Get in the KNOW
on LA Startups & Tech
XMeWe Billed Itself as the Anti-Facebook. Now It's Going Hollywood.
Rachel Uranga
andRachel Uranga is dot.LA's Managing Editor, News. She is a former Mexico-based market correspondent at Reuters and has worked for several Southern California news outlets, including the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has covered everything from IPOs to immigration. Uranga is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and California State University Northridge. A Los Angeles native, she lives with her husband, son and their felines.
Francesca Billington
Francesca Billington is a freelance reporter. Prior to that, she was a general assignment reporter for dot.LA and has also reported for KCRW, the Santa Monica Daily Press and local publications in New Jersey. She graduated from Princeton in 2019 with a degree in anthropology.
The new chief executive of MeWe, the social network that billed itself the anti-Facebook, wants to lure in Hollywood talent — and is eyeing advertisers.
The move, steered by veteran tech and Hollywood executive Jeffrey Edell, is a departure for the Los Angeles company, which promises users it'll protect their privacy and prohibit manipulative algorithms with an ad-free network.
"I want to stay true to the privacy and those efforts, but I don't think it makes sense personally to be the quote anti-Facebook publicly," said Edell, who most recently was president of the entertainment and licensing company WTG Enterprises.
MeWe chief executive Jeffrey Edell
Since replacing founder Mark Weinstein — now the company's "chief evangelist" — last week as the network's chief executive, Edell has already signed on the comic duo Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong, better known as Cheech & Chong, to help promote the site.
"What I want to do is make the experience at MeWe an experience of chat and socializing around content, whether it be voice content like music or content that you would see documentaries, niche-based content, things like that," Edell said. "It would be really cool to have the ability to Chromecast or Rokucast, if you will, content that we would licensed or in our control and be able to have chat groups and socialize in and around that content."
The former chairman of Intermix Media, the parent company of MySpace, and a longtime executive for media distribution and licensing companies, Edell said he will use his Hollywood connections to build up partnerships. He noted that MeWe is already in talks with A-level talent.
About 17 million users are signed up worldwide for the free version of MeWe, about half in North America. The Culver City-based site appealed to some of those users by selling itself as privacy focused, with a "Privacy Bill of Rights" that vowed not to manipulate, filter or change newsfeeds or use facial recognition technology.
It kept those protections.
Unlike Facebook or Twitter, MeWe's revenue comes from subscribers who pay a monthly or annual fee to talk with a camera, access private chat rooms and get free emojis and other perks. Weinstein told dot.LA in March that the social platform makes $1 million each month from those subscribers alone.
Weinstein wouldn't disclose how many users pay for their accounts, but said 95% use the free version. MeWe has raised about $24 million from "high net-worth individuals," Edell said. And it's seeking another $20 million of funding from venture firms as it looks forward to creating new offices in a post-pandemic world.
Edell vowed to "stay true to the concept of privacy and security and protection of people's personal information." But, he says, he's open to partnering with advertisers to "give people the opportunity to make choices of what it is they want to see, listen to and do."
Until recently, the social network has relied on users' discontent with big social networks like Facebook to grow its base. When Facebook rolled out new WhatsApp privacy policies in January, upset users flocked to MeWe. The site gained 2.5 million users in one week. Some observers said it became a haven for anti-vaxxers and extremists.
Edell wants the site to appeal to users widely and while continuing to moderate content, although he didn't say how.
"If you're going to have crazy theories, again as long as you're not damaging to people, you're not pointing a gun at Obama's head, you're not raiding the Capitol to get to Nancy Pelosi... then a person should be available to be as silly as they want and they can not make sense or make sense, just don't cross the line," he said.
"The subscription model is going to stay," Edell said. "And there won't be a situation where I know exactly how you behave, so I send you an advertisement to buy Nike shoes and get creepy like that, but I'm thinking there has to be a way – as we move towards the future – to give you the option to figure out what it is you want, and then give you a place within the platform you can go and get it," he said.
For instance, he said, members might be able to opt into stores or groups with advertisers. That strategy will be key, he said, if it's to make a dent in Hollywood, where studios and talent alike depend on social media.
"We just have to be more sensitive towards the entertainment community and the people that are going to be on that platform and not create conflict," he said. "That doesn't mean we still can't be different."
From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web
Rachel Uranga
Rachel Uranga is dot.LA's Managing Editor, News. She is a former Mexico-based market correspondent at Reuters and has worked for several Southern California news outlets, including the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has covered everything from IPOs to immigration. Uranga is a graduate of the Columbia School of Journalism and California State University Northridge. A Los Angeles native, she lives with her husband, son and their felines.
Francesca Billington
Francesca Billington is a freelance reporter. Prior to that, she was a general assignment reporter for dot.LA and has also reported for KCRW, the Santa Monica Daily Press and local publications in New Jersey. She graduated from Princeton in 2019 with a degree in anthropology.
https://twitter.com/racheluranga
rachel@dot.la
LA Tech Week 2024: Tuesday’s Event Lineup
10:44 AM | October 10, 2024
tech-week
Here’s the Tuesday, October 15 lineup for LA Tech Week 2024, organized by location so you can easily explore events that fit your goals and schedule. Dive in and see what’s happening near you!
BEL AIR
5:00 PM
- Founder + Investor Dinner at Lumos House (Day 1) :See Details Here
Andrew Yeung, Blindspot
- Elevate Fall Soirée | Caviar Tasting & Champagne :See Details Here
Elevate Members
8:00 PM
- Lumos House Opening Party at LA Tech Week :See Details Here
Andrew Yeung, Blindspot
BEVERLY HILLS
8:00 AM
- Scrappy Hour :See Details Here
Scrappy
9:00 AM
- Operators Meet Up (Invite Only)
Halogen Ventures
5:00 PM
- Innovators Connect: Founders, Executives, and Leaders Mixer :See Details Here
Plug and Play, 2045, Studio by Tishman Speyer, Breaking Bread
6:00 PM
- FAMILY OFFICES & INVESTORS DINNER LA :See Details Here
VCPE GROUPS, ENTREPRENEUR.VC
- Investing In The AI Data Center Gold Rush :See Details Here
Stellenium, MyBrand Global, Project Sanctuary
- Investor & Partner Sunset Soirée :See Details Here
Ayana foundation, Cherub
- Future Maker Mixer :See Details Here
Matey, Inc.
- AI Investors Wine Tasting : See Details Here
Mission Matters, Destination Luxury
BRENTWOOD
9:00 AM
- Space, Houses, and Everything In-between :See Details Here
75 & Sunny, Fika, Navitas
3:00 PM
- Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs + Friends Tennis Live Ball :See Details Here
Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs of Socal
CARSON
12:00 PM
- Gaming Innovators Event :See Details Here
J.P. Morgan, Cooley, CAA, Porsche
CENTURY CITY
12:00 PM
- PITCH & PANEL: Founders & Investors :See Details Here
Entrepreneur Ventures, VCPE Groups, CAA (Creative Artists Agency)
CULVER CITY
9:00 AM
- Intersections LA - Coworking at LA Tech Week Day 2 :See Details Here
Intersections LA
3:00 PM
- Fireside Chat with NBA-All Star Baron Davis :See Details Here
AWS for Startups
5:30 PM
- AMA Panel and Mixer with Post-Exit Founders :See Details Here
Techstars, Saywise
EL SEGUNDO
11:00 AM
- Deep Tech Brunch :See Details Here
Calibrate Ventures, Advaita Capital, ACME VC, Techstars
4:00 PM
- Blowouts for Builders: Honoring Women in Hard Tech (Invite Only)
First Resonance
- CX2 Happy Hour :See Details Here
CX2 Inc.
5:00 PM
- American Dynamism (Invite Only)
HOLLYWOOD
10:00 AM
- Community Manager Meetup :See Details Here
Community Pros of Los Angeles
1:00 PM
- The Community Economy: Profit & Purpose :See Details Here
Communia
LONG BEACH
2:00 PM
- AI x Cyber Security :See Details Here
Our Generation Cares
6:00 PM
- AI for Technology Enabled Autism Providers Happy Hour (Invite Only)
SpectrumAi, LEARN Behavioral
MALIBU
10:00 AM
- Tech And Storytelling For Social Good :See Details Here
Goldhirsh Foundation, LA2050, Creative Visions
MARINA DEL REY
11:00 AM
- Bagels & Hard Tech by the Bay :See Details Here
DMK Engineering, Inc., Digital Law Group, PLLC
3:00 PM
- Screening of Cloudwalkers :See Details Here
USC, Information Sciences Institute (ISI)
PLAYA DEL REY
8:00 AM
- Cerebral Beach Coffee with AI Creators :See Details Here
AI LA
PLAYA VISTA
8:30 AM
- AI in Action: Redefining the Digital Content Lifecycle in Media + Entertainment :See Details Here
Sprockit, Verizon Innovation Lab
- AI & CREATIVITY BREAKFAST WITH LABS.GOOGLE :See Details Here
6:30 PM
- Trends in Building and Investing: Data, AI and the Future Internet Economy :See Details Here
Everi AI, Five Two Five VC
SANTA MONICA
7:00 AM
- Founders Run & Coffee (LA Tech Week Edition) :See Details Here
Founder Common, Founders Run Club
8:00 AM
- Just Go Grind: LA Tech Week Coffee Meetup :See Details Here
Just Go Grind
8:30 AM
- Brewing Connections: Coffee + Alfajores Networking Breakfast for Founders at Seed Stage :See Details Here
Braintly, Alt-Black
- 0 to 1: Building at the Early-Stage :See Details Here
Upfront Ventures, Brex
9:00 AM
- Deals & Donuts: An LA Tech Week Event for Investors :See Details Here
Mercato Partners
- Wake Up to Innovation: Join Dialpad at LA Tech Week :See Details Here
Dialpad
- 1:1 with Amanda: Path to Advising :See Details Here
Garden Labs
- Erewhon Smoothie Tasting & Kickoff Breakfast :See Details Here
Deel, Alumni Ventures, TeamTailor
- Office Hours for Underestimated Founders :See Details Here
M13
- Female Founders + Funders Breakfast Meetup :See Details Here
LendTech, Two to Twenty, The Artemis Fund, Orrick
9:30 AM
- Growth Day :See Details Here
Mucker Capital
- Founders and Investors Breakfast Mixer :See Details Here
Qapita, Remofirst, Commenda
10:00 AM
- Game Changers: Breakfast with Fenwick and a16z :See Details Here
a16z, Fenwick
- The FutureList Founder Hub :See Details Here
The FutureList, Global Venture Network
- Collegiate Cowork :See Details Here
USC Marshall Grief Center for Entrepreneurial Studies
- Santa Monica Promenade Walk (Coffee and Doughnuts) :See Details Here
Cherry Hill Advisory
11:00 AM
- Your Pitch Sucks! How to Make it Better :See Details Here
Liz Shows
- Business Value - Measure, Create, & Retain (Invite Only)
Objective IBV
- Transactional Trends & FinTech Transformation: Overcoming Payment Threats in a Post-COVID Marketplace (Invite Only)
Chargebacks911
- The $2M to $20M ARR Playbook: Proven Tactics for Hypergrowth :See Details Here
Next Stage Trajectory
12:00 PM
- How to Raise a Round by Women in VC :See Details Here
SSM
- Scaling Hardware: From Concept to Market - A Lunch Panel for Industry Leaders :See Details Here
SEACOMP, Conduit Venture Labs, AJProTech
- Authentication for Startups :See Details Here
FusionAuth, Global Venture Network
1:00 PM
- AI Pickleball Tournament :See Details Here
Kiva AI
- Founder Lunch :See Details Here
Cherry Hill Advisory
2:00 PM
- Google Cloud for Startups - Venture Leaders Meetup :See Details Here
Morrow, Global Venture Network
- Contech & AI Female Leaders Mixer :See Details Here
Le Club, Blueprints AI
- Solving Collective Action Problems :See Details Here
2:30 PM
- From London to #LATechWeek: What makes a world-class innovation hub with Snap, Universal Music, BAM Ventures, and OnePlan :See Details Here
London & Partners, RSM
3:00 PM
- Hardware Happy Hour: Craft Beers & Connections :See Details Here
SEACOMP, Conduit Venture Labs, AJProTech
- Venture Financing and Alternative Forms of Financing: What Startups Need to Know :See Details Here
SSM Law
- Coffee Grinders: A Productivity Social :See Details Here
Startup Village, Sigma Eta Pi, UCLA
- Female Founders and Funders Walk :See Details Here
Venturous Counsel
3:30 PM
- J.P. Morgan Social Impact - Westside Food Bank Food Sorting :See Details Here
J.P. Morgan
- Early Stage Growth: Mastering Product, Sales and Execution :See Details Here
Two Bear Capital, Binarly, CIQ
- Franchise Pitches :See Details
HereWefranch.com, Early Adopters Community
- LinkedIn Marketing Exec Roundtable: Insights and Strategies for Engaging SaaS Buyers :See Details Here
4:00 PM
- NachoTuesday: SaaS Founder + Investor Rooftop Happy Hour :See Details Here
NachoNacho, Kalungi, GLASS
- Beyond the AI Buzz - Crafting Equitable Workplaces in the Digital Age :See Details Here
Margins, Open Venture Capital
- Tech Trends Deep Dive: Innovation, Culture and Trust (Invite Only)
Edelman
- What Founders Need to Know About 2D Barcodes and the Future of Transparency :See Details Here
GS1US, Global Venture Network
- Venture Capital Creator Economy :See Details Here
Bump, Capitalize VC, H/L Ventures, Trapital Ventures, Select Management Group, Symphonic Capital, Popstar Ventures
4:30 PM
- Black Founders & Investors Meet-Up :See Details Here
Expert DOJO
5:00 PM
- AI, Cleantech, & Creatives :See Details Here
Nuleep Inc., Asians in Energy City of Irvine
- Immigrant Founders Networking :See Details Here
- Golden Hour with Gold House (Invite Only)
Gold House, Microsoft, Silicon Valley Bank
- Openhouse & Tech Mixer: Innovating Golf and Sports Technology :See Details Here
Golfjoy
- Oceanview Drinks: The Future of Legal Technology :See Details Here
SimpleClosure, Cooley, Cambrian Ventures
5:30 PM
- Lenny's Community Happy Hour :See Details Here
Lenny's Community
- Wine with AI Category Leaders :See Details Here
OCV Partners, Hyperlink Ventures, Mucker Capital, HSBC
- LATechWeek x FEMTECH Experiential Beauty Activation :See Details Here
Plantologist
- Space Jam! Founders & Investors Meetup :See Details Here
MaC Venture Capital, Generation Space, Fenwick
6:00 PM
- Easy Peasy: idea to exit in 3 years :See Details Here
Stripe
- Founders Night with VCs & Angels :See Details Here
Entre, WeWork, Fidelity
- Culture Blocks: Preserving Creativity On-Chain :See Details Here
Republic
- Preccelerator Demo Day :See Details Here
Stubbs Alderton, Markiles Preccelerator
- Clay Club LA: New Wave GTM :See Details Here
Clay
- Tech Fusion & Salsa Mixer :See Details Here
Alt-Black
- GenAI for the Entertainment Industry Dinner (Invite Only)
A16z
- SVB at LA Tech Week 2024 (Invite Only)
Silicon Valley Bank
- MLOps LA x Databricks Happy Hour :See Details Here
MLOps Community, Databricks
- Online Gaming Services House :See Details Here
Pragma, AWS, Hathora, Mod.io, Unity
- Tech Sales in LA :See Details Here
ReMatter, Zuma.AI
- Snark Tank/Money is Funny Tech Pitch Roast Comedy Show :See Details Here
Tech Pitch Roast Comedy LLC
- The Back Channel: Chief of Staff's Private Dinner :See Details Here
Draper University
- Crosscut's Annual Oktoberfest :See Details Here
Crosscut Ventures, Wilson Sonsini, Juniper Square
- Master the Art of Storytelling :See Details Here
Leave a Mark
- Investors All In: Exclusive Networking :See Details Here
No Pressure Networking, All in All
6:30 PM
- Investors All In: Exclusive Networking :See Details Here
No Pressure Networking, All in All
- LA Demo Days :See Details Here
Olympian Motors, Inc
- Rising Studios and entertainment tech frontiers :See Details Here
ElevenLabs
7:00 PM
- What's your Story? Bringing Products to Life :See Details Here
How&How, Cashapp, FNDR, Patagonia
- VIP Creator Economy Dinner :See Details Here
Pearpop
- CPG 2.0-Blending Physical and Digital Consumer Experiences :See Details Here
Camino5
- CPG Villa Party :See Details Here
Callista Media, Viecolo
- AIWave Launch Party :See Details Here
AI Wave
7:30 PM
- Speed Dating for Tech Professionals (Ages 20s & 30s) :See Details Here
Los Angeles Fun Events
SUNSET
5:30 PM
- 4th D-Line Tech Summit :See Details Here
D-Line Summit (A Deep Tech Summit)
- TORRANCE
5:30 PM
- Grow Your Legal Practice With AI Personas: A Personal AI Hands-On Workshop :See Details Here
Personal AI, The Simon Law Group Justice Team
USC
5:30 PM
- Agentic & Vertical AI - VC Fireside Chat + Networking :See Details Here
Untapped Ventures, USC School of Advanced Computing, AI LA, Embark Ventures
VENICE
8:00 AM
- Breakfast - Talking TikTok Shop Success :See Details Here
Science
- Startup Breakfast Mixer :See Details Here
J.P. Morgan Startup Banking
8:30 AM
- Gaming, Community & Mental Health :See Details Here
Richie Knows, NAMI Westside Los Angeles
9:00 AM
- Shaping the Future of Entertainment with AI :See Details Here
Perkins Coie
9:30 AM
- Caffeine and Critical Industries :See Details Here
Riot Ventures, Space VC, Stifel Bank
11:00 AM
- The Art of Building Buzz and Community on Social Media with 3 Top Brands :See Details Here
BrandBastion
12:00 PM
- Cap Table Management Best Practices :See Details Here
J.P. Morgan
4:30 PM
- Community & Superfans Happy Hour :See Details Here
Harbor
5:00 PM
- Convergence of Payments & Software :See Details Here
J.P. Morgan, Intuit Ventures, TOOLBX
- Accelerating Innovation: The Role of Venture Studios and Accelerators in the LA Startup Ecosystem :See Details Here
Reitler
5:30 PM
- Elevate with Ellevoy: Female Founders & Funders HH :See Details Here
Ellevoy
6:00 PM
- Scaling Success: Tech, Marketing, & Leadership Synergy Happy Hour :See Details Here
1Above Tech, Venture Ahead
- Tech by Day, LA by Night: Fenwick x Toku Happy Hour :See Details Here
Fenwick, Toku
7:00 PM
- Consumer Happy Hour :See Details Here
NGL
8:00 PM
- SURPRISE Launch Party :See Details Here
Dropbox, 99VC
WEST HOLLYWOOD
10:00 AM
- Professional Media Training and Headshots :See Details Here
RJR Partners, Talk Shop Media
12:00 PM
- AWSM MRNGS: A Founders & Funders Brunch :See Details Here
AWSM SCTY, Grid110
7:00 PM
- LP Salon :See Details Here
Hyphah
WESTSIDE
7:00 PM
- Growth, Sustainably LA Tech Week :See Details Here
AltiamCX, Ruckus
WESTWOOD
2:00 PM
- Healthcare Innovations: Transforming a Future for All :See Details Here
IFC Global, APSDG, UCLA School of Engineering
- Face 2 Face with TCA investors :See Details Here
TCA Los Angeles, UCLA Anderson
4:00 PM
- Female Founder Showcase :See Details Here
WINDSOR HILLS
8:00 AM
- Coffee On Slauson :See Details Here
Slauson& Co
For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.
Enjoy LA Tech Week 2024!
Download the dot.LA AppRead moreShow less
🔦 Spotlight
Happy Friday Los Angeles,
As many of you know, LA Tech Week is right around the corner, kicking off next Monday October 14th bringing together founders, creatives, investors, and engineers for a week of immersive events, panels, and socials across the city. From blockchain and AI to biotech and design, LA Tech Week is a chance to dive into the ideas shaping today’s technology landscape.
What to Look Forward To
Insights from Visionary Leaders: Hear firsthand from industry trailblazers as they share stories, challenges, and key lessons from their experiences. Expect fresh perspectives on AI, venture capital, biotech, and the ethical questions around emerging technologies.
Interactive Panels: This week isn’t about watching from the sidelines; it’s about engaging directly with the tech community. Participate in hands-on panels discussing everything from startup scaling to ethical AI, with honest insights from those actively shaping these fields.
Networking Mixers & Social Events: Meet and connect with founders, VCs, developers, designers, and fellow techies across LA. Rooftop mixers, lunch meetups, and creative gatherings offer the perfect chance to spark ideas and collaborate.
Plan your week with the daily lineup, organized by location for easy navigation:
For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.
Enjoy LA Tech Week 2024!
🤝 Venture Deals
LA Companies
- Clout Kitchen, a Los Angeles and Manila based startup, has raised $4.45M in seed funding, co-led by a16z SPEEDRUN and Peak XV’s Surge, to develop AI-powered digital twins, which enables gaming creators to produce realistic virtual avatars for content and fan engagement. - learn more
- MeWe, a privacy-focused social media platform, has raised an initial $6M in Series B funding led by McCourt Global to support Web3 integration and expand its decentralized network for 20 millions users. - learn more
- Suma Wealth, a financial platform aimed at empowering Latino entrepreneurs, raised a $7M seed round, with participation from ResilienceVC, Acumen, Commerce Ventures, Ascendo Venture Capital, and Cooley, to enhance its AI-driven financial tools, including the recent acquisition of Mooch, an AI-powered personal finance app that expands its personalized financial management solutions. - learn more
LA Venture Funds
- EGB Capital participated in a $10M Series A funding round for MiLaboratories, which develops software that enables biologists to independently analyze complex genomic data, accelerating research and discovery in fields like drug development. - learn more
- Crosscut Ventures participated in the $13.75M seed round for Airloom Energy, a company focused on developing airborne wind energy technology to harness high-altitude winds, with plans to accelerate a pilot project in Wyoming. - learn more
- Alpha Edison and ICM Partners participated in a $59M Series B round for Q-Ctrl, an Australian quantum infrastructure software provider, bringing its total funding to $113M. - learn more
- Alexandria Venture Investments participated, and TCG co-led, a $100M Series A round for Judo Bio, a biotechnology company pioneering oligonucleotide therapies targeted at kidney delivery. - learn more
- TIME BioVentures participated in a $30M Series C round for Rivermark Medical, a leading provider of minimally invasive solutions for Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia. - learn more
- Vamos Ventures participated in a $405M Series F round for Form Energy, Inc., a U.S.-based tech company pioneering a cost-effective, multi-day energy storage solution for commercial use. - learn more
- Navitas Capital and Fifth Wall participated in a $21.5M Series B round for Document Crunch, a construction document compliance platform based in Atlanta, GA. - learn more
- Overture VC participated in a $5.5M Seed funding round for Molg Inc., a company developing robotics and software for circular manufacturing, designed to disassemble electronics efficiently and recover valuable materials to reduce e-waste and support sustainable production. - learn more
- Fifth Wall led a $15M funding round for Purpose Green, a Berlin-based climate tech company, bringing its total funding to $18.4M. - learn more
LA Exits
- The Parking Spot, a leading near-airport parking provider, has been acquired by KKR from an affiliate of Green Courte Partners, LLC, enhancing its portfolio in travel-related infrastructure. - learn more
- Options MD, a Los Angeles based telemedicine platform that provides care for people suffering from severe and treatment-resistant mental illness, is set to be acquired by Resilience Lab, an AI-driven provider focused on enhancing mental health care access. - learn more
Read moreShow less
RELATEDTRENDING
LA TECH JOBS