Tech:NYC Digest: December 9

Tech:NYC Digest: December 9

December 09, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Thursday, December 9, 2021

In today’s digest, Omicron reaches community spread levels in New York, teens become eligible for the booster, and why the return-to-office idea doesn’t make much sense anymore.

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By the numbers:

  • New positive cases statewide: 12,491

    • New positive cases, NYC: 2,104

  • NYC Positivity Rate: 2.4 percent

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress: 

    • Percentage of adults (18+) with at least one dose: 92.1 percent

    • Percentage of total population with at least one dose: 79.7 percent

Today’s latest: 

  • The Omicron watch: 20 cases of the new variant have now been confirmed in New York state, including 13 in NYC. (CNBC)

    • Gov. Hochul said that was enough to assume there is now community spread of the variant beyond people who have recently traveled.

  • The FDA today authorized booster shots of the Pfizer vaccine for teenagers ages 16 and 17. The authorization is expected to get quick approval from the CDC amid the threat of the Omicron variant. (Washington Post)

  • Dr. Fauci said he believes “it’s going to be a matter of when, not if” the definition of “fully vaccinated” is updated to include proof of a booster shot. (Axios)

  • Attorney General Letitia James announced she would suspend her campaign for governor and run for re-election to her current post instead. (New York Times)

  • Mayor-elect Eric Adams today announced his pick for Chancellor of the Dept. of Education. David Banks, President & CEO of the Eagle Academy, will assume the position in January. (New York Times)

In other reading:

  • Opentrons CEO on how tech can help the city’s recovery (Crain’s New York)

  • Are We Ready to Be Festive? How bars, restaurants, and hotels are handling a very weird season for holiday parties (Grub Street)

  • 10 NYC Pop-Up Bars Basking in Holiday Cheer (Eater NY)

If you’re beginning to feel like the return to the office is a myth, you’re not alone. And some are saying the idea just doesn’t make sense anymore, writes Protocol.

  • Now two years in, flexible work feels more like the industry norm than not. And when you add in new uncertainties around Omicron, making any office plans for early 2022 can feel fruitless.

Tech employers are once again lining up to delay their office reopenings:

  • Meta announced an “office deferral program,” which means it will still reopen its offices in January, but will allow employees to WFH for longer if they choose to. US and Canada-based employees will be able to defer their returns by three to five months.

  • Lyft is taking a similar approach: It said it would move forward with its February reopening, but won’t require employees back in the office for all of 2022.

  • Instacart isn’t planning a full office reopening, and more than 70 percent of its full-time roles will accommodate permanent remote work.

  • Jeffries asked its staffers to return to WFH and will require employees to get a booster shot by the end of January 2022.

Several other companies are avoiding constantly moving the goalpost by removing it entirely:

  • Microsoft, Uber, DoorDash, and Twilio have all postponed their reopenings indefinitely.

  • Google is also pushing back to an indefinite date further into 2022, and it’s giving staff around the world an additional $1,600 cash bonus this month.

Many others are still crossing their fingers for their early 2022 target dates, but it remains to be seen what impact the Omicron variant will have if its spread surges through the winter.

  • NYC’s Dec. 27 vaccine mandate for all private sector employees may also impact companies’ decisions — that is, if it ever gets implemented.

In other reading:

  • WFH doesn’t have to suck. Here’s how ‘Out of Office’ can be better. (NPR)

  • 4 career questions to ask yourself going into the new year (Quartz)

  • NewtonX, a New York-based B2B insights company, raised $32 million in Series B funding. Marbruck Ventures led the round and was joined by Level One, UBS O’Connor, Gaingels, Heliad Partners, as well as insiders Two Sigma, Third Prime, XFund, Story Ventures, and Switch. (TechCrunch)

  • Perchwell, a New York-based data and workflow platform for residential real estate, raised $15 million in Series A funding. Founders Fund led, and was joined by Lux Capital, Matterport, and California Regional MLS. (FinSMEs)

  • Rho, ​​a New York-based corporate spend and cash management startup, raised $75 million in Series B funding. Dragoneer led the round and was joined by DFJ Growth, as well as insiders M13, Inspired Capital, and Torch Capital. (TechCrunch)

  • Umamicart, a delivery platform for Asian ingredients and snacks, raised $6 million in seed funding. M13 and FJ Labs co-led the round and were joined by Picus Capital, Starting Line, Golden Ventures, First Minute Capital, and Goldhouse Ventures. (TechCrunch)

  • December 10: Virtual: Making New York the Crypto Capital, with New York State Senator Diane Savino, eToro USA CEO Lule Demissie, Genesis CEO Michael Moro, and others. Hosted by City & State. Register here.

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