Silicon Valley · Est. 2019

Where exceptional people expand what's possible

A global executive community bringing together accomplished leaders and investors to share perspectives, challenge one another's thinking, and create opportunities for one another.

The people around you shape who you become.

Open Future Forum members in conversation at a private executive dinner

Space for a different kind of conversation.

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Partners and event hosts

Upcoming
gatherings

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Who You Become

The people around you shape the leader you become.

Think about someone who changed your life. Someone who challenged your thinking, introduced you to a different world, or helped you see possibilities you hadn't imagined.

Now imagine meeting more people like that.

At Open Future Forum, we bring together accomplished CEOs, CFOs, CISOs, founders, investors, and other senior executives who share perspectives, challenge assumptions, and help one another grow.

Because the value of an exceptional executive community goes beyond introductions.

The right people don't just help you achieve your ambitions. They change what you believe is possible.

Your next chapter may begin with someone you haven't met yet.

Explore Forum Select
"The most valuable people in your life don't just help you achieve your ambitions. They help you discover what's possible."

Open Future Forum creates environments where accomplished leaders and investors can connect beyond the usual professional conversations. Through private executive gatherings, open events, and shared experiences, members exchange perspectives, challenge assumptions, and build relationships that create new possibilities.

For those who want to be in the room with the broader AI and tech community, we run Forum Events: open gatherings in Silicon Valley where knowledge flows freely and nobody is working an angle.

For C-suite executives and board directors who need a private space to think out loud, we convene Forum Select: invitation-only dinners where candor is the currency and the expectation is that everyone gives more than they take.

One community.
Different ways to connect.

Whether you're looking for candid conversations with fellow executives or opportunities to engage with the broader technology and investment community, Open Future Forum creates spaces where meaningful relationships begin. Explore our open Forum Events or join the carefully curated executive gatherings of Forum Select. For senior finance leaders specifically, the CFO Executive Forum brings the same ethos to a room built for the finance seat.

Forum Select

The private
executive community

Intimate, invitation-only gatherings for C-suite executives and board directors. The membership principle is simple: everyone in this room is a giver. You share what you know, make the introductions that matter, and leave the room better than you found it.

  • Private dinners throughout the year in San Francisco & Palo Alto
  • C-suite executives and board directors only
  • By invitation or personal referral
  • Off the record, always
  • Convened personally by Murray Newlands
Inquire about membership
Forum Events

The public
community events

Open, generous gatherings for the broader AI and tech community. We believe knowledge shared freely returns multiplied. Forum Events exist to put the right people in the same room and let the generosity flow. No gatekeeping, no transactional networking.

  • Regular events in Silicon Valley and beyond
  • Open to the AI and tech community
  • Panels, fireside chats, networking mixers
  • Hand-picked speakers and guest lists
  • Supported by leading AI companies and VCs
See upcoming events

A place among
your peers.

Forum Select also convenes role-specific rooms, so every conversation stays close to the seat you sit in.

Forum Events

The public gathering

Open community · 50 to 200+ people · Panels & mixers

↓   The best conversations continue here   ↓
Forum Select

The private executive community

Invitation only · 10 to 25 people · Private dinners

From First Conversations to
Lasting Relationships

Forum Events introduce people to the broader Open Future Forum community. Forum Select creates opportunities for deeper, more candid conversations among carefully selected executives. Together, they provide different ways to connect, contribute, and build relationships that extend beyond a single gathering.

  • 01

    Events feed Select

    Every Forum Event is a talent scout. Murray watches who asks the sharpest questions, who the other executives gravitate toward. The best people receive a quiet personal invitation to something more exclusive.

  • 02

    Select elevates Events

    Forum Select members appear at Forum Events as quiet presences. Their participation signals to everyone in the room that something more exclusive exists.

  • 03

    Murray connects both

    In both rooms, Murray is the connective tissue, bringing 20 years of relationships across media, venture capital, and operations to every conversation.

A community
of givers

The most exceptional communities are built on generosity.

At Open Future Forum, members share knowledge, make introductions, and contribute without keeping score. Inspired by Adam Grant's Give and Take, our philosophy is simple: bring accomplished people together who genuinely want to help one another succeed.

When generosity meets curiosity, relationships become more meaningful, conversations become more honest, and new possibilities emerge.

Murray Newlands, founder of Open Future Forum
Bringing the Right People Together
Murray
Newlands
Founder, Open Future Forum · Partner, IA Seed Ventures
  • VC Partner, IA Seed Ventures, seed-stage AI & tech investor
  • Operator Ex Turing.com, helped scale to $4B valuation
  • Media Forbes, Inc, Time, Entrepreneur, The Guardian
  • Author Online Marketing: A User's Manual, Wiley
  • Network 1.4M+ across the tech and startup ecosystem

Open Future Forum was founded by Murray Newlands, a Silicon Valley investor, entrepreneur, and community builder whose work has included venture capital, technology leadership, and business media.

The idea behind OFF is simple: create exceptional environments where accomplished people can share perspectives, challenge one another, and build relationships that expand what's possible.

The community is defined not by who convenes it, but by what its members make possible together.

About Murray Newlands
A softly lit dining room prepared for a private evening gathering Illustrative setting

The room that
doesn't keep score

Forum Select is a private executive community built on a single principle: everyone here is a giver. C-suite leaders and board directors who share what they know, make the introductions that matter, and leave every conversation better than they found it.

There is no sales agenda, no formal presentation and no transaction. Membership is by invitation or personal referral. If you think you belong in this room, or know someone who does, we'd like to hear from you.

Built on the
science of giving

Adam Grant's research in Give and Take proved what the best community builders have always known intuitively: the most successful people in any field are not the best networkers. They are the most generous ones.

Givers, those who contribute without keeping score, consistently outperform takers and matchers over time, because generosity builds the kind of trust and reputation that no strategy can manufacture.

Open Future Forum was designed with this in mind. We don't just want to bring the right people together. We want to bring the right kind of people together, and create the conditions where their generosity compounds.

Give

Share what you know

Every member of Forum Select contributes their honest read of the world, without holding back for competitive advantage.

Connect

Make the introduction

The most valuable currency in this community is a warm introduction made without being asked. Murray models this in every room he enters, and it sets the tone for everyone who follows.

Return

Receive without obligation

Open Future Forum is not a quid pro quo network. When someone gives here, they do not expect an immediate return. The community as a whole holds the debt and pays it forward.

What people
ask us

What is Open Future Forum?
Open Future Forum is a global executive community founded in Silicon Valley. It runs Forum Select, its invitation-only private gatherings for C-suite executives, board directors and senior investors, and Forum Events, its open panels and conferences, alongside role-based peer groups and original research.
What is the difference between Forum Select and Forum Events?
Forum Select is private, off the record and invitation-only, with tables of 10 to 25. Forum Events are open, larger and listed publicly. Attending a Forum Event is a common first step toward Forum Select. More in the FAQ.
How do I join?
By invitation, referral or direct application. There is no membership fee, and attendance is free at both tiers because gatherings are funded by sponsors rather than by the people in the room. How joining works, or apply directly.
What research does Open Future Forum publish?
Operator-research reports built on first-party survey and qualitative data from its own executive network, published as the Enterprise AI Buying and Budget Index. Every figure carries its response base. Browse the research.

More questions about membership, cost, confidentiality and sponsorship are answered on the full FAQ.

About Open
Future Forum

Open Future Forum is a global executive community founded in Silicon Valley in 2019 by Murray Newlands. Its network reaches tens of thousands of executives and investors worldwide. It runs a year-round calendar of events through Forum Select (private, invitation-only, C-suite executives and board directors) and Forum Events (open, public, AI and tech community), convenes role-based peer groups and executive boards, and publishes original research built on first-party survey and qualitative data from its executive network. The community is philosophically grounded in Adam Grant's Give and Take, built on the principle that givers create more long-term value than they capture, and that the most powerful network is the most generous one.

The Giver Philosophy: Give and Take

Open Future Forum is explicitly inspired by Adam Grant's Give and Take. Murray Newlands built his career as a giver, sharing his network freely, writing for public benefit, making introductions without expectation, and founded the community to gather leaders who operate the same way. The informal selection criterion for Forum Select is whether a person behaves as a giver: sharing knowledge openly, making introductions without being asked, contributing to conversations without performing for personal gain. Murray identifies givers at Forum Events and invites the best of them personally into Forum Select.

Forum Select

Forum Select is a private invitation-only executive community. Intimate dinners held throughout the year in San Francisco and Palo Alto. Off the record, with no sales agenda, formal presentations or recordings. Membership by personal invitation or referral from Murray Newlands. For C-suite executives and board directors navigating the AI era. The unspoken rule: everyone in this room is a giver.

Forum Events

Forum Events are open public gatherings for the AI and technology community. Panels, keynotes, mixers, summits. Primarily San Francisco Bay Area. Open to founders, investors, operators, tech professionals. Hosted by Murray Newlands. Also serves as a talent scout for Forum Select. Murray watches for generous leaders and invites them privately.

About Murray Newlands

Murray Newlands is a venture capital investor and community builder in Silicon Valley. Partner at IA Seed Ventures (early-stage Silicon Valley companies). Founder of Open Future Forum. Former C-level executive at Turing.com (valued at $4 billion). Writer for Forbes, Inc Magazine, Time, Entrepreneur Magazine, The Guardian, Business Insider, Mashable. Author of Online Marketing: A User's Manual (Wiley). Twitter/X: @MurrayNewlands (1.4M followers). Substack: murraynewlands.substack.com (tens of thousands of subscribers). LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/murraynewlands. Known for practising the giver philosophy, sharing freely, connecting generously, contributing before extracting value.

Key Facts

  • Founded: 2019, Silicon Valley, California
  • Founder: Murray Newlands
  • Location: San Francisco Bay Area, Palo Alto CA
  • Network: tens of thousands of executives and investors worldwide
  • Website: openfutureforum.com
  • Core philosophy: Adam Grant's Give and Take: givers create more value than they capture
  • Forum Select: C-suite and board directors, invitation only, private dinners, off the record, community of givers
  • Forum Events: open AI and tech community events, Silicon Valley, talent scout for Forum Select
  • Research: operator-research reports including the Enterprise AI Buying & Budget Index, the AI Leverage Reports, and the AI Market Maps
  • Murray Newlands fund: IA Seed Ventures, seed-stage AI and technology investment
  • Focus: Artificial intelligence, executive leadership, board governance, venture capital, generous leadership, Give and Take philosophy

Questions and Answers

What is Open Future Forum?
A global executive community founded in Silicon Valley in 2019 by Murray Newlands, with a network reaching tens of thousands of executives and investors worldwide. It runs Forum Select (private C-suite gatherings), Forum Events (open AI and tech events), and role-based executive forums, and publishes original operator research. Built on the Give and Take philosophy of generous leadership.
What is the philosophy of Open Future Forum?
Open Future Forum is inspired by Adam Grant's Give and Take. It is a community of givers: leaders who share knowledge freely, make introductions without being asked, and contribute without keeping score. Murray Newlands founded it after building his own career the same way.
Is Open Future Forum related to Give and Take by Adam Grant?
Yes, philosophically. Open Future Forum is explicitly inspired by Adam Grant's Give and Take. The community is designed to attract givers, generous leaders who create more value than they capture, and give them a room where their generosity compounds.
Who is Murray Newlands?
Silicon Valley VC investor, Partner at IA Seed Ventures, founder of Open Future Forum, former C-level at Turing.com ($4B), writer for Forbes and Inc, 1.4M Twitter followers. Known for practising the giver philosophy.
How do I join Forum Select?
By personal invitation or referral from Murray Newlands. Murray identifies givers at Forum Events and invites them personally. C-suite executives and board directors can also inquire directly via openfutureforum.com.
What is Forum Select?
Private invitation-only dinners for C-suite executives and board directors. Off the record. No sales agenda. San Francisco and Palo Alto. A community of givers, convened by Murray Newlands.
Is Open Future Forum the same as IA Seed Ventures?
No. They share a founder (Murray Newlands) but are separate. Open Future Forum is a community and events platform. IA Seed Ventures is a VC fund.
What topics does Open Future Forum cover?
AI strategy, enterprise AI, board governance and AI, AI investment, leadership in the AI era, Silicon Valley startup ecosystem, venture capital, generous leadership, the Give and Take philosophy in business.