Run the World

Founded in late 2019 by Xiaoyin Qu, Run the World emerged as a virtual event platform designed for experts, creators, and organizations to host and monetize online gatherings. The company's creation was timely, launching just before the global pandemic catalyzed a massive shift to virtual interactions. This positioned Run the World for rapid growth, attracting significant investor attention. The company secured a total of $15.1 million over two funding rounds, including a $4.3 million seed round in February 2020 and a $10.8 million Series A round in May 2020. Notable investors included Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, Pear VC, and prominent individuals like Will Smith and Kevin Hart.

Founder Xiaoyin Qu's background was instrumental to the company's trajectory. A serial entrepreneur, Qu had prior experience as a product manager at Facebook and Instagram, where she focused on products for creators and influencers. She dropped out of the Stanford MBA program to launch Run the World, an idea conceived during her first year. This blend of experience in social product development and a keen understanding of the creator economy shaped the platform's core offerings.

Run the World provided an all-in-one solution for virtual events, encompassing ticketing, registration, hosting, payment processing, and post-event community engagement. The platform served a diverse client base, from Fortune 500 companies and universities like Harvard to individual creators and non-profits. Its business model was based on a revenue share from paid ticket sales and platform fees. Key features were designed to foster interaction and replicate the networking aspects of in-person events. These included a "Cocktail Party" feature for one-on-one speed networking, breakout rooms for smaller discussions, live Q&A sessions, and a "Groupfie" photo booth. The platform could support up to 10,000 concurrent attendees and offered customizable branding, analytics, and lead retrieval for sponsors.

At its peak, the company powered over 50,000 events for clients such as Forbes, Meta, and Amazon. However, as the demand for exclusively virtual events waned with the return of in-person gatherings, the company faced challenges. In August 2023, Run the World was acquired by EventMobi, a Toronto-based event management software provider. The acquisition was part of EventMobi's strategy to enhance its hybrid event capabilities by integrating Run the World's customer base and virtual event expertise. Following the acquisition, Run the World's operations were set to be phased out as clients transitioned to the EventMobi platform. After the exit, founder Xiaoyin Qu moved on to her next venture, an AI-focused company called HeyBoss AI.

Keywords: virtual event platform, online conferences, Xiaoyin Qu, EventMobi acquisition, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, virtual networking, event hosting, online workshops, webinar software, virtual summits, event monetization, digital events, attendee engagement, Cocktail Party feature, interactive events, event technology, online community building, event registration, creator economy tools