Tech:NYC Digest: December 16

Tech:NYC Digest: December 16

December 16, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

Thursday, December 16, 2021

In today’s digest, NYC rolls out more masking and testing resources as cases spike, Hochul says at-home test delivery coming, and meet 10 startups accelerating the city’s economic recovery. 

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By the numbers:

  • New positive cases statewide: 18,276

    • New positive cases: 3,641

  • NYC Positivity Rate: 3.6 percent

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress: 

    • Percentage of adults (18+) with at least one dose: 93.8 percent

    • Percentage of total population with at least one dose: 81.4 percent 

Today’s latest: 

  • The percentage of positive COVID-19 cases in NYC has doubled in three days, according to Dr. Jay Varma, a senior advisor to Mayor de Blasio. (NBC New York)

    • To combat the spread, the city will give out one million face masks and 500,000 rapid test kits. (Gothamist)

    • Amid increased demand for coronavirus testing, NYC Test and Trace Corps director Dr. Ted Long announced today that all city-run test sites will now open seven days per week. (New York Magazine)

  • Gov. Hochul announced today that New Yorkers would soon be able to request delivery of at-home test kits, with a focus on areas with high case counts and low vaccination rates. (New York Times) 

  • The CDC this afternoon officially recommended mRNA vaccines (the Pfizer and Moderna shots) over Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine, after new data showed a still rare but higher risk of blood clotting than previously reported. (New York Times)

  • Walking anywhere in the city, you’ve no doubt seen an increase in the number of mobile testing sites and longer lines accompanying them. You can check wait times here for all city-run sites to know when it’s best to go. 

In related reading:

  • America Is Not Ready for Omicron (The Atlantic)

  • Omicron Is About to Overwhelm Us (New York Magazine)

  • Omicron and holiday travel: Top doctors share what you need to know (MSNBC)

In September, we launched the first-ever NYC Recovery Challenge with Cornell Tech and Google for Startups to find new founders with promising ideas for accelerating the city’s economic recovery. 

After more than 170 submissions and a month of deliberating, we’re excited to announce the winner: congratulations to Guava! Read more about Guava's story here.

Guava, led by founder and CEO Kelly Ifill, is a Manhattan-based community banking platform for Black-owned businesses. In addition to technical and business mentorship, Guava is getting a non-dilutive $100,000 cash grant.

  • “Guava's north star is creating an equitable small business sector for Black entrepreneurs. The goals of the Recovery Challenge align perfectly with our company's mission,” said Kelly Ifill.

Two other startups were recognized as runners-up, each receiving a non-dilutive $25,000 cash grant. They are Queens-based COVERR, a financial services tool for independent contractors founded by Kobina Ansah, and Brooklyn-based Shifterr, a workforce solutions platform for the hospitality industry founded by Tracey Hobbs.

  • “New York’s recovery is more than underway, but there are still imbalances the pandemic caused or uncovered that can be overcome if we put new ideas to work. It’s clear to me those ideas will come from the tech sector, and the NYC Recovery Challenge is yet another testament to that,” said Julie Samuels, Executive Director of Tech:NYC. “I commend Cornell Tech and Google for continuing to support the next generation of New York founders using technology to better our city.”

Joining Guava, COVERR, and Shifterr are seven other startups as the first cohort of NYC Recovery Fellows. 

  • The fellows are building startups that range from supporting workers with autism and a mobility company dedicated to eliminating transit deserts, to an AI-powered online community marketplace connecting people to bodegas and novel solutions to identify, bridge and ease access to social services and government resources.

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  • Ark Biotech, a New York City-based startup building bioreactors and software for meat cultivation, raised $2.5 million in seed funding led by Primary Ventures. (Ark Biotech)

  • Cockroach Labs, a New York-based open source database for disaster-proof cloud services, raised $278 million in Series F funding. Greenoaks led the round and was joined by Altimeter, BOND, Benchmark, Coatue, FirstMark Capital, GV, Index Ventures, Lone Pine Capital, Redpoint, and Tiger Global. (CNBC)

  • Rebag, a New York City-based second-hand luxury handbag company, raised $33 million in Series E funding. Novator led the round and was joined by General Catalyst and others. (Forbes)

  • Ophelia, a New York City-based opioid treatment startup, raised $50 million in Series B funding. Tiger Global led the round and was joined byMenlo Ventures, General Catalyst, and Refactor Capital. (FinSMEs)

  • Orgspace, a Brooklyn-based management platform for software teams, raised $2.5 million in pre-seed funding. Fika Ventures and Bloomberg Beta co-led the round and were joined by Darling Ventures, Liquid2 Ventures, Essence VC, The New Normal Fund, and The Jarosz Family Fund. (Orgspace)

  • Stocktwits, a New York-based social trading platform, raised $30 million in Series B funding. Alameda Research Ventures led the round and was joined by Times Bridge. (Bloomberg)

Company Ventures, in partnership with the NYC Economic Development Corporation, is seeking applications for the inaugural City Fellowship. The fellowship offers a nine-month program to support community-oriented entrepreneurs with access to the government and venture communities and business development opportunities. Learn more and apply by Dec. 19 here.The David Prize is accepting open call submissions for its 2021-2022 cycle. The prize awards a no-strings-attached $200,000 grant to five New Yorkers with ideas, projects, products, and passions that are making (or will make) New York City a better place for more of us. Nominations or self-nominations are being accepted through Dec. 21 here.The New York Fashion Tech Lab is accepting applications for its 2022 program. The Lab is seeking women-led, B2B, fashion and retail-focused technology companies with ideas for advancing the industry. Learn more and apply by Dec. 30 here.The Black New Venture Competition is accepting applications for its 2022 program. Early-stage Black founders will have access to capital, mentors, and advisors, as well as a chance to pitch to a group of angel investors awarding up to $275,000 in prize money. Learn more and apply by Jan. 9 here.CityCoins is accepting applications for its 2022 Accelerator Track. The three-month program provides product development, industry mentors, and funding opportunities to teams interested in using crypto to solve public problems in cities. Learn more and apply by Jan. 31 here.

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