MrBeast, Steven Bartlett join Shark Tank USA

MrBeast and Steven Bartlett are joining Shark Tank USA as guest investors, bringing two of the creator economy's biggest entrepreneurs to the long-running US business series.

The pair will appear in the show's upcoming season alongside actress Mindy Kaling, former NFL player J.J. Watt, and entrepreneurs Sara and Erin Foster.

"This year I'm joining Shark Tank USA. This was a dream of mine," Bartlett wrote on LinkedIn, adding that watching Dragons' Den and Shark Tank as a teenager inspired him to start his first businesses.

Bartlett previously joined the BBC's Dragons' Den in 2022 as its youngest-ever Dragon. Since then, he has built Steven.com, a holding company backed by $425 million in investor capital that brings together businesses including The Diary of a CEO, Flight Story, Flight Fund, Flight Studio, Flightcast and Stan Store. Bartlett has described the venture as part of his ambition to build a "Disney for creators".

MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, has meanwhile built Beast Industries into a diversified business spanning media, consumer products and technology. Alongside Feastables and Amazon's Beast Games, the company earlier this year acquired Gen Z banking app Step as it continues to expand beyond its YouTube roots.

The appointments further cement Bartlett and Donaldson's positions among the creator economy's most influential entrepreneurs.