01 / PEOPLE
Meet
Creators, creatives, marketers and technologists you might not otherwise get to work with.
[ Royall / Program 01 ]
THE RULES
AREN'T WRITTEN
YET.
An 8-week experiment bringing creators, creatives and technologists together to make with AI, challenge assumptions and contribute to The Creator's AI Code.
Apply to Co-llabWhat it is
CREATIVE WORK.
UNDER NEW
CONDITIONS.
Rather than teaching AI, identity and licensing in the abstract, Co-llab puts participants inside the process. They create together, negotiate the use of real human identity, work with AI tools, make decisions about consent and value, and take a project from idea to finished, licensable work.
Limited spots
Cross discipline teams
8 weeks
02 / TEAMS
Make
One shared brief. Different skills and perspectives. A finished project at the end.
03 / TIME
8 WKS
Part-time and mostly virtual, ending with the Co-llab Showcase.
Who's in it
THE FUTURE OF
CREATIVE WORK
STARTS WITH
ITS PEOPLE.
Creators
Musicians, songwriters, filmmakers, writers, performers, artists and voice talent. They bring the human assets at the center of the project: their talent, work, voice, face, likeness, performance and ideas.
Marketers + creative professionals
Strategists, producers, creative directors, editors and agency professionals who sit on the commercial side of creative work. They bring the brief, positioning, production, distribution and commercial thinking.
Selection
Participants don't need to be AI experts. We're looking for:
- Genuine creative or professional ability
- Curiosity about where AI is taking the industry
- Willingness to collaborate
- Commitment to the full 8 weeks
A mix of AI-native participants and people with very little AI experience is intentional. Teams are assembled by Royall to create a balanced mix of creative, commercial and production skills.
How it works
The constraint isn't what you make.
At kickoff, each team receives a creative brief, broad enough to interpret however they want. A team might make a song. Another a commercial, a short film, a podcast, a visual project or an entirely new format. The constraint is that they have to figure out how to make it together.
The team
Rather than prescribing identical job titles, every team must cover five core functions. Participants can hold more than one.
01
Talent + rights
The people whose voice, face, likeness, performance or writing is being used.
02
Creative
Concept, writing, direction and creative execution.
03
Production
Capture, editing, AI tools and final production.
04
Commercial
Audience, positioning, distribution and monetization.
05
Rights + documentation
Consent, licensing, asset tracking and documentation of the process.
Each team also has one dedicated mentor and access to floating specialists across legal, AI, music, production, strategy and commercialization.
The 8 weeks
Eight weeks, end to end.
WK 01
Kickoff
Rights of publicity, identity + consent
Brief assigned, teams formed, roles established, identities and assets registered
WK 02
Rights
Licensing terms + negotiation
Team consent and likeness-use agreement finalized
WK 03
Creative + AI
AI capabilities, limitations + Tool Basket
Concept, script and treatment locked; production budget allocated
WK 04
Studio Weekend 1
—
Physical voice, video and performance capture
WK 05
Build
Working with captured + AI-generated assets
Rough cut or prototype assembled
WK 06
Commercial
Positioning, audience + packaging
One-line pitch, audience and commercial strategy
WK 07
Studio Weekend 2
Licensing, distribution + monetization
Final capture; licensing and distribution plan completed
WK 08
Finish + Showcase
—
Final project and rights record completed; Showcase
There's roughly one hour of live programming per week. Everything else is asynchronous and team-driven. Studio attendance is based on production needs, not location — only participants required for physical capture need to attend the NYC studio weekends.
The Showcase
PROJECTS PREMIERE IN NEW YORK.
Creators, marketers, AI companies, agencies, brands, investors and industry leaders are invited to see what the teams made — and how they made it. Selected projects may be licensed, commissioned or further developed by participating partners.
The Creator's AI Code
The kickoff starts with Co-llab.
What happens in Co-llab will feed into The Creator’s AI Code, documenting how creators, marketers and technologists actually navigate AI when they have to work with it together.
What creators are willing to license
What they're unwilling to license
What marketers actually want access to
Where consent negotiations become difficult
How people value their face, voice, likeness and work
Which AI tools teams actually choose
Where existing licensing workflows break
What participants understand — and misunderstand — about AI rights
How creators and marketers think differently about AI
What infrastructure the industry actually needs
Every consent decision, tool choice and licensing negotiation across every team feeds directly into the Code. Participants are surveyed before, during and after the program so those changes can be measured.
Why Co-llab exists
AI is changing creative work faster than the rules around it.
Creators are asking how they protect themselves and participate economically. Marketers and technology companies are asking what they can use, what requires permission and how they get it. Most of those conversations are happening separately.
Co-llab puts both sides in the same room and makes them figure it out together.
Because the future of creative work won't be designed by AI companies alone. It will be designed by the people creating, the people commissioning, the technology enabling it — and the rules they agree to operate by.
FAQs
APPLICATIONS
ARE OPEN.
8 weeks · Part-time · Mostly virtual
Starts Jan 13, 2027 · Apply by Dec 11, 2026
2 optional NYC studios · Free to participate