Puck launches live event conference series

Puck, the buzzy media startup, is launching its first-ever live conference event this fall.

The big picture: More digital media companies are leaning into big conferences and event series as advertising revenue tapers off.

Details: "The Powers That Be: Live" conference series is named after the company's flagship daily podcast, which features the outlet's top reporters discussing the biggest stories of the day across Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley and Hollywood.

• Instead of stacking several interviews together for a one-day summit, the conference series is formatted as a multiday event that will take place across various U.S. cities.
• Each event will feature one private, off-the-record conversation between a high-profile "honoree" and a Puck journalist that will be accompanied by a highly curated, invitation-only cocktail reception.
• The new series "expresses how elite, engaged audiences want to convene and exchange insights in our modern, oversaturated information economy," said Puck's editor-in-chief and co-founder Jon Kelly

Between the lines: Puck is working with Boldface Partners, the event production firm that oversaw other splashy publisher gatherings, such as Vanity Fair's Oscar Party. Global law firm Mayer Brown is one of the first sponsors.

• The first event will be on Oct. 23 at the Top of the Hay, a glitzy event space in Washington, D.C., that overlooks the White House. Puck's Peter Hamby will speak with former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, who is one of the series' first honorees.
• The second event, featuring Netflix chief content officer Bela Bajaria in conversation with Puck's Matt Belloni, will be held in Los Angeles this November.

• The third event will be held early next year in New York and will feature Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon in conversation with Puck's William D. Cohan.

Between the lines: Puck has done nearly 15 commercial events in 2023 and plans to grow its events footprint next year, Kelly said.

• The firm raised over $10 million in a Series B growth round in August, two years after launching with an initial $7 million seed round.