Why A Former OnlyFans CEO Is Building The 'HBO Of Social Media'

From launching the first cannabis cafe in West Hollywood to running OnlyFans, Ami Gan is risking it all to build a brand-new 18+ social network! Welcome back to the Forbes Top Creator Show! This week, host Steven Bertoni sits down with Ami Gan, the former CEO of OnlyFans and the visionary founder behind Vylit. Ami shares her jaw-dropping professional evolution, detailing what it was really like taking the helm at OnlyFans, scaling a borderless empire to 4 million creators with staggering 50% profit margins, and managing it all from home. Her next disruptive venture, Vylit, has been dubbed the "HBO of social media." Ami breaks down how Vylit fills the massive white space between traditional, heavily censored apps and adult platforms, their strict content boundaries ("freeing the nipple, but not the rest"), their creator-first 80/20 revenue split, and how she raised $2.7 million to get it off the ground with a lean team of her closest friends. Finally, Ami reveals how Vylit integrates human-trained generative AI tools to eliminate creator burnout without flooding the web with "artificial slop," tells the story behind their viral aerial banner stunt that caught the eye of Alix Earle during Miami's F1 weekend, and shares her ultimate advice for overcoming imposter syndrome by channeling "blind confidence." #AmiGan #Vylit #OnlyFansCEO #CreatorEconomy #TechStartups #Forbes Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?s... 0:00 The Business of Influence 1:43 From West Hollywood Cannabis Cafes to OnlyFans HQ 4:13 Joining Tech’s Biggest Disrupter During the Pandemic Boom 7:10 Stepping Up as CEO: Heavy-Duty Lessons in Platform Safety 9:32 Athleisure & Zoom Disguises: The Un-Glamorous Reality of a Tech CEO 14:25 Launching Vylit: The "HBO of Social Media" Explained 18:57 Vylit's 80/20 Creator Split & Human-Trained AI Tools 22:03 Capitalizing on the "Messy Middle" of 18+ Social Media 24:53 The Playbook for Raising $2.7M & Starting a New Network 29:33 Going Viral: The "Free the Nipple" F1 Miami Marketing Stunt 32:39 The Future of AI & Why Humans Will Always Win 40:02 The Cure for Imposter Syndrome: Channeling "Blind Confidence" Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more: https://account.forbes.com/membership... Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter:   / forbes   Forbes Video on Instagram:   / forbes   More From Forbes: http://forbes.com Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.