Harley Finkelstein Protested at Startupfest for Third Time

Shopify president Harley Finkelstein's fireside chat at Montréal's Startupfest was interrupted by a protester Tuesday, the third time in three years his appearance at the event has been disrupted.

A man approached the stage while Finkelstein was speaking with former UFC fighter Georges St-Pierre. He filmed Finkelstein and asked why he supported the “genocide in Gaza.” The chat, focused on global ambition and the parallels between entrepreneurship and elite fighting, stopped about halfway through.

Spectators in the room – mostly tech founders, based on earlier show-of-hands questions – booed the protester. One shouted, “You’re ruining it!” A staffer pulled the man out.

“Sir, we’re talking about entrepreneurship in Canada, and celebrating an amazing athlete, Georges St-Pierre, and these amazing entrepreneurs, and you’re embarrassing yourself,” Finkelstein said during the removal.

The interruption follows two earlier protests. In 2024, Finkelstein’s live podcast recording with Indigo CEO Heather Reisman and DAVIDsTEA founder David Segal was interrupted at the same event. His remarks at the opening of Ottawa’s Finkelstein Chabad Jewish Centre were also disrupted.

Shopify and Finkelstein faced a social media boycott campaign in 2025 after he posted criticism of media coverage of Israel. Finkelstein has been publicly supportive of Israel but argues the protests target his Jewish identity, not his politics.

BetaKit majority owner Good Future is the family office of two former Shopify leaders, Arati Sharma and Satish Kanwar. Finkelstein’s conversation with St-Pierre on preparation and focus was published earlier in the day.