Moderated by Nick Borenstein, GM of The Webby Awards, the event gathered past Webby host Roy Wood Jr., creators like Nimay Ndolo, founders, educators, and agency leaders for a lively discussion on creativity, data, and the future of marketing.

For nearly three decades, Meta has shaped how billions connect online. As The Webbys marks 30 years of honoring Internet excellence, this conversation offered a look at a company that continues to define digital culture.

Schultz shared his journey from building Geocities hobby sites to leading global marketing for Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger. He discussed his new book Click Here: The Art and Science of Digital Marketing and Advertising, lessons from reaching billions of users, and why having a clear North Star and a lot of humanity still matters most. Above all, he emphasized that clarity, not complexity, remains his guiding principle.

Schultz encouraged brands to give creators freedom within frameworks and to let them move at the speed of culture. He also reflected on how AI is reshaping creativity and growth, urging leaders to make AI adoption essential and empower the teams driving what comes next

The Webby team sat down with Alex for a candid conversation about the Internet’s past, its ever-evolving present, and what he’s most excited and BIG ON for the future.

Q: When did you realize that the Internet would fundamentally change how the world works? 

A: I think it was the mid-90s. I was a teenager and had a Geocities website, and that was the moment when I started seeing people visit the site from everywhere on Earth, even Vatican City, even the Antarctic. You could see which U.S. military site visited your website at that time. It was just clear it was going to connect the world, and that the Internet would change everything in terms of communication.

Q: Were there guiding principles that shaped your company’s digital strategy from the beginning? What are they, and how have they evolved? How do they guide the future?

A: For Meta, or Facebook as it was then, the number one guiding principle that Mark had was to move fast: just get stuff done, get things out there, try things, and move fast. That’s still one of our values today and a guiding principle for us. We have some other guiding principles, not just values. An important one for us is to serve everyone. Even when you think about our glasses, we’re not trying to build huge hardware margins into what we’re doing. We’re trying to make sure as many people as possible can use it. So serve everyone, connect the world, and move fast, be bold. Those tend to be the ones that have stayed constant for me all the way through.

Q: Our theme for the 30th Annual Webby Awards is “Big on What’s Next.” What role do you see your company playing in shaping the Internet of the next 30 years? Looking forward, is there anything you’re particularly excited about? What are you “big” on?

A: “What’s next” is a huge question. It’s kind of obvious that AI is going to be big. It’s also kind of obvious that some form of augmented reality, whether it’s display glasses or mixed reality, will be big. I really love to compliment Satya Nadella on this. When he became CEO of Microsoft, he said there were three interesting trends: AI, XR, and quantum. And just a few years ago, he said it again, ten years in or whatever, there are three trends: AI, XR, and quantum. I think AI and XR are places where we have a huge play as a company. We’re really invested in them, and that’s what’s going to be next. Hopefully, we’re one of the big players. We want to do what Apple and Microsoft did and not what eBay and Yahoo did. That’s what we’re trying to achieve.

Q: What does being recognized as one of The Webby 30 most impactful companies in Internet history mean to you personally and for your organization’s legacy? Do you have any Webby memories you can share?

A: The Webby itself is one of the more impactful Internet brands. If you go back, it’s one of those awards that’s been there since my early days on the Internet. It’s an honor, and we’re very grateful to be named in The Webby 30. Facebook in particular, but now Instagram and WhatsApp, are big things used by so many people on Earth. The Internet has transformed how people communicate all over the world, and I’m really proud of that. So I think pride and gratitude would be the way we feel.

Q: What’s one decision your company made that others thought was risky but proved transformative?

A: There are so many decisions Meta made that everyone thought were risky. Maybe buying WhatsApp for like 20% of the company, that was a big one. Or when we put stories everywhere and people were taking the mick out of it. Or the massive pivot to Reels. Or even right now, the success of display glasses and how excited people are, after so long being told we were making the wrong investments. Honestly, the massive investments we made in infrastructure for AI and training data centers, three years ago people thought that was crazy, and today people ask why we didn’t spend more. I think that’s something Meta is really good at, and it’s thanks to Mark: we make decisions people think are crazy, and down the line they realize they were sensible and obvious

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The 30th Annual Webby Awards is Open

Earning a Webby Award can take your company to new heights, but only if you participate. Submit work in the 30th Annual Webby Awards by the Early Entry Deadline on Friday, October 24, 2025 for best pricing.