This issue’s Creator Economy calendar spans nine events from October 14 through October 23, with stops in Los Angeles, Leicester, New York, Santa Monica, London, and Orlando. The slate covers Influencer Marketing dealmaking, practical AI programming for small businesses and creators, micro-drama and vertical storytelling, social commerce and TikTok Shop activations, food content creator programming, affiliate and partnership marketing, brand chief marketing officer strategy, and entertainment IP dealmaking between Hollywood and digital creators. Primary audiences include creators and talent representatives, brand and agency marketers, chief marketing officers, affiliate and partnership marketers, food content creators, and entertainment and studio executives.
CreatorIQ holds its one-day Connect conference at The Ebell of Los Angeles, bringing together more than 1,000 global marketing leaders from brands, agencies, and social platforms alongside creators. YouTube serves as the presenting partner. The event is structured around three tracks: the Engine, covering business strategy; the Craft, focused on creative case studies and practitioner-led sessions; and the Studio, offering curated networking and live podcast recordings. More than 30 speakers are confirmed, including YouTube vice president of strategy Mithun Sheth, Los Angeles Rams chief commercial officer Jennifer Prince, and content creators Jordan Howlett and Kareem Rahma. Sponsors include Awin and Sprinklr.
Date: October 13, 2026
Venue: The Ebell of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
The Influencer Marketing Conference & Expo (IMCX) returns to Los Angeles after a multi-year absence, produced by TheCreatorEconomy.com under founder and chief executive officer Ismail Oyekan, who launched the event in 2019. The two-day conference is built around dealmaking, with sessions and workshops alongside keynotes, panels and an exhibitor floor. Confirmed keynote speakers include Safebets.World chief executive officer Alex Konanykhin, Beach House Group founder Shaun Neff, Elevator Studio chief executive officer Dan Fleyshman, and Stealth Talent co-founder and chief executive officer Phil Ranta. Organizers report more than 500 expected attendees, 40-plus exhibitor booths, and 25-plus speakers. SafeBets serves as presenting sponsor. A Standard Pass is priced at $697, and a VIP Pass, which includes a reception and priority seating, is priced at $997.
Date: October 14-15, 2026
Venue: Broadway Civic Center, 207 S Broadway, Downtown Los Angeles
Festival of AI returns to Leicester’s National Space Centre for a two-day program organized by Practical AI Training & Development Limited and positioned for small business owners, creators, and entrepreneurs. An optional workshop day runs October 15, followed by the main conference day on October 16, structured across parallel beginner and advanced tracks with shared keynotes and networking. Matthew Hughes opens with a keynote on the future of artificial intelligence. Confirmed speakers include Rocketeer Orbit chief executive officer Richard Wood, Gemma Went, and Ann Stanley, addressing topics spanning AI-driven business efficiency, leveraged AI assets, and AI tools for marketers and managers. HighLevel serves as headline sponsor.
Date: October 15-16, 2026
Venue: National Space Centre, Leicester, United Kingdom
ALZA Festival holds its inaugural edition in New York City, positioning itself as the first festival dedicated exclusively to micro-drama and vertical storytelling. The three-day program includes vertical series premieres, creator spotlights, industry conversations, masterclasses, networking events, and brand activations. The festival partners with the New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment on a new “Created in NY” program, which adds educational panels and workshops, a “Created in NY” showcase for finalists, and a “Made in NY Award,” marking the first time the honor goes to a content creator. Commissioner Rafael Espinal represents the Mayor’s Office in the partnership. ALZA Festival is founded by Pete Torres, former chief operating officer of Tribeca Festival, alongside co-founders Rita Vinnik, a former TikTok executive, and Katie Korfhage, former vice president of development at Tribeca Festival, and is produced by Torres Live.
Social Commerce Festival returns to Los Angeles for its one-year anniversary stop on the 2026 global tour produced by Creator Market Productions, following earlier 2026 stops in Miami, London, and Nashville. The one-day event combines live shopping, brand activations, and performances across two stages, with organizers reporting more than 90 participating brands and more than 1,000 attending creators. Programming includes creator one-on-one sessions, brand booth activations, live panels and keynotes, and a new SCFest Vertical Category Houses track pairing resident TikTok Shop creators with the broader creator network for brand content production. Confirmed brands on the sponsor roster include Estée Lauder, L’Oréal Paris, MAC, and Samsung. A launch party precedes the festival on October 16 at Avalon in Hollywood.
Date: October 17, 2026
Venue: 1228 Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica, California
FoodieCon, presented by Bank of America and SUNSET, returns as part of the Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival, bringing together social media food influencers, culinary personalities, and food enthusiasts for a day of live cooking demonstrations, tastings, panels, and meet-and-greets. Organizers describe it as the Festival’s largest gathering of food and lifestyle creators. Featured creators include Olivia Tied (@oliviatied), Kevin Noparvar (@howkeveats), Jenn Lueke (@jenneatsgoood), and Bobby Pombo (@bobbypombo).
Date: Sunday, October 18, 2026, 11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
PI LIVE Europe, produced by Hello Partner and billed as the Festival of Partnerships, convenes across a three-venue campus in London for its affiliate, retail media, and partnership marketing community. The festival runs specialist summits, expert clinics, Hosted Meetings, and interactive Build Lab workshops across the Direction, Well and Action stages at Old Billingsgate, with dedicated Summit stages at The Steel Yard and additional networking at the Partner’s Arms. Programming addresses affiliate and publisher models, AI-driven attribution, retail media, social commerce, fintech, and creator partnerships through a Retail Media and Creator Street track. Organizers report more than 100 expert speakers, more than 16,500 networking meetings, and attendees from 32 countries, including more than 100 each from the United States and Germany. Registered brands include Nike, TikTok, NatWest, Dyson, and Virgin Atlantic. The festival closes with an awards ceremony and after-party.
Date: October 19-21, 2026
Venue: Old Billingsgate and The Steel Yard, London, United Kingdom
The Association of National Advertisers holds its 2026 Masters of Marketing Conference at Rosen Shingle Creek, themed “Catalyzing Growth” and presented by Havas. The four-day program convenes chief marketing officers and brand leaders for keynotes, breakout sessions, and networking addressing AI, creativity, brand fundamentals, and performance marketing, with a hybrid virtual attendance option powered by Grip. Confirmed main stage speakers include Procter & Gamble chief brand officer Marc S. Pritchard, TikTok segment director Liza Heller, Coca-Cola executive vice president and chief marketing and customer commercial officer Manolo Arroyo, Verizon executive vice president and chief marketing officer Leslie Berland, and The LEGO Group chief product and marketing officer Julia Goldin. Actress and singer Katharine McPhee performs as part of the conference’s entertainment program. Client-side marketers attend free; nonmember in-person registration starts at $2,999.
Date: October 20-23, 2026
Venue: Rosen Shingle Creek, 9939 Universal Blvd., Orlando, Florida
UP NEXT: The Creator IP Market holds its inaugural single-day event in Los Angeles, developed in partnership with The Hollywood Reporter and produced by Access Media. The market is designed to connect development-ready digital creators directly with studios, streamers, broadcasters, talent agencies, brands and investors through curated one-to-one meetings, industry networking, IP showcases, panels and keynote conversations. Attendance is accredited and limited, with applicants applying under one of three tracks: Buyer, Creator or Industry. Scott Benzie, founder of WorldBuilder Summit and former CEO of Buffer Festival, serves as General Manager. The Hollywood Reporter editor-in-chief Maer Roshan says the event is designed to bring the Creator Economy and Hollywood together as digital creators increasingly fuel studio talent pipelines and brand marketing strategies.
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
This issue’s Creator Economy calendar spans nine events from October 14 through October 23, with stops in Los Angeles, Leicester, New York, Santa Monica, London, and Orlando. The slate covers Influencer Marketing dealmaking, practical AI programming for small businesses and creators, micro-drama and vertical storytelling, social commerce and TikTok Shop activations, food content creator programming, affiliate and partnership marketing, brand chief marketing officer strategy, and entertainment IP dealmaking between Hollywood and digital creators. Primary audiences include creators and talent representatives, brand and agency marketers, chief marketing officers, affiliate and partnership marketers, food content creators, and entertainment and studio executives.
CreatorIQ Connect 2026
CreatorIQ holds its one-day Connect conference at The Ebell of Los Angeles, bringing together more than 1,000 global marketing leaders from brands, agencies, and social platforms alongside creators. YouTube serves as the presenting partner. The event is structured around three tracks: the Engine, covering business strategy; the Craft, focused on creative case studies and practitioner-led sessions; and the Studio, offering curated networking and live podcast recordings. More than 30 speakers are confirmed, including YouTube vice president of strategy Mithun Sheth, Los Angeles Rams chief commercial officer Jennifer Prince, and content creators Jordan Howlett and Kareem Rahma. Sponsors include Awin and Sprinklr.
Date: October 13, 2026
Venue: The Ebell of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
IMCX 2026
The Influencer Marketing Conference & Expo (IMCX) returns to Los Angeles after a multi-year absence, produced by TheCreatorEconomy.com under founder and chief executive officer Ismail Oyekan, who launched the event in 2019. The two-day conference is built around dealmaking, with sessions and workshops alongside keynotes, panels and an exhibitor floor. Confirmed keynote speakers include Safebets.World chief executive officer Alex Konanykhin, Beach House Group founder Shaun Neff, Elevator Studio chief executive officer Dan Fleyshman, and Stealth Talent co-founder and chief executive officer Phil Ranta. Organizers report more than 500 expected attendees, 40-plus exhibitor booths, and 25-plus speakers. SafeBets serves as presenting sponsor. A Standard Pass is priced at $697, and a VIP Pass, which includes a reception and priority seating, is priced at $997.
Date: October 14-15, 2026
Venue: Broadway Civic Center, 207 S Broadway, Downtown Los Angeles
Festival of AI
Festival of AI returns to Leicester’s National Space Centre for a two-day program organized by Practical AI Training & Development Limited and positioned for small business owners, creators, and entrepreneurs. An optional workshop day runs October 15, followed by the main conference day on October 16, structured across parallel beginner and advanced tracks with shared keynotes and networking. Matthew Hughes opens with a keynote on the future of artificial intelligence. Confirmed speakers include Rocketeer Orbit chief executive officer Richard Wood, Gemma Went, and Ann Stanley, addressing topics spanning AI-driven business efficiency, leveraged AI assets, and AI tools for marketers and managers. HighLevel serves as headline sponsor.
Date: October 15-16, 2026
Venue: National Space Centre, Leicester, United Kingdom
ALZA Festival
ALZA Festival holds its inaugural edition in New York City, positioning itself as the first festival dedicated exclusively to micro-drama and vertical storytelling. The three-day program includes vertical series premieres, creator spotlights, industry conversations, masterclasses, networking events, and brand activations. The festival partners with the New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment on a new “Created in NY” program, which adds educational panels and workshops, a “Created in NY” showcase for finalists, and a “Made in NY Award,” marking the first time the honor goes to a content creator. Commissioner Rafael Espinal represents the Mayor’s Office in the partnership. ALZA Festival is founded by Pete Torres, former chief operating officer of Tribeca Festival, alongside co-founders Rita Vinnik, a former TikTok executive, and Katie Korfhage, former vice president of development at Tribeca Festival, and is produced by Torres Live.
Date: October 16-18, 2026
Venue: AMC 19th Street (East 6), New York
Social Commerce Festival Los Angeles 2026
Social Commerce Festival returns to Los Angeles for its one-year anniversary stop on the 2026 global tour produced by Creator Market Productions, following earlier 2026 stops in Miami, London, and Nashville. The one-day event combines live shopping, brand activations, and performances across two stages, with organizers reporting more than 90 participating brands and more than 1,000 attending creators. Programming includes creator one-on-one sessions, brand booth activations, live panels and keynotes, and a new SCFest Vertical Category Houses track pairing resident TikTok Shop creators with the broader creator network for brand content production. Confirmed brands on the sponsor roster include Estée Lauder, L’Oréal Paris, MAC, and Samsung. A launch party precedes the festival on October 16 at Avalon in Hollywood.
Date: October 17, 2026
Venue: 1228 Third Street Promenade, Santa Monica, California
FoodieCon
FoodieCon, presented by Bank of America and SUNSET, returns as part of the Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival, bringing together social media food influencers, culinary personalities, and food enthusiasts for a day of live cooking demonstrations, tastings, panels, and meet-and-greets. Organizers describe it as the Festival’s largest gathering of food and lifestyle creators. Featured creators include Olivia Tied (@oliviatied), Kevin Noparvar (@howkeveats), Jenn Lueke (@jenneatsgoood), and Bobby Pombo (@bobbypombo).
Date: Sunday, October 18, 2026, 11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Venue: Storied NYC, 547 W 26th Street, New York
PI LIVE Europe 2026
PI LIVE Europe, produced by Hello Partner and billed as the Festival of Partnerships, convenes across a three-venue campus in London for its affiliate, retail media, and partnership marketing community. The festival runs specialist summits, expert clinics, Hosted Meetings, and interactive Build Lab workshops across the Direction, Well and Action stages at Old Billingsgate, with dedicated Summit stages at The Steel Yard and additional networking at the Partner’s Arms. Programming addresses affiliate and publisher models, AI-driven attribution, retail media, social commerce, fintech, and creator partnerships through a Retail Media and Creator Street track. Organizers report more than 100 expert speakers, more than 16,500 networking meetings, and attendees from 32 countries, including more than 100 each from the United States and Germany. Registered brands include Nike, TikTok, NatWest, Dyson, and Virgin Atlantic. The festival closes with an awards ceremony and after-party.
Date: October 19-21, 2026
Venue: Old Billingsgate and The Steel Yard, London, United Kingdom
ANA Masters of Marketing 2026
The Association of National Advertisers holds its 2026 Masters of Marketing Conference at Rosen Shingle Creek, themed “Catalyzing Growth” and presented by Havas. The four-day program convenes chief marketing officers and brand leaders for keynotes, breakout sessions, and networking addressing AI, creativity, brand fundamentals, and performance marketing, with a hybrid virtual attendance option powered by Grip. Confirmed main stage speakers include Procter & Gamble chief brand officer Marc S. Pritchard, TikTok segment director Liza Heller, Coca-Cola executive vice president and chief marketing and customer commercial officer Manolo Arroyo, Verizon executive vice president and chief marketing officer Leslie Berland, and The LEGO Group chief product and marketing officer Julia Goldin. Actress and singer Katharine McPhee performs as part of the conference’s entertainment program. Client-side marketers attend free; nonmember in-person registration starts at $2,999.
Date: October 20-23, 2026
Venue: Rosen Shingle Creek, 9939 Universal Blvd., Orlando, Florida
UP NEXT: The Creator IP Market
UP NEXT: The Creator IP Market holds its inaugural single-day event in Los Angeles, developed in partnership with The Hollywood Reporter and produced by Access Media. The market is designed to connect development-ready digital creators directly with studios, streamers, broadcasters, talent agencies, brands and investors through curated one-to-one meetings, industry networking, IP showcases, panels and keynote conversations. Attendance is accredited and limited, with applicants applying under one of three tracks: Buyer, Creator or Industry. Scott Benzie, founder of WorldBuilder Summit and former CEO of Buffer Festival, serves as General Manager. The Hollywood Reporter editor-in-chief Maer Roshan says the event is designed to bring the Creator Economy and Hollywood together as digital creators increasingly fuel studio talent pipelines and brand marketing strategies.
Date: October 21, 2026
Venue: Los Angeles, California
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