context: Reddit is currently the closest relative Discord has in terms of projecting how it might perform on the stock market. At one point, though, it seemed like the platform was looking to emulate social media hubs like YouTube, Instagram, and Twitch by courting digital content creators.

In 2021, Discord introduced server subscriptions that allowed server owners to paywall access to entire servers or specific channels and keep 90% of the resulting revenue. It also established partnerships with celebrities and creators who weren’t yet on its platform—including longtime YouTubers Colin and Samir—to get them to make servers for their audiences.

In 2023, however, Discord laid off several dozen people across its marketing and entertainment partnerships team (the latter of which was responsible for creator partnerships). Since then, the company seems to have pivoted to focus on smaller transactions with the 200+ million people who use its services every month.

Over the past year, Discord has significantly beefed up offerings in its digital shop, an area where it presumably expects to increase its revenue generating opportunities (along with subscriptions to its premium tier, Nitro). The platform also entered the ad business in earnest in the last 18 months, with Quests and other formats now showing real measurement data and quality results. Those initiatives and the figures they generate are exactly the kind of proof points Wall Street will be eyeing as Discord edges toward an IPO.

WATCH THIS 👀

Can Paramount use “secret screenings” to get Gen Z into theaters?

The secret screening: Would you be willing to see a movie in theaters if you knew nothing about its plot or cast? Paramount is working with TikTok to answer that question.

The studio began testing a new marketing strategy on January 5, when it invited a group of TikTokers to a special screening of the upcoming horror flick Primate. The catch was attendees didn’t know they were in for some killer chimp action until they were already seated in the theater.

Variety describes the “secret screenings” as an ongoing partnership between Paramount and TikTok, who are working together to rethink the concept of a promotional blitz. More events are expected to occur throughout 2026.

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