The story behind LevelUp, straight from co-founder Robin Alex

LevelUp started as a scrappy idea. Just a few of us showing up to conferences, borrowing a corner of someone else's event to talk about what we were building. Five years later it has turned into the biggest week on the HighLevel calendar.

In this video, Chase sits down with co-founder Robin Alex to look back on how it all came together and what to expect this October in Dallas.

Robin shares where the "no event planners, just our own team" approach came from, how the events team grew into a group of 30 to 40 people running hundreds of events a year and the surprisingly simple trick that once got HighLevel's booth shut down (the good kind of shut down).

They also get into what actually makes LevelUp feel different from a typical industry conference. The exhibitor hall people usually try to avoid becomes the place nobody wants to leave, because the same partners keep coming back year after year and have genuinely become part of the community. Open office hours put HighLevel's own product team across the table from the people using their software every day… no slide decks, just laptops and real conversations. And the LevelUp Day keynote is where the roadmap, the new releases and a few surprises even the co-founders don't see coming until the day before all get unveiled at once.

Robin also opens up about the moments that stuck with him. Watching the room go from empty to standing room only in fifteen minutes. Bringing the event home to Dallas, his hometown, and choosing it for how easy it is for HighLevel's global community to fly in. And last year's award show, where attendees who never got a prom got to walk a red carpet and dress up for a night that felt like the Emmys, just built for this community.

If last year raised the bar, expect this year to clear it. Robin is already teasing bigger product surprises and an even bigger swing at the gala.

Watch the full conversation, then grab your ticket. LevelUp 2026 is happening this October in Dallas, and Robin's one ask is simple: don't make him sad. Be there.

Get your LevelUp tickets now: gohighlevel.com/ghl_blog