MrBeast and Khaby Lame Top ESHAP and What’s Trending 2026 Creator Map

ESHAP and What’s Trending unveiled their second annual Creator Map on Oct. 8, ranking the biggest names across social platforms by both follower scale and a new engagement metric called Affinity Quotient. TheWrap published an exclusive first look, and What’s Trending released a full editorial breakdown of the project.

The map was scheduled for the main stage of the inaugural Jupiter Festival in Miami, sponsored by YouTube, with ESHAP founder Evan Shapiro, What’s Trending founder Shira Lazar and Lighthouse CEO Jon Goss presenting, TheWrap reported. For the first time, the top 200 creators on Instagram, YouTube and TikTok appear with both follower counts and Affinity Quotient scores, powered by Whalar Group’s Foam creator operating system.

Affinity Quotient grades creators on a 0–100 scale within a single platform, based on median post activity over a 60-day window and weighting active signals such as shares more heavily than passive likes, What’s Trending explained. The approach builds on the Creator Affinity 100 list first presented at IBC earlier this year. Shapiro framed the work as cartography for a crowded industry: brands, publishers and platforms keep entering the “creator ecosphere,” he said, and the map is meant to keep that landscape readable.

Platform leaders will sound familiar to anyone who follows the creator economy. MrBeast leads YouTube; Khaby Lame leads TikTok; Kai Cenat leads Twitch; and Joe Rogan leads podcasting, TheWrap reported. Cristiano Ronaldo tops Instagram, while Kylie Jenner leads Snapchat. What’s Trending’s companion piece put YouTube at roughly 2.7 billion monthly active users on the map and TikTok at about 1.9 billion, underscoring how far creator-led entertainment has scaled.

Lazar said the map is designed as a practical guide for creators building businesses, brands trying to understand the space and companies hunting for openings. Goss argued that algorithms and AI can deepen echo chambers, which is why audiences are chasing “what feels fresh, new and distinctive” — and why smaller creators with strong affinity can matter as much as the biggest accounts.

Beyond the headline names, the 2026 edition expands into Snap, Facebook, LinkedIn, X, Pinterest, Rumble, Substack publishers, agencies, studios, payment tools and AI production software, both outlets noted. What’s Trending highlighted indie creators operating like compact media companies and studios such as Barstool Sports, Mythical, pocket.watch and Dhar Mann Studios as evidence that creator-led entertainment now competes with traditional media infrastructure.

The through line is that follower count alone no longer defines influence. A channel with enormous reach can underperform on affinity, while a smaller creator with a responsive audience can deliver stronger commercial and cultural impact. That is the argument Shapiro has labeled the Affinity Economy. Follow more creator coverage on our Influencers page.

Verification: Platform leaders, Jupiter Festival unveil, Affinity Quotient sponsorship via Whalar Foam, Shapiro/Lazar/Goss quotes and top-200 Instagram/YouTube/TikTok framing are from TheWrap (Kayla Cobb, Oct. 8). AQ methodology, platform MAU framing, indie-creator and studio categories and Affinity Economy framing are from What’s Trending (Keisha Oleaga, Oct. 8).