Tech:NYC Digest: April 26

Tech:NYC Digest: April 26

April 26, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 13 minutes

Monday, April 26, 2021As the vaccination rollout progresses and NYC continues to respond to the pandemic, this digest focuses on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.Was this digest forwarded to you? Subscribe here.

The latest: World passes 1B doses administered as US resumes J&J use; NY to lose one congressional seat according to early Census data; office capacity increased to 75 percent starting May 15; EU to let fully vaxxed Americans visit this summer, more specifics to come.By the Numbers:

  • New York State: 2,018,703 (+3,039)

  • New York City: 907,607 (+1,343) 

  • Statewide Fatalities: 41,849 (+41)

  • NYC Positivity Rates: 

    • NYS reports: 2.2 percent (-0.1 percent)

    • NYC reports: 3.6 percent (-0.2 percent)

  • Vaccine Progress:

    • NYS first doses administered: 8,847,020 (+47,302) 

    • NYC first doses administered: 3,408,878 (+25,991)

General Updates:

  • On Saturday, 143 days after the first vaccine was administered, the world surpassed one billion doses given out. It’s an extraordinary milestone, but in many ways, we’re just at the beginning of a rollout that will take much longer to reach the entire world:

    • If we continue the current pace of 18.5 million doses administered globally each day, it will take another 19 months to vaccinate 75 percent of the world’s population. (Bloomberg) But vaccinations to date have been largely concentrated in wealthier countries, and as a result, the pandemic is far from over in many parts of the world. (New York Times)

    • Of particular concern is India, which is breaking new global records, reporting hundreds of thousands of new cases every day, and where just 1.4 percent of the population is vaccinated — despite being one the world’s largest vaccine manufacturers. (Washington Post) To deal with its own breakout, the country is halting most exports, effectively cutting off supply in more than 70 countries, many of them in Africa. (New York Times)

    • In response, Pres. Biden today reversed his own export bans, saying he plans to send up to 60 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine and other medical supplies to India and other countries to provide relief to those supply chains, pending a safety review. (CNBC)

  • Here in the US, nearly eight percent of Americans — more than five million people — are skipping their second dose, for any number of reasons: fear of side effects, cancelling and forgetting to reschedule appointments, or the belief that one shot provides enough protection. (New York Times)

  • The pause in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine was lifted this weekend after CDC and FDA review, and it will now come with a warning label about the possibility of rare blood clots. (CNN) Immediately following the announcement, New York health officials also gave the greenlight to state sites, as well as programs targeting homebound and hard-to-reach populations, to resume administering the shot. (New York Post)

  • The US Census Bureau released its first tranche of data this afternoon, including state population numbers that determine the number of districts — and therefore representatives in the House — a state will have. (Axios) New York will lose one seat, apparently because the count was short just 89 people.

The latest results: The Oscars are upon us, which may feel odd in a year with no theaters and so many delayed movie releases. However, studios adapted to bring some movies direct to consumers, and the streaming services have continued to put out a wealth of binge-worthy content. How have your viewing habits of this year's new releases changed during the pandemic?     

Today's poll

: Last Friday, the US reported the

during the pandemic, and continuing claims are trending down as people get back to work. In tech, job openings nationally

, but availability was very dependent on location, with positions declining in San Francisco and San Jose but growing in New York City. Has your company onboarded new team members this month?

(This is a recurring question, responses help Tech:NYC track trends over time.)

  • *|SURVEY: Yes, new employees started this month|*

  • *|SURVEY: Not yet, but there are open roles looking to be filled|*

  • *|SURVEY: No|*

  • Remember all those dire warnings about a pandemic exodus out of NYC? It turns out the most popular move was just from Manhattan to Brooklyn, nearly twice the number of people who made permanent moves to Florida. Here’s a great CityLab interactive exploring those trends.

  • Gov. Cuomo announced another round of reopening measures that will loosen restrictions throughout the state. (Wall Street Journal) Among them:

    • Offices can expand capacity from 50 to 75 percent on May 15;

    • Gyms and fitness clubs can expand from 33 to 50 percent on May 15, as well, but only outside of NYC. Gyms in NYC remain at 33 percent capacity;

    • Casinos and gaming facilities will go from 25 to 50 percent on May 15;

    • Outdoor spectator events can expand from 20 to 33 percent on May 19.

  • The New York State Fair is also back on. It will run its full 18 days beginning Aug. 20 at a maximum 50 percent capacity and with all the usual safety protocols: social distancing, mask wearing, and health screenings, when necessary. (Syracuse Post-Standard)

  • About 51,000 NYC public school students resumed in-person instruction today after opting back in to blended learning schedules. With two months left in the school year, about one-third of students are getting some days of in-person learning, while 61 percent — about 582,000 students — are remaining fully remote. (Gothamist) Mayor de Blasio expects a much broader transition to in-person instruction for the academic year starting in September. (Wall Street Journal)

  • Lastly, vaccinated New Yorkers will be able to travel to the European Union this summer. There’s no firm date in place on when travel will resume, but Americans will mostly likely be required to show proof of vaccination before entering EU bloc countries. (New York Times)

Related reading:

  • Now vaccinated, people are scheduling the regular doctors’ appointments they put off for a year. Here’s the list of screenings and procedures you need at every age. (New York Times)

  • It’s Going to Be Weird, But We Need to Learn to Live With Germs Again (New York Times)

  • It’s not just you. We’re all socially awkward now. (Washington Post)

  • What Do Women Want? For Men to Get COVID Vaccines (New York Times)

Working:

  • The appeal of hybrid work models is clear: Employers hope to give employees the flexibility and focus that come from working at home without sacrificing the in-person connections of the office. But how, exactly, to strike this balance can be less obvious — should companies require employees to be in the office on certain days? For a set number of days each week? How should those in the office accommodate colleagues working remotely? DealBook assembled a group of experts on how to approach the pros and cons of these decisions. (New York Times)

  • One major piece of advice on hybrid models: more flexibility shouldn’t mean less structure. Perhaps counterintuitively, hybrid workplaces will require even more deliberate, proactive planning to get it right. (Axios)

    • Quora will have everyone participating in a meeting — even those at the office — join on their laptops to avoid some people being in a conference room and some being on Zoom.

    • Dropbox is having managers regularly evaluate if they’re assigning tasks fairly across remote and in-person employees.

    • Microsoft developed a “hybrid workplace dial” that adjusts in-person working levels based on local health data and government guidance.

  • And here’s one initiative we love: a cross-sector coalition of large employers, including Accenture, Mastercard, Microsoft, and other tech companies are committing to expand “second chance” hiring opportunities for people with criminal records. One in three Americans have an arrest or conviction that can impact their ability to find a job. Learn more.

Related reading:

  • Remember the office? For New York Magazine’s anniversary issue, a look back at 150 years of cubicles, corner offices, all-nighters, and the holiday party (Curbed)

  • Six Municipal Workers on Going Back to the Office (Curbed)

  • The Workers Who Can’t Commit to a Vacation (Wall Street Journal)

Request: please let us know as your return-to-office policies are developed and what considerations your companies are taking for developing them. Sharing this information is helpful to companies and employees across the NYC ecosystem and can be kept anonymous.

Recruit: A tech talent and job opportunities board from Tech:NYC and AlleyCorp compiles NYC tech workers looking for new roles and NYC-based tech companies hiring open positions. To contribute to the board, click here.Events:

  • April 27: Virtual: Ask Me Anything Live with Venmo and Fin co-founder Andrew Kortina. Hosted by Betaworks Studios. (Details)

  • April 28: Virtual: The Future of Cleantech and the Greening Industry, with former UN Secretary Christiana Figueres and White House climate change adviser Melanie Nakagawa. Hosted by Axios. (Details)

  • May 4: Virtual: Bloomberg Wealth Summit, with Coinbase president & COO Emilie Choi, Betterment CEO Sarah Levy, UBS Head of US Wealth Management Jason Chandler, and more. Hosted by Bloomberg. (Details)

  • May 5: Virtual: NYC’s Restaurant Revival, with star chefs and restaurateurs Danny Meyer, Daniel Boulud, Thomas Keller, and Melba Wilson. Hosted by Crain’s. (Details)

Check these sources for verified information from government agencies and public health authorities:

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