What if creators were treated like Mickey Mouse? That's the bet behind Steven.com, a media venture that just landed a $425 million valuation with some serious heavyweight backing. We're talking Gary Vaynerchuk, Whoop founder and CEO Will Ahmed, and Alex Hormozi, all throwing money at what British entrepreneur Steven Bartlett calls "the Disney of the creator economy."

Bartlett isn't just throwing around corporate buzzwords here. He's built quite the resume in the creator world: he hosts "The Diary of a CEO," one of the world's most popular podcasts according to Spotify (SPOT), sits as a panelist on the BBC's "Dragons' Den" (think UK's "Shark Tank"), and has already invested in creators like comedian Trevor Noah.

"My ultimate ambition is to build the Disney of the creator economy," Bartlett said in a statement, "and the strategic partners this funding round has brought on board has enabled me to take a big step in that direction."

The Disney Playbook for Creators

Here's where it gets interesting. Bartlett's strategy borrows directly from Disney's (DIS) century-old playbook. He pointed to how Walt Disney took a cartoon mouse and built an empire around it—films, theme parks, merchandise, the whole thing. That created what Bartlett calls "a flywheel of immense, compounding value which resulted in a generational company."

The twist? In Bartlett's vision, the intellectual property isn't a fictional character. It's the creator themselves.

"With my team, I think we are building the modern version of this model," Bartlett explained. "But in our world, the IP is not a fictional character. The creator is the new franchise."

It's not theoretical. MrBeast has already demonstrated this approach by licensing his personal brand to food products, cryptocurrency, and even a theme park in Saudi Arabia. Bartlett happens to be an investor in MrBeast, which tells you where he's placing his bets.

The funding will enable Bartlett's companies to help online creators expand and monetize their brands, combining what he describes as intellectual property, capital, and infrastructure into one package.

Why Wall Street Cares About Influencers

The numbers explain why sophisticated investors are piling into this space. The global creator economy is expected to blow past $528 billion by 2030, according to the press release. That's attracted investment firms and turned some creators into investors themselves.

But there's also hard performance data backing the hype. More than 90% of marketers say creator-based content like sponsored videos outperforms traditional brand content, according to a Sprout Social survey from earlier this year. Even more telling: 83% credited influencers with driving higher conversion rates.

That's why legacy companies are increasingly leaning on creators to boost sales and strengthen brand loyalty. When your sponsored content consistently beats your in-house marketing team's output, you start paying attention.

Multiple investment firms have jumped into backing online creators as a result, treating them less like marketing channels and more like actual media properties worth serious capital. With Bartlett's $425 million valuation and blue-chip investor backing, that trend shows no signs of slowing down.