TOGETHER WITH

It's Thursday and Mark Zuckerberg's email history is spicing up Meta's antitrust trial. Our personal favorites: (a) Zuck's suggestion that Facebook wipe everyone's friends lists and (b) his theory that Meta would've done a better job running Snapchat.

Today's News

📱 OpenAI plans to build the next X
📹 Patreon launches live video
📝 The creator industry needs your POV
😍 Teens still love TikTok
🦈 What's next for Gawr Gura?

SOCIAL STANDOFF

OpenAI wants more training data. So it's building the next X.

The uno reverse: Back in February, OpenAI CEO/founder Sam Altman was quick to clap back when news surfaced that Meta might be developing a ChatGPT competitor. His response: "ok fine maybe we'll do a social app."

At the time, Altman's suggestion that OpenAI "uno reverse" Meta with its own social media network seemed like little more than a sarcastic quip. Now…not so much. According to The Verge, Altman has been privately asking for feedback about the possibility of OpenAI building a social network to compete with rivals like X.

The big idea: Like many of X's Musk-era updates, the platform's decision to integrate an AI chatbot (aka Grok) into its feed triggered widespread criticism and a mass exodus of creatives who didn't want their content to be scraped for training or "remixed" with the click of a button. In this case, however, that scenario could be exactly what OpenAI is looking for.

Industry rivalries aside, the ChatGPT parent company has clearly realized that its competitors have something it doesn't: vast, ever-growing troves of user-generated content. While OpenAI has faced continuous scrutiny over where it sources data to train its large language models, platforms like Facebook and X can bake scraping permissions right into their Terms of Service—so if people want to use those platforms, they have to consent to feeding the AI grinder.

If OpenAI makes its own platform, it could very well take advantage of the same system. So far, it's not clear yet whether that site would be separate from ChatGPT, or similar to the X/Grok integration. But given that OpenAI's chatbot was the most downloaded app on Earth last month, riding its coattails seems like a solid strategy.

🔆 PRESENTED BY OPUSCLIP 🔆

Algorithms are reshaping content creation. Auto import makes it easy to keep up.

The problem: Today's algorithms reward three things: consistency, speed, and volume. But producing high-quality content at the speed demanded by algorithms is a recipe for burnout—and, sometimes, it's simply not possible.

That's why OpusClip is introducing Auto Import to its industry-leading video clipping platform.

The solution: Auto Import allows creators to generate and post teasers of their latest long-form video or podcast in seconds—so you can keep the momentum going on social media while working on your hit behind the scenes (or even taking a break!).

Here's how it works: Every time you upload a public video to YouTube), it will be immediately imported into OpusClip and automatically edited into individual, social media-ready clips.

The result: You'll have dozens of teasers and short-form clips at your fingertips, all optimized by platform and ready to post. That way, you can focus on your next project without stressing about keeping up with the algorithm. It's as simple as that.

Discover Auto Import on OpusClip

HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

Patreon has begun testing a Live Video product that will give users a way to launch broadcasts without leaving the monetization platform. (Tubefilter)
A recent BBC report shines a light on the frustrations faced by small businesses on Facebook and Instagram, where many have to fight tooth-and-nail to regain control of hacked accounts. (BBC)
Meta isn't the only company under fire for its approach to technical support. After announcing the closure of its @Support account, X has faced a steady stream of complaints from hundreds of users. (Support via X)
Discord is experimenting with a new form of age verification that would require users to undergo facial scans before accessing certain content. (Gizmodo)

SURVEY SAYS

The creator industry NEEDS your POV—and you can get $250 by giving it

Why it matters: The creator economy is worth $250 billion as a whole—but there's still no concrete system to keep creators informed about the basics, like how much brand deals should pay or which video production tools are most reliable.

For creators with established peer circles, the solution to that problem is as simple as consulting their community. But many newer creators don't have that kind of resource.

So, MIDiA Research is building them one. The analytics company—which regularly puts out reports about the creator economy—is seeking creators to fill out the survey that will power its next study.

That report will lay out which tools (e.g. software, hardware, AI, and distribution) creators today are most commonly using. It'll be a resource for all creators, from hobbyists to longtime pros—but to make that lifeline a reality, MIDiA needs creators (like you!) to complete its 10-minute survey.

You can find that survey here (and earn up to $250 for filling it out).

What you need to know: The survey is open through May 22, 2025 and has a $1,000 prize pool. After it closes, two respondents will receive $250 apiece; another four will win $50 each. Those six winners can earn an additional $50 if they agree to sit for a 30-minute video interview.

Participants must be 16+ years old and are permitted to submit only one entry per person. Winners will be selected at random, after which prizes will be distributed via bank transfer using PayPal. Every respondent will receive a short summary of the survey's results, giving them a sneak peek at the full report.

MIDiA Research is a Tubefilter Partner.

TEEN TALK

TikTok might be under fire in the U.S., but it's never been more popular with American teens

The report: Not even a potential ban can put a damper on teens' love for TikTok. According to the Spring 2025 edition of Piper Sandler's Taking Stock With Teens report, the app is still the most common answer when Gen Z Americans are asked to name their "favorite social media platform."

Piper Sandler (formerly known as Piper Jaffray) has been conducting biannual surveys of American teenagers ever since Millennials were the teens in question. In recent years, the age group's general preference for mobile-first social apps has turned TikTok into the most common "favorite social platform" in Taking Stock With Teens.That devotion shone even brighter in Piper Sandler's Spring 2025 report: 47% of respondents dubbed TikTok their favorite social platform, representing a 12% increase year-over-year.

(It's worth noting that Piper Sandler doesn't include YouTube in its survey of social media preferences, since it characterizes the Google-affiliated platform as a streaming hub. Within that category, YouTube and Netflix tend to take turns at #1; this time around, surveyed teens indicated that 31% of their video consumption comes on Netflix, compared to 26% for YouTube.)

The takeaway: Congress might be able to limit TikTok's operations in the U.S., but regulators clearly can't stop the app from receiving enthusiastic support from Gen Z. That reality is unlikely to be well-received by pro-ban legislators: according to one of the "divest or ban" law's original authors, Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, TikTok's popularity among American teens could be why it was targeted for a divestiture or ban in the first place. Warner has argued that the statute was dead in the water until TikTok started radicalizing young people on topics like Palestine.

WATCH THIS 📺

After Gawr Gura's split with Hololive, what's next for one of the world's top VTubers?

The graduation: Gawr Gura is discontinuing her signature avatar for good. In a video posted to her official YouTube channel—which reaches more than 4.5 million subscribers—the shark-toothed VTuber explained that her character will be retired in a May 1 "graduation" ceremony as part of her split from Japanese agency hololive.

Gawr Gura cited "disagreements with management and company direction" as the main reasons she chose to break from her parent agency—a decision that carries a lot of weight given that hololive will retain control over the character it crafted for her.

The legacy: Gawr Gura was a big part of a global push hololive made with help from its stable of English-language creators. During her time at the agency, the VTuber serenaded fans as part of the hololive concert series and even performed a Jumbotron rendition of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" at a Los Angeles Dodgers game. Now, fans will just have to wait and see what the creator behind the avatar does next.

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