The woman who filmed the infamous couple alleged to be having an ‘affair’ at a Coldplay concert is in line to make tens of thousands of pounds, it has been revealed.
Grace Springer, from New Jersey, captured the moment Andy Byron, CEO of software firm Astronomer, was caught with his arms around the company’s chief people officer Kristin Cabot.
Experts have now urged the student to be ‘savvy’ and make the most of media opportunities resulting from the clip, suggesting six-figure sums were available.
The clip featured Coldplay frontman Chris Martin panning his ‘kiss cam’ around the audience before landing on the pair, who looked horrified, as the singer quipped: ‘Oh, look at these two – either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy.’
The moment has become one of the biggest viral moments of the year since it was recorded last Thursday – and an online frenzy was sparked as people raced to identify the sheepish pair while making jokes about their reactions to being spotted.
It was soon reported that Byron – who has since resigned from his post – and Cabot are each married to other people, but also that they are each registered at different addresses to their spouses.
Ms Springer happened to be filming the moment they hid from a crowd of 50,000 people and later uploaded the footage on TikTok, where it has racked up an astonishing 120 million views and counting.
Dylan Davey, brand strategist and founder of The Social Inc, has now estimated she could have made about £74,259 ($100,000) from the clip if she had licensed it through a media agency or content platform.
Estelle Keeber, social media marketing expert, said that Grace Springer (pictured) could have earned an estimated £5,000 to £25,000 through media opportunities alone
Andy Byron, the now-former CEO of software firm Astronomer, was filmed getting cosy with colleague Kristin Cabot, the company’s Chief People Officer
‘These kinds of clips do extremely well because they’re real and authentic and in the moment, with no editing or agenda – you feel the emotion in the video, which is why it connected with a large audience and essentially went viral.
‘TikTok itself doesn’t really pay unless the creator is part of the Creator Fund. What she has gained though is mass visibility to help her future income, but I don’t think she will ever see these levels of exposure and opportunity again.’
Ms Springer, who has now become an overnight internet success, has previously told of making no money from uploading the video on the social media site – despite it getting more than 100million views.
She claims she had not registered her account in TikTok’s Creator Fund, which allows people to monetise their content on the platform, before uploading the clip.
Yet Estelle Keeber, social media marketing expert and founder of Immoral Monkey, says that monetising her account beforehand could have landed a payout of up to £144,000 – ‘based on standard TikTok payouts ranging from £800 to £1,200 per million views’.
Ms Keeber added: ‘Grace’s video may not have earned her money, but it’s earned her a name. The question now is how she monetises that visibility.
‘While Grace remains unpaid, plenty of other creators are now capitalising on her moment. Remixes, memes, commentary videos and reaction clips are flooding TikTok and other platforms, many by accounts that are monetised.’
Karine Laudort, fashion and beauty editor, described the clip as holding ‘significant long-term value’ from a branding perspective.
Grace Springer appeared on ITV and spoke to Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary about her viral video clip on Monday
Public records suggest that Byron and Cabot are both married – but living at different addresses to each of their spouses registered abodes
She added: ‘The video has positioned her as an authentic and relatable voice – someone who captured a headline-grabbing moment purely by being herself.
‘That kind of raw, unfiltered content is exactly what resonates with audiences right now. As she currently has 46,200 followers on TikTok, this gives her a real opportunity to build momentum if she chooses to continue creating.’
Springer appeared on ITV‘s This Morning on Monday, telling presenters Alison Hammond and Dermot O’Leary, insisting ‘I’ve actually made no money from the video itself or the views. It’s not monetised.’
However, she asked her newfound fans to ‘help me pay my student loans’ by putting her Venmo and Cash App details in her TikTok bio so they could transfer her money.
After the video was published online, it was later confirmed by the Daily Mail that Cabot was currently wed to another CEO – with Massachusetts property documents dated in January noting her marriage to Andrew Cabot, chief executive of Massachusetts-based drinks producer Privateer Rum.
Byron is also married, with his wife Megan Byron having removed his last name from her social media accounts shortly after the exchange with Chris Martin went viral.
When asked if she felt guilty for filming Bryon and Cabot, Ms Springer said: ‘I definitely feel for Andy’s wife Megan and his family and everyone that’s been hurt in the process but as I said, there was over 50,000 people and I’m not the only one who caught it on camera so if it wasn’t me that uploaded it, I’m sure someone else would have.’
Discussing the video going viral, she added: ‘I never would have imagined this would have happened. If I had known, maybe I would have thought twice.’
Andy (pictured) is also facing scrutiny for claims about his allegedly unpopular management style from seven years ago
Kristin (pictured) explained that she ‘preferred to think of her role as people strategy versus traditional human resources, as the real magic happens when you align the people strategy with the business strategy’
Ms Springer said she was filming the kiss cam because she was ‘hoping to see myself on the big screen and I love to capture moments’.
She admitted she did not realise at the time how much traction the video would receive but added that people at the gig were ‘chattering’ about what had happened.
She added: ‘There were over 50,000 people at the concert so it was a hot topic. But it wasn’t until after the concert where I was debriefing the moment with my friends and I said, “Let’s review the footage, let’s see if it really looks that bad”, and I think it does.’
Springer said the moment between Byron and Cabot ‘definitely caught everyone’s attention’ because of Martin’s reaction.
She added: ‘But after that, I’m not sure if you’re too familiar with Coldplay, but their concerts are magical. So, at least for me, I moved on pretty quickly and enjoyed the rest of the night.’
This Morning co-host Alison Hammond said: ‘It’s like [Chris Martin] knew exactly what to say.’
Last week Ms Springer took a cheeky swipe at Bryon and Cabot, telling the U.S Sun she had no idea who they were, but thought it was an ‘interesting reaction’ to the kiss cam.
‘A part of me feels bad for turning these people’s lives upside down, but, play stupid games… win stupid prizes,’ she told the outlet.
Coldplay frontman Chris Martin made light of the moment on stage, telling the laughing crowd: ‘Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy’
Ms Springer said there was ‘a lot of talk’ about the kiss cam at the show, but ‘no one knew who they were’.
It has since emerged that the company the pair work for provides generative AI software to a number of major companies including Uber, Ford and LinkedIn.
Byron heaped praise on Cabot in a November 2024 post about her appointment to the firm.
‘Kristin’s exceptional leadership and deep expertise in talent management, employee engagement, and scaling people strategies will be critical as we continue our rapid trajectory,’ he said in a press release.
‘She is a proven leader at multiple growth-stage companies and her passion for fostering diverse, collaborative workplaces makes her a perfect fit for Astronomer.’
It comes after AI-tech start-up Astronomer said they have launched a formal investigation into the moment of intimacy.
The company said in a statement: ‘Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,.
‘The Board of Directors has initiated a formal investigation into this matter and we will have additional details to share very shortly.’
Byron’s firm is valued at more than $1billion (£750million), with the firm experiencing rapid growth since Byron became CEO in 2023.
