Maybe a bit late, but i was recently thinking about how hive and previously steem have changed over the years and i remembered your post.
So i have a few names of some people who i have been seeing for a long time and who i think has some influence over how thing work.

Here is the list (i have removed the @ so i don't bother them with notifications):
arcange
lordbutterfly
castleberry
blocktrades
gtg
stoodkev
yabapmatt
good-karma
deathwing
theycallmedan
pharesim
smooth
howo
mahdiyari
engrave
vsc.network
disregardfiat
mcfarhat
acidyo

I also think the important and influential people are active in the HiveDevs community.