Join us in New York City for an exclusive evening of high-quality networking with top founders, investors, and operators across Tech and CPG. This event brings together the heart of the NYC startup ecosystem for meaningful conversations, dealmaking, and discovery in an intimate, high-energy setting.
LvlUp Ventures is curating a standout experience featuring emerging brands, live tastings, product demos, an open bar, and catered bites. Whether you’re fundraising, investing, or simply expanding your network, this is the room you’ll want to be in. Connect with 150+ leaders building and backing the next generation of technology and consumer brands. Meet founders scaling fast, investors actively deploying, and operators shaping the future of commerce, AI, retail, and beyond.
Expect great energy, real conversations, and the type of connections that only happen when high-caliber people share a room.
What to Expect
• A curated mix of Tech & CPG founders and investors
• Brand tastings + product showcases
• Brief panel on the latest trends in tech, cpg, and the startup ecosystem
• Open bar & elevated food offerings
• A dynamic networking environment designed for real relationship-building
• A professional yet relaxed atmosphere—NYC at its best
Event Details
Date: Thursday, February 26th
Location: Private NYC venue (shared with approved attendees)
Attire: Smart casual
Food, drinks, and tasting experiences provided
Join us for an unforgettable night as we bring together NYC’s most ambitious builders and investors. This is where conversations turn into collaborations—and where the next wave of breakout companies begins.
Expert Panel Discussion
Dive into the latest trends in tech, CPG, and startup growth with insights from four industry-leading voices in early-stage investing:
- Christopher Yang, Co-President at Shopline
A distinguished global business executive and technology leader with a multifaceted career in building, launching and scaling consumer-centric technology platforms and solutions across diverse international markets. His extensive experience in driving engineering and product innovations that accelerated product-led growth across different D2C verticals fuels his pursuit in revolutionizing the commerce experience.
- Brandon Maier, Founder & General Partner at LvlUp Ventures
A venture investor and ecosystem builder with a strong track record backing early-stage startups and accelerating founder growth through capital, strategic support, and curated community. Prior to founding LvlUp Ventures, Brandon previously co-founded Quake Capital. He has invested in 400+ companies (18 Exits), and now leads LvlUp Ventures—an investment firm supporting high-potential founders across a wide range of sectors through several funds, programs, and scale-focused partnerships.
- AJ Smith, Junior Partner at Outlander VC
A pre-seed and seed-stage investor, builder, and creative focused on partnering with exceptional founders at the earliest stages of company formation. AJ is an investing partner at Outlander VC, a top-decile venture capital fund with 18+ unicorns across ~150 investments, including category-defining companies such as Lyft, Scale, Wish, Postmates, Gusto, and ID.me. Previously, he co-founded LvlUp Ventures and helped build a high-performing venture ecosystem supporting founders across AI, SportsTech, Gaming, Web3, and emerging sectors.
- Michael Bank, Director of New Ventures at Fidelity Labs
A fintech and venture innovation operator focused on building next-generation businesses at the intersection of startups and enterprise platforms. At Fidelity Labs, Michael drives entrepreneur pipeline development, startup ideation, and founder advising—helping incubate and scale new ventures. He brings experience as an angel investor and VC operator, with a background leading early-stage investment processes across pre-seed and seed opportunities including deal origination, diligence, and negotiation. Michael also serves as an Investment Partner at Founders Committee Ventures.
In Partnership With:
Shopline is the modern commerce platform built for DTC brands. With everything from storefront customization to omnichannel support and integrated logistics, Shopline helps fast-growing consumer brands scale smarter and sell everywhere—from Shopify to social and beyond.
Pilot is the modern accounting and finance platform built for startups. From bookkeeping and tax to CFO services and financial reporting, Pilot helps fast-growing companies stay compliant, investor-ready, and focused on building — not back-office work.
Efficient Capital Labs is a non-dilutive revenue-based financing partner for SaaS and AI startups — providing fast, flexible growth capital that lets founders scale without giving up equity or control.
Brex is an all-in-one financial platform for startups, combining corporate cards, spend management, treasury, and automation to help founders control burn, extend runway, and scale with confidence.
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