Big news: OWM goes live NEXT WEEK

📔 Jeff’s Diary (yes I’ll let you read it)

OWM is publicly launching next week… I’ve spent 18 months interviewing customers, developing an MVP, working with clients, building features, ripping things apart, feeling like we’re on to something BIG, then going deep into “WTF am I doing? I should quit.”

I had an offshore team, then an onshore team. I had a Head of Content, then no content. But through it all, I met incredible people who believe in what we’re building. Who want it to exist. And some who believed so much, they wrote a check, put their money where their mouth is; and said simply “I can. I will.”

I poured my heart and soul into this company. From the website, to the onboarding, to the most advanced AI creator search you’ve ever seen; every pixel has my personality in it. Because what makes OWM different is that it was built for people, by people. In a world of AI, “taste” is one of the last remaining traits machines won’t be able to replicate.

So if you believe in what we’re building, if you believe in me and my team or if you just believe in humanity, from the bottom of my heart, I truly appreciate your support. Building is hard, and we’re just getting started. As I’ve come to learn through this and many journeys, it’s not about the pursuit of happiness. It’s happiness in the pursuit.

So here’s to building something novel, I truly believe will change the world. Here’s to democratizing access to equity, to ownership, to the new American dream.

Dream big.

– Jeff

📆 WHAT WE WILL HIT ON THIS WEEK:

→ How to choose the right creator for collab — who’s really driving growth: reach or relevance?

→ Creator spotlight: Wade Plemons — the voice shaping combat sports culture.

→ Big creator economy moves: Future launches Collab, the publisher of Marie Claire is embedding creators into its 250+ media brands, reaching 400M+ people every month.

→ Arcade Media × The Sidemen: the group behind YouTube’s biggest collective secures funding that values them in the hundreds of millions, with businesses projected to hit $100M+ in annual revenue.

→ OWNERS ONLY (Sept 30, NYC): event for founders and creators building audience-first companies. All founders need to be there.

Who’s Really Driving Growth: Reach or Relevance?

Too many founders still think the “right creator” is the one with the biggest audience. Ten million followers must mean ten million buyers, right? Not even close. Because follower count doesn’t equal influence. And it definitely doesn’t equal customers.

Here’s the real equation founders need to think about:

Audience → Relevance → Conversion → Loyalty.

1. If the creator’s audience doesn’t overlap with your customers, you’re burning spend.

2. If their content doesn’t align with your brand story, the message won’t land.

3. If they don’t have credibility in your category, their recommendation won’t convert.

4. And if they’re not consistent, the loyalty never compounds.

The “right creator” isn’t always the biggest. It’s the one whose influence is relevant, trusted and scalable with your brand.

But here’s the challenge: it’s nearly impossible to check all of these signals manually.

That’s why we built OWM.ai. Our AI agent scores creators across every metric that matters and finds the ones who can actually build with you, not just post for you.

⚡️ And here’s all we’ll say for now: big news is coming next week. Something that’s going to shift how founders and creators build together.

Collaborations with creators aren’t just about reach anymore, they’re about long-term growth. The right creator doesn’t just post about your product, they help build belief in your brand.

And no one proves this better than Wade Plemons.

Wade is one of the sharpest voices in the combat sports and influencer boxing space — a niche where credibility, consistency, and storytelling decide who wins attention. And his audience? Loyal, engaged, and ready to move with him.

🚀 390K+ YouTube subscribers on The W.A.D.E. Concept

🔥 2M+ monthly views across YouTube, Instagram and X

💥 Content built on analysis, reaction, and trust, from fight breakdowns to live watch-alongs

📱 Future (Marie Claire publisher) launches Collab

Future just rolled out Collab, a new creator-led content program connecting talent with its media brands like Marie Claire, Homes & Gardens, Who What Wear. With a reach of 400M+ people every month, this isn’t about chasing one-off influencer campaigns. It’s about embedding creators into the core of Future’s storytelling.

Why this matters: Media brands are leaning into creators not just for sponsored content, but to build deeper relationships and more scalable franchises. Founders should see this as a signal: creators are being baked into media’s content strategy at high level.

💰 Arcade Media (The Sidemen) secures funding for global expansion

Arcade Media, the company behind The Sidemen, just raised new capital from U.S. investment firm Lumina. The Sidemen, with 20M+ YouTube subscribers and businesses projected to hit $100M+ in annual revenue, are now valued in the hundreds of millions. The new funding is set to fuel their global expansion across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.

Why this matters: Creator collectives like The Sidemen are no longer just content machines. They’re scaling into full-fledged entertainment and consumer product businesses with global ambitions. For founders, the lesson is clear: partnering with creators isn’t about chasing hype, it’s about tapping into businesses that already have loyal communities, diversified revenue streams, and the momentum to become household names.

🚀 OWNERS ONLY (September 30, NYC)

It’s a curated room of founders and creators building audience-first companies. No panels, no awkward icebreakers, just the right room with the right people.

If you’re serious about ownership and audience, this is the room you need to be in.

🌴 Tech Week 2025 (SF & LA)

It’s the world’s biggest, most decentralized collision of founders, funds, and ideas. A16z is pulling the best of tech into one insane week across SF, LA, and NYC. From boardroom titans to scrappy builders, it’s where the future gets written in real time.

🗓️ Check Out the Full Calendar Here

Have an event we should know about? Stop hoarding all the good stuff for yourself! Submit the details here!

Andy's here. Waiting to answer the questions you're afraid to ask in public (and yeah, he's actually NOT a paid spokesperson but our network of badass execs open to answering questions...for free).

Every week, Andy's ready to tackle the real shit that keeps founders up at night. No sugarcoating, no PC answers — just the truth.

Andy's sitting here with his mustache twitching, ready to drop knowledge bombs about creator equity that would cost you thousands with a consultant.

So drop your questions below. About valuations, term sheets, creator contracts, whatever keeps you up at 3am. The more uncomfortable, the better.

He loves this country and wants to bet on what makes it great – ownership and the generational wealth it creates.

He wants you to win, but he wants you to have fun doing it.

Got a question for Andy 😉? Drop it here — nothing is off limits. Trust us, he’ll GET the answer.

Found this valuable? Don't hoard the knowledge.

➡️ Follow me on LinkedIn for the unfiltered takes I can't fit in this newsletter.

➡️ Forward this to another founder who's struggling with creator partnerships. Ownership spreads one conversation at a time.

➡️ Need 1:1 guidance? Block time with me any Friday here. No pitches, just real talk.