Julia Hartz

At the heart of every great event—every conference that sparks a career,
every concert that shapes a memory, every community gathering that
changes a life — there is infrastructure that makes it possible. Julia Hartz,
CEO of Eventbrite, has spent over a decade building and leading that
infrastructure, steering one of the world’s most impactful event technology
platforms through explosive growth, global crisis, and remarkable
reinvention.

Co-Founding a Company Built on Belief
Julia Hartz co-founded Eventbrite in 2006 alongside Kevin Hartz and Renaud Visage, with a mission
That was both simple and profound: to bring the world together through live experiences. Before
Eventbrite: organising and promoting an event required expensive ticketing infrastructure, specialist
knowledge, and significant upfront cost — barriers that locked out independent creators, small
businesses and community organizers. Eventbrite democratised that process entirely, giving anyone
with a vision and the tools to create, promote, and manage events of any scale. Julia led the company’s
critical early growth as President before stepping into the CEO role in 2016—a transition that marked
the beginning of one of the most formidable leadership stories in modern tech.

Leading Through the Unthinkable
No leadership story tests a CEO more than an existential crisis—and Julia faced one of the most
severe in modern business history. When the COVID-19 pandemic brought the global events industry
to a complete standstill in 2020, Eventbrite’s entire market disappeared virtually overnight. Rather
than retreat, Julia led with transparency, decisiveness, and an unwavering focus on the creators and
organizers at the heart of Eventbrite’s community. She made the painful but necessary decisions to
restructure the business while simultaneously investing in product innovation — pivoting to support
virtual and hybrid events at record speed. Her leadership through that period drew widespread
admiration and cemented her reputation as one of the most resilient CEOs of her generation.

“Leadership is not about having all the answers. It is about
creating the conditions where the right answers can emerge —
from your team, from your community, from the people who
believe in what you are building as much as you do.”

                               — Julia Hartz, CEO, Eventbrite

Championing Creators at Every Stage
What distinguishes Julia’s leadership at Eventbrite is her profound commitment to the creators and
event organizers the platform serves. Under her tenure, Eventbrite has consistently prioritised product
features, pricing models, and support structures that empower independent organizers—not just
large corporate clients. Julia has spoken extensively about the transformative power of live experiences in building
community, fostering belonging, and driving economic opportunity for creators worldwide.
This philosophy has shaped Eventbrite’s culture from the inside out, attracting a
team is deeply aligned with the mission of making human connection more accessible. The result is a
platform that hosts millions of events annually across more than 180 countries, touching hundreds of
millions of lives each year.

A Leadership Legacy for the Next Generation
Julia Hartz’s journey from co-founder to CEO of a publicly listed global technology company is a
masterclass in purposeful leadership. She has navigated hypergrowth, public markets, and a once-in-a-lifetime
a generational crisis—emerging each time with her values and vision intact. For womenpreneurs,
charting their own leadership paths, Julia’s story delivers a vital truth: the strongest leaders are not
those who project invincibility, but those who lead with honesty, adapt with courage, and keep the
People they serve are at the absolute center of every decision. In a world that has rediscovered the
irreplaceable value of human connection, Julia Hartz is making sure the infrastructure for that
The connection is stronger than ever.