The Business of the Manosphere | Who Profits from Male Grievance?

30/09/2026 - From 19h30 to 22h00 - Public

Why are so many young men being drawn into online communities built around loneliness, grievance and masculinity?
In this talk, Kristina Wilfore will explore the findings of The Grift Economy: How Young Men Are Being Sold Fake Belonging and Fake Wealth Online, a new investigation by Reset Tech and Equimundo. She will examine how male loneliness and insecurity are not simply social problems, but can be deliberately amplified, packaged and monetised by online influencers and other actors.
The discussion will look at the business models behind the so-called “manosphere”, how platforms help distribute these messages, and how young men are sold promises of belonging, wealth and status.
Rather than viewing young men only as a problem to be solved, the report asks a different question: who profits from their vulnerability?

About the speakers

Kristina Wilfore

Kristina Wilfore has worked on the ground in more than 30 countries, helping build the movements that hold power to account. She is an international democracy strategist who has spent three decades on the front lines of some of the world’s most consequential political battles: Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, the Middle East, Brazil and the United States, where coordinated information operations translate directly into political violence, and in East Africa, where she exposed social media manipulation campaigns undermining fundamental rights and freedoms.

As Director of Global Projects and Innovation at Reset Tech, Kristina leads global initiatives at the intersection of election integrity, gendered information warfare, and tech accountability.  In Europe, that work includes partnering with women’s parliamentary caucuses, EU regulators  and digital activists to turn analysis into action. Her view is that real impact arrives when elected women champion the regulatory frameworks that already exist with enough force and precision to shift the incentives, rather than focusing energy on documenting online failures.

As co-founder of #ShePersisted, she was at the vanguard of reframing digital attacks on women in public life not as isolated incidents of online harassment but as coordinated threats to democratic participation and national security. Her assessment of the field is blunt: it has spent too long analyzing the problem and not long enough fighting back. She has trained hundreds of women running for office across dozens of countries and authored practical digital toolkits used by campaigns and civil society organizations.

Her frontline analysis of democracy and technology has been featured by The New York Times, Politico, the BBC, Wired Magazine, Folha de S. Paulo, Brookings, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Council on Foreign Relations, among others. 

Mariam Harutyunyan

Mariam Harutyunyan is an influential thought-leader and staunch advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and the visionary behind the KinArmat Initiative. As a trusted advisor, she specializes in crafting and implementing DEI strategies for organisations, SMEs and multinationals. Within her role as the Executive Director of ASATT she played a pivotal role in launching transformative initiatives like 'The Future Women Leaders Fellowship' and 'Women in STEM' program, sponsored by the Coca-Cola Foundation and AstraZeneca respectively. These programs are instrumental in empowering young women. Her successful management of the 'Work in Tech' program, a Google.org initiative, further exemplifies her and ASATT's commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion.

The KinArmat Initiative brings together stakeholders from across sectors to address pressing societal challenges and co-create sustainable solutions. While they explore a broad range of topics, there is a strong focus on themes that deeply impact women — from leadership and entrepreneurship to health equity and social inclusion. Through curated conversations, transformative programs, and cross-sector collaborations, KinArmat creates space for dialogue, connection, and forward-thinking action.

The mission? To bring together women, whether they are young professionals at the onset of their careers, seasoned leaders with decades of experience, or those seeking a new chapter in their lives. The KinArmat Initiative offers a rare opportunity for these divergent paths to cross, facilitating a rich exchange of insights, ideas, and inspiration. By harmonizing the vibrant spirit of youth with the deep-seated wisdom of age, the KinArmat Initiative charts a path for cooperative learning, growth, and exchange. Open to all who possess a curious mind and a readiness to connect.

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