Funding Fuels Data-Driven Live Entertainment, AI Tools for Creators and Venues, and Streaming Expansion
NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, January 22, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Punchup Live, the technology platform empowering comedians and live entertainers to convert digital audiences into customers, today announces a strategic round of funding raising $2.1M led by Marquee Ventures with participation from additional investors across sports, media, and live entertainment. The round included participation from both new and existing investors, including Social Leverage and Armory Films.
Marquee Ventures, an early-stage fund spun out of the ownership group of the Chicago Cubs and other global sports assets, led the recent round. The investment reflects growing interest from sports and live-event operators in applying modern data infrastructure to the live entertainment economy.
The investment is driven by a clear market gap in the availability of reliable data and tools to determine high-stakes pricing and demand prediction. Furthermore, the move away from traditional social media means fans are connecting with their favorite entertainers in completely different ways. What began as a request for ticket pricing guidance from an arena level comedian quickly revealed a systemic issue across live entertainment. Punchup Live addresses this gap by giving performers visibility into their unique audience, pricing dynamics, and conversion performance ultimately replacing intuition and guesswork with actionable intelligence.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Punchup Live and support what their team is building,” said Erik Hammer, Managing Partner at Marquee Ventures. “They have a clear vision for modernizing live entertainment from audience development all the way through event ticket sales, and we’re especially excited to work together to scale that vertically integrated vision.”
As part of the round, Punchup Live will work closely with its new investors to accelerate expansion of its creator-first ticketing platform, while continuing to build AI-powered tools, streaming, and digital distribution features. Together, these capabilities help creators test new material, engage fans online, and more effectively convert digital audiences into real-world ticket buyers.
“Comedians and creators are running real businesses, but they’ve historically lacked the market intelligence and infrastructure those businesses require,” said Danny Frenkel, CEO of Punchup Live. “This round brought together investors who deeply understand live audiences, ticketing, and content, giving us the ability to move faster in building a more transparent and predictable live entertainment economy.”
Punchup Live will use the new funding to drive product innovation across ticketing, streaming, and analytics, expand strategic partnerships, and further invest in tools that help performers price shows smarter, tour more efficiently, and build deeper direct relationships with their fans.
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About Punchup Live
Punchup Live is a ticketing and fan-engagement platform built for standup comedy with a simple goal to help fans discover entertainers they love and know when those performers are playing in their city. For audiences, Punchup Live is a destination to watch content, subscribe to favorite comedians, discover new voices, and find nearby shows, making it easier to get off their phones and into live experiences.
For comedians and live entertainers, Punchup Live serves as a growth engine, bringing content, fan communication, and ticketing into one platform while delivering data-driven insights that help artists make smarter decisions and increase revenue. Founded by former Meta employees Danny Frenkel and Alex Dajani, Punchup Live is reshaping the live entertainment ecosystem by prioritizing direct fan relationships, artist ownership, and transparent analytics.
For more information visit www.punchup.live
About Marquee Ventures
Marquee Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm investing in sports, media, entertainment, and adjacent opportunities. Spun out of the ownership group of the Chicago Cubs and other global sports assets, the firm backs founders building category-defining companies that shape experiences, culture, content, and commerce. Marquee brings unmatched domain expertise, strategic relationships, and support to its portfolio companies.
MJ Brackin
Proof PR
mj@proof-pr.com
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