Tech:NYC Digest: February 1

Tech:NYC Digest: February 1

February 01, 2023 • Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

Wednesday, February 1, 2023

Editor’s note: A technical snafu kept yesterday’s digest from getting out, our apologies. Today’s edition will get you caught up on the news you may have missed.

In today’s digest, what the end of the COVID emergency means for you, the pockets of space where Manhattan leaders want to build more housing, and the New York companies that top national “founder factories” lists.

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  • The US will end its public health emergency declaration on May 11, signaling a new chapter in the government's pandemic response efforts. (New York Times)

    • Ending the emergency will prompt several changes in the cost of COVID tests and treatments Americans have been able to access for free under the order.

    • The White House confirmed, however, that the student debt relief plan instituted under pandemic-related legislation will remain in effect beyond the end of the emergency order. (Insider)

  • Pres. Joe Biden spent the day in NYC yesterday, where he announced a $300 million investment in the Gateway project, a new passenger rail tunnel running beneath the Hudson River. (Gothamist)

  • A new housing plan released by Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine identified roughly 171 existing sites across Manhattan where he says more than 73,000 homes can be built, including abandoned or closed manufacturing space. (New York Times)

In other reading:

  • Black History Month 2023 in NYC: What to see, hear and do (Gothamist)

  • These are the benefits that will disappear when Biden ends the public health emergency order (CNN)

  • Which of These NYC-Based Chicago Dogs Is Better? (Eater NY)

Every state in the US has at least one company with at least $1 billion in revenue, and those companies became important launchpads for the talent that goes on to found their own businesses.

What’s new: New York-based IBM produced 22,000 future founders, the most of any other company in any other state.

  • According to a new map by Ondeck, second and third spots went to Washington and California, where the number of former employees that became founders came from Microsoft (15,000) and Google (10,000), respectively.

Large incumbent players serve an important role in cultivating talent that branches off to their own startups — in New York, we also see strong examples of this pattern in finance, largely thanks to the concentration of talent on Wall Street.

  • Goldman Sachs, according to Ondeck's data, produces the most future founders from former staff at any finance company: 6% of Goldman alumni form their own ventures.

In other reading:

  • How US Offices Finally Reached 50% Occupancy For the First Time Since the Pandemic Hit (Bloomberg)

  • 13 C-suite leaders share their unconventional advice you can use (Fast Company)

  • Despite Layoffs, It’s Still A Workers Labor Market (Harvard Business Review)

  • Dasseti, a NYC-based due diligence software company, raised $6 million in Series A funding. Nasdaq Ventures led the round. (Businesswire)

  • Hume AI, a NYC-based expressive communication AI provider, raised $13 million in Series A funding. Union Square Ventures led the round and was joined by Northwell Holdings, Comcast Ventures, LG Technology Ventures, Wisdom Ventures, and others. (USV)

  • Sentra, a NYC and Tel Aviv-based data security posture management company, raised $30 million in Series A funding. Munich Re Ventures and Standard Investments co-led the round and were joined by INT3, Moore Capital, Xerox Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Zeev Ventures. (TechCrunch)

  • TBD Health, a NYC-based sexual health care provider, raised $4.4 million in seed funding. Tusk Venture Partners led the round and was joined by Springdale Ventures, Human Ventures, Expansion VC, Starbloom Capital, Hyphen Capital, The Community Fund, and other angels. (TechCrunch)

  • February 2: In-person: Leading & Building Remote Teams: Startups in a Post-COVID World, with Braze CTO Jonathan Hyman, Alinea Invest co-CEO Eve Halimi, and Muck Rack VP of people Erica Raphael. Hosted by Stacklist and Union Square Ventures. Register here. 

  • February 2: In-person: Next Big Thing in Fintech 2023, with theFintechFund general partner Nik Milanović, Valia Ventures investor Omar Sebai, Stonks director of research Tom White, and others. Hosted by Rise and Volv. Register here.

  • February 9: In-person: Disrupting Delaware: Smarter Strategies for Starting your Startup, with Tusk Ventures CEO Bradley Tusk, Catawba Digital Economic Zone CEO Joseph McKinney, Vice Ventures founding partner Catharine Dockery, and others. Register here.

  • February 9: In-person: Stories of STEM Success: Alternative Career Pathways, with K50 head of platform Jessica Lowenstein, Deutsche Bank vice president of strategy and innovation Clarisse Awamengwi, Women in Tech director of business development Marion Binoi, and others. Hosted by Women in Tech USA. Use code WOMENINTECH23 and select the “Women in Tech Partner Ticket” for half off the original price. Register here.

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