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If there is a term called "event entrepreneur," that certainly best describes my last 15+…
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Jay Weintraub shared thisI was first bitten by the event bug almost 20 year ago. Since the launch of LeadsCon, which is still going strong 18 editions later, we have continued to hone our craft across some of the most interesting and critical industries. There have been many milestones along the way (ahem Caribou Honig), including our six exits. One of those milestones was in 2017 when we convinced Josh Grossman to join us on the ITC journey. Today, I am excited to share things have come full circle. Not only are we launching our latest show - Protectors - but Josh Grossman has once again decided to join us. Protectors Vegas debuts November 9th - 11th, and its creation is heavily influenced by two forces. The first is not surprising - Medicarians. We launched Medicarians in 2022, having taken over a 12 year old Medicare Supplement event run by Jesse Slome. Five years on, that event grew from 500 people to now over 5,000. The second influence is less intuitive - Viewpoint Viewpoint's founder, Drew Aldrich was not only instrumental in helping ITC, but his knowledge and passion have shaped my love for and desire to serve industries where people are the conduit for trust, information, and ultimately purchases. Powered by NAIFA, Protectors serves those who help us with some of our most important financial and protection decisions - the agents, advisors, and carriers in the life and annuity industry. It also serves the IMOs, FMOs, BGAs, and index providers, as well as audiences for which we are also known - capital providers and innovative startups. Protectors would not be what it without the support of John W. Wheeler, CFP CLU ChFC CRPC LUTCF CLTC LACP CPFA, Kevin Mayeux, and Dan LaBert along with Chris Orestis, CSA who suggested we meet. Last but not least, a big thanks to Kent Jacquay, whose unrivaled love for annuities motivated us to take over his National Index Forum as part of our Protectors journey. It takes a village, and I have only named but a few. I am sure I am forgetting way too many people who are and have helped us (Ori Ben-Yishai, Sam Melamed, Tyler End, CFP®, James Wong, Paul Tyler, Laura Dinan Haber, Paul Feldman, Pam Sheehan) as the journey continues.
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Jay Weintraub shared thisMy kids like to tell me it isn't that deep. In this case, it is! Specifically, Deep Tech Momentum. (Clever? Dad joke? I know which my kids will say.) Getting back on track... As many know, the event industry has changed my life, and few things give me as much joy as helping others on the same journey. While I have reached a place where I am able to commit capital as an investor, when my knowledge can help is the most meaningful. That is why I would like to thank Martin Schilling and Isabelle Simon (Flanagan), founders of the world's pre-eminent gathering for the Deep Tech ecosystem - Deep Tech Momentum. I am excited for the opportunity to join an amazing group who now call themselves investors and advisors to their platform. None of which would be possible without Events Venture Group.
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Jay Weintraub shared thisFor some reason, and perhaps it is because of our CTO's love of Britney Spears, I find myself wanting to say (with some license), "Oops. We did it again." I am incredibly honored and thrilled to announce that Manifest: The Future of Supply Chain & Logistics has officially joined the Hyve Group family of events. It is hard to imagine a better home and fit for the next stage of its evolution including the launch of Manifest Europe. This milestone wouldn’t be possible without our phenomenal team - both at Manifest and Connectiv, our amazing partners, and the incredible community that believed in us from day one. Your support, passion, and collaboration helped build something truly special, and is only going to get better. Congratulations and thank you again to so many including: Pam Simon Courtney Muller Dan Reiss Tanzil Uddin Katie Date Leo Squatrito Babs Baxter Jessica Taylor Robert Pfeiffer Mark Shashoua
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Jay Weintraub shared thisImmensely shocking, disturbing, and simply tragic news just up the road from us today. Words will never be sufficient, but on behalf our teams allow me to contribute our condolences to the family of Brian Thompson and his work family of more than 100,000 at UnitedHealth Group on his profound passing.
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Jay Weintraub shared thisBig news from Team Blueprint: The Future of Real Estate. What began with a spark in late 2018 turned into reality in early 2020 thanks to Vik Venkatraman and David Hirschman and our first Blueprint Vegas in 2021. Four shows later, along with the inclusion of now President Martin Kelly and Jeffrey Jones, it is time for the next and even better chapter to begin. There are so many people to thank assaf wand Sam Landman Tigre Wenrich Caribou Honig Drew Meyers Matt Knight Dave Garland Thomas Maguire Eliot Sackler Emily Paquette Lockhart Steele I wish I could list everyone here. Thank you to all at team Connectiv, and congratulations on exit number 5!
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Jay Weintraub shared thisGreat seeing so many friends while at HLTH Inc. including ones I had not see in 12 years Rami Weiss. Congrats to Jonathan Weiner on his best one yet. All of which has me rooting for and looking for the next generation of events and event tech.Jay Weintraub shared thisJoin Events Venture Group for “The Big Break: Events in Motion” on 11/11 at 11 AM ET! 🚀 Experience our new pitch event spotlighting breakthrough projects from the brightest minds in the event industry. Our savvy industry veterans Board and Members, are ready to hear your boldest, most innovative ideas. Don’t miss this opportunity! Apply here: https://lnkd.in/erAYvEkC #EVG #TheBigBreak #EventsInMotion #Entrepreneurship #Innovation
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Jay Weintraub shared thisTurns out this was sent to an ex-employee's email address (and as the wildcard recipient, I saw it, i.e., ego crisis averted). In any case, I probably expected some error checking to exist so as not to send a null set email.
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Jay Weintraub posted thisWhile potentially late to the game, I am starting to finally realize the value of AI note taking assistants integrating with Zoom, and I presume Teams meetings. Observationally and via super limited pings (for smb budgets), our to test list includes: * Firefly * Fathom * Granola * Read Zoom in particular has such an inherent advantage - no phantom participant, but I have not hear anything product wise to makes up for the advantage. Any others we should consider? I am sure there are 100's. Best practices, tips, hacks also welcome!
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Jay Weintraub posted thisSimilar to most people, I like when someone says, "I liked that post you did." In this case, a friend said, "I found that calendar post helpful, what else do you have?" Here goes: * It is Daylight Savings in the U.S. The timezone is now PDT, CDT, EDT, etc. Don't write EST. (Confusingly, in Britain, their summer time is BST, so don't write BDT.) * If it is Thursday, don't write, "Can we find some time this week to connect." * Personal preference - I really don't like requests for 15 minutes of time (from non-colleagues); if a 30 minute slot ends early, that's a win, but I don't want to give 15 minutes to see if we need 30. (Said from someone who unfortunately has 29.5 hours of calls / meetings per week.)
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Immensely grateful for NAIFA's partnership and support.
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisI'm attending Protectors, a brand new event in Las Vegas, November 9th – 11th. Protectors is the first event bringing life, annuities and long-term care, all under one roof. Join me and NAIFA to see the people, products, and technologies shaping the future of income and financial protection! Learn More https://lnkd.in/eJ38a5Cn #ProtectorsVegas #ProtectorsVegas2026
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisForge, the B2B events and media company formed from Emerald and Questex, has named a new portfolio leadership team built around four market-focused groups to accelerate growth. Gannon Brousseau becomes group president of Luxury, Design & Hospitality, Jessica Cole group president of Healthcare & Life Sciences, Lindsay Hubley group president of Lifestyle & Outdoor, and Rhiannon James group president of Technology, Media & Advanced Industrials. The move follows Forge's recent acquisition of Becker's Healthcare from Pamlico Capital, which joins its existing Fierce Healthcare and Life Sciences portfolio under Cole's remit. Full story on Exhibition World - link in comments. #Forge #eventindustry #leadership
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisBefore Blueprint Vegas, I honestly worried we'd gone too far. Bitten off more than we could chew. Too much complexity. Would we fail on all fronts? :( Now I'm back in rainy Brooklyn, watching the downpour from my window and finally breathing a sigh of relief. We added a LOT this year, some of it last minute (an organizer's nightmare!): a Middle East workshop a week out, a private family office session, a podcast studio programmed across all 3 days, a private session with Martha Stewart, and an invite-only tech executive roundtable. All on top of 311 speakers and a full expo floor. At one point I was recording the opening for our new podcast while carpet was being ripped up behind the studio for the expo floor's final touches. Fitting for a real estate and construction event :) One by one, every session, activation and mini-event exceeded our expectations. A few moments that stuck with me from the two panels I moderated: 🔹 Chris Kelly on thinking a few moves ahead with AI: if a family with a 2-car garage and a storage unit switches to one car plus a fleet-operated option, the garage becomes the storage. Parking, storage, labor-dependent markets could all change drastically. 🔹 Lilian Chen (aka Proptech Girl): you can focus on the quarter, but a reputation lasts a lifetime and Lauren Stinson encouraging executives to embrace their persona. Why don't we cast ourselves and give ourselves permission to be seen in this new era of brand building? My Big Blueprint: The Future of Real Estate takeaways: ✅ CEOs didn't just hear about Blueprint; they showed up and shared their vision. Tech is no longer a side consideration. ✅ NOI is the focus, now and in the future. So many case studies of incredible wins this year. ✅ Acquirers came ready to put money to work, not just opportunistically. ✅ Emerging asset classes like data centers and SFR must get ahead of public misconceptions. ✅ Tech firms are becoming asset owners and taking market share through M&A. ✅ AI-first startups are emerging. Watch this space! ✅ Building companies is hard. Investors: how are you truly helping founders reach the next level? Finally, in our podcast studio I interviewed David O'Reilly, CEO of Howard Hughes. He described himself as a steward of his firm, a responsibility he takes incredibly seriously, honoring those who came before and those working alongside him. This resonated - it's how I feel about Blueprint. It's bigger than any one of us. The connections it creates between investors, owners, operators and innovators across the built world are unique. Thank you to everyone, past and present, who helps Blueprint keep growing year after year. 🙏
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Jay Weintraub liked this212 members in less than two months. Our goal is 1,000, and we’re already more than 20% of the way there. Trusted Healthcare Alliance was built to give healthcare professionals a place to learn, connect, get involved and have a stronger voice in the decisions affecting the people we serve. Our members have access to education, advocacy opportunities, committees and working groups, industry and regulatory updates, member resources and a growing community of professionals who want to help shape what comes next. If you’ve been watching what we’re building, we’d love to have you be part of it. Whether you’re an experienced professional, newly licensed, or looking to get your agency involved, there’s a place for you here. And to our first 212 members: THANK YOU. Now help us find the next 788. Invite a colleague, share this post, or send someone the membership link and tell them why you joined. Join us: https://lnkd.in/eCrUrxQq #insurance #bethechange #advocacy #insuranceagent #medicare #aca #ihelppeoplehelppeopleJay Weintraub liked this212 members in less than two months. Our goal is 1,000, and we’re already more than 20% of the way there. Trusted Healthcare Alliance was built to give healthcare professionals a place to learn, connect, get involved and have a stronger voice in the decisions affecting the people we serve. Our members have access to education, advocacy opportunities, committees and working groups, industry and regulatory updates, member resources and a growing community of professionals who want to help shape what comes next. If you’ve been watching what we’re building, we’d love to have you be part of it. Whether you’re an experienced professional, newly licensed, or looking to get your agency involved, there’s a place for you here. And to our first 212 members: THANK YOU. Now help us find the next 788. Invite a colleague, share this post, or send someone the membership link and tell them why you joined. Join us: https://lnkd.in/e_sWs3Qd
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisThe next episode of Insurance Sync podcast in season 10- sponsored by Protectors is live. Bobbie Shrivastav ☀️ and Laurel Jordan got an opportunity to sit down with John Saad founder and CEO of Big Ridge Consulting and hear his insights on the evolving distribution landscape in life and annuities, the role of AI and how technology will advance and enhance agent productivity and client education. Listen here: 🎧 https://lnkd.in/exmUE55Y #InsuranceSync #BigRidgeConsulting #Distribution #Protectors John Saad Bobbie Shrivastav ☀️Jay Weintraub Josh Grossman Laurel Jordan
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisSome of the CarpetDiem team, together at show installation! 👋 Before attendees walk through the doors, there’s a whole crew making sure every detail is ready. We’re excited to be here showing what a more circular approach to event carpeting can look like: keep carpet in use longer, then recycle it when its useful life is done. Proud of this team and the work happening behind the scenes. If you’re at the #BHT2026 show, come say hello! getcarpetdiem.com #CarpetDiem #EventSustainability #TradeShows
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisI just wrapped up 3 days at Blueprint in Vegas, and I have one surprising takeaway: a lot of VCs will get bailed out over the next 24 months. That's because there's serious appetite for M&A in proptech right now, which I didn't expect at all. It felt like every other company I sat down with was looking to buy startups. And it wasn't just the big PE groups, either. Plenty of them were operating companies looking to make strategic acquisitions that plug into what they already do. These weren't dumpster divers hunting for cheap acquihires of overfunded, underperforming companies. This was genuine strategic interest, with a willingness to pay for it. As far as I can tell, there's one reason for this: data moats. Everyone has figured out that features aren't a defensible moat in a world where AI can build them for you. Distribution helps, but it isn't a moat either. And nearly every software company I talked to is terrified that the frontier models will get good enough that their products are no longer necessary. So where's the moat? It's data that the frontier models don't have: construction projects and bidding, maintenance requests and tenant complaints, building systems breakdowns, leasing inquiries and tour bookings. All the data cruft these unprofitable startups have been generating for years is now gold, and the incumbents are willing to pay real money for it. For a lot of funds sitting on proptech portfolios that looked stuck a year ago, that's a very welcome way out. Who do you know is actively looking to buy?
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Jay Weintraub liked thisJay Weintraub liked thisThis November, more than 1,000 professionals are expected to come together in Las Vegas for Protectors, powered by NAIFA. The event will feature 150+ speakers and more than 75 sessions focused on the issues, opportunities, and innovations shaping the industry. It is three days built around learning, networking, and connecting with professionals from across the protection economy. Secure your spot today! https://hubs.ly/Q04xhr5w0 #NAIFAProud #FinancialProfessionals #Protectors
Experience & Education
Honors & Awards
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Event Innovators 2015: Most Innovative People in Events and Meetings
BizBash
Each year, BizBash selects a group of industry professionals who are using innovative thinking to push the boundaries of live experiences. I was fortunate enough to be selected for 2015.
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Executive of the Year
LeadsCouncil
Each year, LeadsCouncil members vote on an individual to recognize as one who has helped shape the world of vertical media. In 2014, I was honored to be selected as that individual.
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