For years, the media industry has operated in silos. Talent agencies managed stars, studios made films, platforms distributed content, and brands paid to reach audiences.

Today, those boundaries are blurring. Creators are building their own businesses, AI is changing how content is made, and a single story or character can become the starting point for films, series, brand partnerships, and more.

The Collective Artists Network, founded by Vijay Subramaniam, is building across many of these areas.

In a fireside chat titled The great media rebundle: Why content, talent, technology and commerce are coming together at TechSparks 2026, Subramaniam discussed how his venture is building layers across talent communities, marketing communities, and technology, and how AI fits into the larger scheme.

Dubbed the “AI man of the media industry”, Subramaniam said that, though it’s scary, he wears the badge with confidence because technology is here to stay.

“My fundamental belief is that content creation should be a level playing field. Historically, a few elites have always had the opportunity to tell a story. But anyone with a story should be able to tell and consume it. My company is pursuing that aggressively. We have the largest slate of AI-enabled content in the world today, and we’re very excited about it,” he explained.

As the media business changes, what does it stand to gain and what does it stand to lose?

“When COVID happened, we were all confined to our houses to consume content. I don’t think the media stands to lose anything.

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