The Creator Economy's Quiet Architect: Adam "Riv" Rivietz on Building #paid, $50M in Creator Payouts, and What Brands Still Get Wrong
What does it actually take to build the infrastructure behind the creator economy, not just talk about it? This week, I sit down with Adam "Riv" Rivietz, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer of #paid, one of North America's leading creator marketplaces, and a Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree.
Riv has spent over a decade turning creator marketing from a "free product" side deal into a legitimate profession, with real payment terms, USD payouts, and tools built from the ground up. #paid has now paid over $50 million to creators, and Riv has been evangelizing the space globally since before most brands knew what an "influencer" was.
In this episode, we get into all of it: the difference between influencers and creators (and why it matters), the Virgin Voyages x TikTok creator cruise that generated 108 million views, the Creator Calendar and why brands are now "upfronting" life milestones like weddings and pregnancies, what the 2026 Creator Signals Report reveals about shifting content trends, and how AI is reshaping every layer of the industry.
We also talk about what it's like to be a founder who's not the CEO, why Riv is also an ordained minister and children's book author, and what he'd whisper to any founder entering this space today.
Topics covered: Creator economy infrastructure · Brand education · Creator-first payment models · Forbes 30 Under 30 · Creator Calendar · Swan Beauty viral moment · AI and synthetic influencers · First-party creator data · Founder life post-Series B · The future of #paid
Connect with Riv: [#paid / LinkedIn / Instagram @hashtagpaid]
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