Tech:NYC Digest: August 23

Tech:NYC Digest: August 23

August 23, 2023 • Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

Wednesday, August 23, 2023

In today’s digest, how NYC negotiates your utility rates, the future of broker fees, and what Ramp’s massive funding round signals for the future of fintech.

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  • Your Con Ed bill probably rose this month – and you should probably get used to it. (Gothamist)

    • This month, Con Edison increased electricity billing rates by more than 9% and gas rates by more than 8%, the first of three increases planned between now and 2025.

  • A new bill introduced by NYC Council Member Chi Ossé has gotten majority support to update the city’s broker fee rules. (BK Reader)

    • The Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses Act would require that the party — tenant or landlord — that hires a broker be the party responsible for paying the broker fee. (The FARE Act would not restrict broker fees in any way.)

  • And hot tip: This Sunday, Aug. 27, is National Cinema Day, and several cinemas across NYC are offering $4 tickets to celebrate. (TimeOut New York) Find the full list of participating locations here.

In other reading:

  • The Street Vendors Fighting for Space in Sunset Park (Grub Street)

  • The Met Keeps Releasing Clothing with Pacsun. Why? (New York Times)

ICYMI: Ramp, the NYC-based finance automation platform, dropped some big funding news yesterday.

  • The company’s Series D pulled in $300 million in fresh funding from Thrive Capital, Founders Fund, General Catalyst, and others, in addition to a list of existing investors. (TechCrunch)

  • The round brings Ramp’s total funding to $1.7 billion and a $5.8 billion post-money valuation.

Why it matters: It’s a huge number, made even more notable by the fact that Ramp launched its first product just 3.5 years ago — and given how rare large growth-stage venture rounds have been in the current fundraising climate.

  • It’s certainly the largest venture round for a NYC-headquartered tech company we’ve tracked since the beginning of 2023.

CEO Eric Glyman said the funding will help accelerate the company’s expansion into new categories, like procurement:

  • "In the last year alone, we've expanded Ramp's offerings to become the only platform in the market that's designed to save businesses time and money.” Glyman says Ramp has saved customers more than $600 million and, as importantly, over 8.5 million hours of employee time.

  • The expansion plans come on the heels of the launches of Ramp Plus, a paid edition of its platform, and Ramp Intelligence, which uses natural language to proactively help finance teams spot savings opportunities, as well as the acquisition of Cohere.io, an AI-powered customer support platform also headquartered in NYC.

In other reading:

  • More Office Workers Call in Sick on August 24 Than Any Other Day. Here’s Why. (Bloomberg)

  • The $5 billion SBA program to attract more VC funds (Axios)

  • Some of the Thorniest Questions About AI Will Be Answered in Court (Wall Street Journal)

  • Gympass, a NYC-based corporate employee wellness platform, raised $85 million in Series F funding. EQT Growth led the round and was joined by General Atlantic and Moore Strategic Ventures.

  • Ramp, a NYC-based finance automation platform, raised $300 million in Series D funding. Thrive Capital and Sands Capital co-led the round and were joined by General Catalyst, Founders Fund, and a group of insiders.

  • Sizzle AI, a NYC-based company creating direct-to-learner products powered by AI, raised $7.5 million in seed funding. Owl Ventures led the round and was joined by 8VC.

The Environmental Tech Lab, a public-private initiative between the NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Partnership Fund for New York City, is accepting applications for its inaugural cohort. The Lab is seeking early- and growth-stage companies with data and operations solutions to help solve pressing challenges facing the city’s water and wastewater network. Learn more and apply by August 23 here.Forum Ventures is accepting applications for its next pitch competition. Five BIPOC founders will be selected to pitch to a panel of judges, with one winning a $100K investment and acceptance into the Forum accelerator program. Learn more and apply by August 31 here.The Black Venture Institute is accepting applications for its Fall 2023 cohort. Accepted fellows are Black operators and executives looking to become angel, scout, or venture investors and  learn how to evaluate opportunities and negotiate terms from top industry experts and business leaders. Learn more and apply by Sept. 3 here.Harlem Capital is accepting applications for its Founder Launchpad program. The five-week program is geared towards underrepresented tech industry operators actively working on a startup idea full-time. Learn more and apply by Sept. 7 here.

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