The Influencer Hub, the first hub for influencers in the UAE and the Middle East, and 500 Global, one of the world's most active venture capital firms based in Silicon Valley, announced the Influencer Accelerator program as part of the second season of the 'Invest with Content Creators' program, organized by the hub in collaboration with 500 Global. The program aims to build and support startups led by content creators, with a total value exceeding $130 million. The Influencer Accelerator program concluded with a final project showcase during the fourth 'Billion Followers Summit', the world's largest summit on the content economy, organized by the UAE Government Media Office over three days. The summit, held under the theme 'Purposeful Content', concluded on the 11th of this month, with the participation of over 15,000 content creators and influencers, and more than 500 speakers with a combined following of 3.5 billion. It was announced that James Jones, CEO and co-founder of the fintech platform for content creators 'Bump', and Yegmir Ademir, CEO and founder of the 'Kami' platform, have advanced to the final stage, qualifying them for funding from the Influencer Hub. The Influencer Accelerator program received over 1,100 applications from content creators and startup founders from more than 70 countries worldwide. After a highly competitive selection process, 21 content creators and startup founders were chosen to join the program, serving a community of over 20 million followers, users, and subscribers across various digital platforms. These companies participated in a 10-week intensive training and acceleration program that began last October, focusing on business building and growth acceleration. The program provided all participants with opportunities to connect with venture capital firms and concluded with a final project showcase as part of the fourth 'Billion Followers Summit'. Aliya Hammadi, Deputy Chairman of the UAE Government Media Office and Director of the 'Billion Followers Summit', congratulated the 'Bump' and 'Kami' platforms for advancing to the final stage of the Influencer Accelerator program. She praised their creative ideas and innovative vision, reflecting the ambitions of content creators and their ability to leverage digital creativity to build quality projects with significant developmental and community impact. She stated that the Influencer Accelerator program embodies the continuous support for content creators and influencers, enabling them to develop their ideas and transform them into sustainable projects that make a tangible impact on development and align with future aspirations. Meanwhile, Courtney Paul, CEO of Operations at 500 Global, said: 'Content creators represent a growing class of true entrepreneurs, with an estimated 50 million worldwide, and forecasts of annual growth between 10-20% over the next five years. The first phase of this sector's growth was focused on rapid dissemination for monetization, but today, with increasing consumer awareness, we believe the future of business transformation lies with those who focus on business fundamentals, community building, content quality, diverse strategies, and long-term vision based on product-market alignment.' She expressed her pride in supporting this group of content creators and founders on their journey across various sectors.
