For the second consecutive year, SmarterX has been named one of America’s fastest-growing private companies.
SmarterX earned the No. 301 spot on the 2026 Inc. 5000, moving up from No. 320 in 2025. The recognition reflects 1,133% revenue growth from 2022 to 2025 and places us among the top 500 fastest-growing private companies in the country.
It’s an incredible milestone for a company that started as a blog in 2016, and one made possible by the people who believed early in what we were building.
“The growth isn't the goal; it's the byproduct of a unified and tireless focus on accelerating AI literacy and human-centered transformation for individuals and businesses.
“We spend every day thinking about the impact AI will have on people, organizations, and educational systems, and doing everything in our power to ensure AI has a net positive effect on society. ”
— Paul Roetzer, SmarterX and Marketing AI Institute founder and CEO
A 1,133% Growth Story & The Mission Behind It
The 2026 Inc. 5000 ranks companies according to percentage revenue growth from 2022 to 2025.
This year’s honorees collectively generated more than $385 billion in 2025 revenue and created more than 627,000 jobs over the three-year period. SmarterX’s No. 301 ranking also places it well above the list’s median three-year growth rate of 130%.
But the number that matters most to us isn't the ranking.
It’s what that growth has made possible.
SmarterX exists to help people and organizations navigate one of the biggest technological shifts in history. As AI advances at an unprecedented pace, the need for practical, trustworthy education has never been greater.
That mission has been at the center of the company from the beginning.
From a Blog to a Growing AI Education Company
Roetzer founded Marketing AI Institute in 2016 as an initiative within his former marketing agency. It began as a blog and newsletter exploring how artificial intelligence would transform marketing—one year before the transformer architecture was introduced and six years before ChatGPT brought generative AI into the mainstream.
In 2018, Paul spun the Institute out as its own company and personally funded its operations. The following year, nearly 300 people from more than 12 countries came to Cleveland for the inaugural Marketing AI Conference, or MAICON.
Then COVID put the business's future in jeopardy.
By that point, however, the Institute had grown beyond a blog into a media, events, and online education company. Paul raised a $1 million seed round to keep the business moving forward and, in 2021, sold his agency to focus on Marketing AI Institute full-time.
The ChatGPT Accelerant
Then came ChatGPT in late 2022.
The world suddenly began asking many of the questions the Institute had been exploring for years.
Interest accelerated.
The company recorded its first profitable month in March 2023. MAICON grew rapidly. The Artificial Intelligence Show, now with over 230 episodes, became a trusted weekly source of AI news and analysis. Demand surged for practical AI education, training, speaking engagements, and events, prompting the development of a more robust AI Academy.
What had started as a blog became something much bigger.
Building the Education Vehicles Today’s Leaders Need to Succeed with AI
Our first Inc. 5000 recognition in 2025 celebrated the growth that brought us to that point.
This year’s recognition reflects something more: the company's continued evolution and the growing urgency of its mission.
SmarterX is now the parent company of Marketing AI Institute, AI Academy, and The Artificial Intelligence Show. Together, these brands help professionals and organizations understand AI, apply it responsibly, and prepare for what comes next.
Over the past year, we have expanded that work through:
- AI Academy 3.0 and AI Mastery Membership program, with continually updated education for professionals, teams, departments, and industries.
- The AI Literacy Project, created to make practical AI education more accessible.
- Original research into AI adoption, organizational readiness, and the future of work.
- Live learning experiences, including MAICON, AI for Business Bootcamps, workshops, and classes.
- New frameworks, tools, and resources designed to help leaders move from individual experimentation to organization-wide transformation.
AI will fundamentally transform companies, careers, industries, and society, and people need trusted education to help them navigate that change.
We’re Just Getting Started
Paul started Marketing AI Institute 10 years ago, long before the world understood the potential of AI to change everything.
The real work of helping to create an abundant future is just beginning,” Paul said. “We are grateful to everyone who listens to the podcast, engages in our community, integrates our AI Academy into their journeys, and attends our events.”
The company has come a long way since launching a blog and newsletter in 2016.
But in many ways, we’re still at the beginning.
The pace of AI change is accelerating. The need for AI literacy is growing. And the opportunity to help people use these technologies to build better businesses, better careers, and a better future has never been greater.
We’re excited for what comes next.
Learn More
Ready to build your own AI literacy? Explore AI Academy. Want to connect in person? Join us at MAICON 2026. Just want the latest AI news? Listen to The Artificial Intelligence Show.
Cathy McPhillips
Cathy McPhillips is the Chief Marketing Officer at SmarterX and Marketing AI Institute