30 Under 30 Media 2026: Builders Bringing AI To Art, Swipeable News, And Video That Actually Moves People
Creative work doesn't need permission anymore. The newest 30 Under 30 Media class proves it: founders and makers are turning AI into practical tools, turning news into content people actually consume, and packaging video like it's a product line.
If you make art, write, produce or edit, study what they're doing. Then steal the parts that fit your work.
AI For Artists Isn't Theory-It's A Toolkit
At 18, Victor Perez had a choice: conservatory-level classical guitar or tech. He blended both, studied audiovisual systems engineering, and co-founded Krea with Diego Rodriguez Prado. The platform helps anyone generate pro-level photo, video and graphic design. Backers include Bain Capital Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and Abstract Ventures with $83 million committed.
Perez didn't start with a polished plan. He followed curiosity, coded, and posted alongside a small group of creatives experimenting with AI. The lesson: your feed is a lab, and prototypes beat perfect ideas.
- Practical move: Build an AI-first draft workflow for your next project-storyboards, mood boards, key visuals-then refine by hand.
- Go where the builders hang out. Share progress, not platitudes. Feedback compounds.
- Treat constraints as features. Tools should save hours, not add steps.
Want curated tools built for creative work? Explore these resources: AI tools for generative art and AI courses by job.
News That Feels Native To Your Thumbs
Jack Brewster saw a gap: traditional journalism wasn't reaching his peers. So he built Newsreel, an interactive, swipeable news app with a waitlist of 10,000+ and partnerships at places like Oberlin College and Penn State. Simple format. Serious content. Different container.
- Format matters. If your audience lives in vertical video and cards, publish in vertical video and cards.
- Prototype your story as a 10-frame swipe before you write the long version. Clarity first, depth second.
The Newsletter As A Studio
Independent journalist and lawyer Aaron Parnas runs The Parnas Perspective, a politics and current events newsletter with 630,000 subscribers on Substack and 7 million followers across social platforms. He translates complex legal stories into plain language and earns trust with consistent, clear updates.
- Own a topic and a tone. Complexity explained simply will always spread.
- Anchor your work in a primary channel (newsletter), then syndicate short clips everywhere.
From Short-Form To Shelves (And A Community In Between)
Eli Rallo built an audience on TikTok, then published two nonfiction books and has a debut novel planned for 2027. She also runs Prose Hoes, an online book club and "literary salon" with in-person events and a podcast. That's a content ladder: short-form → long-form → live experiences.
- Give your audience a place to gather. A book club, a Discord, a monthly live session-pick one and be consistent.
- Use short-form to test ideas. Double down on what sparks real replies, not vanity metrics.
Inside The Org: Storytelling That Travels
Not every innovator is a founder. James Tralie at NASA produces TV shows, films and digital content that reach 10+ million viewers-and earned him an Emmy nomination. That's institutional storytelling at scale. Explore the work at NASA.
At Boardroom, producer Audrey Blackmore's trailers and b-roll fuel 23 million monthly views around athletes like A'ja Wilson and Paul George. The tactic: sell the content with the promo, not after it's done.
At Andreessen Horowitz, Brent Liang leads a new media arm producing videos, trailers and movies for portfolio companies. Translation: even investors need in-house creative shops now.
- Think in assets: main piece, teaser, cutdowns, thumbnails, stills, and a top comment ready to pin.
- Plan distribution while scripting. If it's not shareable in 15 seconds, it won't travel far.
Your 2026 Creative Playbook
- Ship fast drafts with AI, finish by hand. Time saved funds quality.
- Design for the container: vertical, swipeable, loopable, caption-first.
- Own a home base (newsletter, site) and feed everything back to it.
- Build community touchpoints: office hours, clubs, events, or a simple monthly Q&A.
- Create promos before the project is finished. Trailers and b-roll are part of the product.
- Measure completion rate and saves. Optimize for signal, not noise.
- Partner up: universities, niche communities, or brands that share your audience.
- Be the translator. Take complex topics and make them obvious.
If you want structured practice, see the latest AI courses or popular certifications.
About This Year's List
The 2026 class features founders and builders across AI creative tools, swipeable news platforms and next-gen video. Selection included independent judges Jenny Chiu, Iman Hariri-Kia, Hernan Lopez and Lynette Nylander. Of those honored, 48% are women, 35% identify as people of color, and 70% are founders. All were 29 or younger as of December 31, 2025, and first-time Under 30 honorees.
The signal is clear: adapt your process, publish where attention lives, and treat distribution as part of the art.
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