CreatorDAO is inviting YouTubers to step onto the Launchpad. That’s the name of the decentralized organization’s bootcamp, which is currently accepting applications ahead of its October 23 start date.
All YouTube creators are welcome to apply for Launchpad. The program’s instructors — Kong Pham and Kel Livson — told Tubefilter that there is no limit to the number of participants. “The main point of the bootcamp is the weekly challenges that creators will take on and implement into their content,” they explained. “It’s similar to a running coach’s ‘Couch to 5K’ program: we’ll give you a schedule, mental frameworks, and provide really great tips, but 90% of the value comes from the creator actually putting it into action.”
Pham, who reaches millions of subscribers on his personal YouTube channel, and Livson, who has extensive experience in video production and advertising, have both led growth programs in the past. They have designed the first public Launchpad after analyzing the private beta version of the bootcamp, which went live last year. Some of the participants from that cohort, such as ZoeUnlimited, have seen rapid growth on YouTube since completing CreatorDAO’s challenges.
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“We learned [from the private beta Launchpad] that creators in active communities are more likely to succeed,” Pham and Livson told Tubefilter. “In the groups where people interacted with/supported each other more often, there were more success stories and bigger growth numbers.”
The communal spirit of Launchpad will play a big role in the bootcamp’s next iteration. By establishing a group chat room and encouraging one-on-one conversations between creators, the CreatorDAO team will build a space where rising videomakers can support one another.
That particular mission also reflects CreatorDAO’s status as a decentralized, member-owned organization. It closed a $20 million funding round last year after developing an ecosystem that lets creators invest in one another. Channels supported by CreatorDAO include Sam and Colby and The Icing Artist.
CreatorDAO will apply its system of collaborative investment to the upcoming Launchpad cohort. The members of that class will collectively choose three outstanding participants, who will each walk away with a $10,000 prize. “We believe that selecting creators to invest in can be decentralized,” Pham and Livson said. “We believe that if given the chance, a group of YouTube viewers can identify who the most promising candidates are. Launchpad’s $10K contest is one way we’re validating that idea.”
For now, Launchpad is limited to YouTube, where Pham and Livson see the most potential for creator growth. They told Tubefilter that viewers on platforms like TikTok are only 10% as engaged as viewers of long-form YouTube content. They also noted that long-form videos can easily be cut up for distribution across the short-form ecosystem.
Interested creators can apply for Launchpad via the CreatorDAO website. Applications will be accepted until October 20, and the eight-week program will begin three days after that.
