Storytelling Is Your Moat, featuring Julia Dixon of ESAI

Presented by Surface AI

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In our next installment of the popular speaker series “Distribution Is Your Moat” we’re inviting Julia Dixon of ESAI to join us for donuts and coffee.

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"As the cost of code goes to zero, distribution is your only moat." While marketing, distribution, and go-to-market are established fields with many tried and true methods, each startup's playbook will be as unique as its company. To help companies understand, define, and grow their distribution, Ari Spool of Surface AI has brought together a selection of startup marketing leaders for a breakfast panel to strategize. Refreshments by Donut Pub.

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​Julia Dixon is the Founder and CEO of ESAI, the platform that helps students build compelling personal narratives, from college admissions through the start of their careers. By combining her background in marketing with a deep understanding of Gen Z, Julia has reached over 50 million on TikTok and helped more than 750,000 students craft standout applications and lifelong personal brands — most recently via Brandi, ESAI's college and career voice agent. Julia was an honoree of the 2025 Forbes 30 under 30 list and was featured on Shark Tank season 16. Her writing and ideas have been featured in Bloomberg, Wired, AdAge, and Fox Business.

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​Surface AI is an autonomous landing-page optimization engine. We connect to your existing site with one line of code — a quick setup through your CMS, no rebuild and no dev sprint. From there Surface automatically generates and tests new headlines, CTAs, layouts, and images in brand voice, using adaptive bandit algorithms that shift traffic toward what's winning and keep optimizing against live traffic over time, then feeds what's converting on-page back upstream into creative. All attendees will receive a free 30-day trial of Surface!

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