Andy Russell (Trigger Media)

In 2011, Russell founded Trigger Media, an operating company focused on launching transformational or disruptive digital, social, ad tech, and marketing tech businesses. Trigger’s investors and advisors include Bob Pittman, Conde Nast/Advance Publications, former MySpace president Jason Hirschhorn, Paul Tudor Jones of Tudor Investments, former Daily Candy CEO Pete Sheinbaum, as well as Michael Kassan, former president of Initiative Media Worldwide and CEO of MediaLink (recently sold for $270MM), Ken Fox, cofounder of Internet Capital Group, and OneKingsLane founder Ali Pincus,

Trigger Media launched InsideHook, a men's lifestyle website and email newsletter, in 2011 and Host Committee in 2012.

In 2003, Russell became a founding partner in Bob Pittman's private equity firm, Pilot Group. The companies that Russell invested in, incubated or bought included Daily Candy (purchased for $2.3M, sold for $125M), Thrillist (incubated and exited for 25x return), Tasting Table (incubated), Idealbite (invested for majority control and exited in one year for 5x return), PureWow (incubated and sold to Gary Vaynerchuk), Zynga (first professional money, exited for 100x return), Betaworks (first professional investor), Business Insider (first investor), Sailthru (first investor, currently valued at $200M), RapLeaf and LiveRamp (first investor, exited for $300M), SpongeCell (first investor), AdRoll (first investor at $6M, currently valued at $500M), and Bounce Exchange (first investor, currently valued at $200M).

From 1999-2003, Russell launched the digital media investment practice for East River Ventures.

In 1996, Russell deferred enrollment at Kellogg University where he was to study marketing and opted for the entrepreneurial trek. At age 25, Russell co-founded MOOMBA, with investors such as Laurence Fishburne, Larry Gagosian, Oliver Stone, and Keith Barish. Once MOOMBA was up and running, Russell enrolled at Columbia Business School. In 1999, Russell earned his Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from Columbia Business School. He simultaneously sold MOOMBA, making money for 28 investors.

Andy created his first business at age 16. A precursor to social networking, the business generated enough profit to allow Andy to pay for his education at Cornell University where he received his BA in Abnormal Psychology. Upon graduating from Cornell in 1993, Andy joined Chemical Bank (JP Morgan Chase), as an investment banking analyst and later associate in the acquisition finance group under the mentorship of Jimmy Lee.