Eric Stein - CEO - Actual (formerly Microblink)

Eric SteinCEO of Commerce at Actual (formerly Microblink)Eric Stein is a Silicon Valley veteran and high-tech entrepreneur who specializes in scaling businesses that sit at the intersection of data, AI, and consumer behavior. He currently leads Actual, the purchase data platform that spun out of Microblink to provide real-time product intelligence for the world’s largest rewards and loyalty programs.The Rebrand to Actual: Stein oversaw the transition from "BlinkReceipt" to Actual. The new name highlights the platform’s core differentiator: providing "actual" purchase data from physical and digital receipts, rather than relying on consumer surveys or guesswork.Core Mission: Under Stein’s leadership, Actual has become an essential "intelligence layer" for retail and CPG brands, allowing them to see exactly what consumers are buying across all retailers in real-time to drive hyper-personalized engagement.Google & DoubleClick Pedigree: Before his pivot to commerce AI, Stein was a key figure at Google, where he served as Director of Local Markets and Director of DoubleClick. His work there helped build the foundational pipes for how local and display advertising function today.Deep Linking & Scale: He previously served as EVP and GM at Branch Metrics, where he scaled the mobile deep-linking platform into a global standard, and was EVP of Online Solutions for Epsilon.Strategic Roots: Stein co-founded Majestic Research, a pioneering data-driven investment research firm that was successfully sold to ITG in 2008. He also served as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Bessemer Venture Partners.Education: He holds a BA in European History and Italian from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Harvard Business School.Philanthropy: Outside of tech, he is a dedicated philanthropist, serving as President of the AFHU Pacific Northwest Region and on the board of the Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School.Entrepreneurial & Academic Background