Tech:NYC Digest: July 29

Tech:NYC Digest: July 29

July 29, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Thursday, July 29, 2021

In today’s digest, an update on the future of Tech:NYC’s leadership, the restaurant industry jumps into vax mandates, and Twitter joins a growing list of companies pausing RTO plans over the Delta variant.

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By the numbers:

  • New positive cases statewide: 2,567 (+364)

    • New positive cases, NYC: 1,393 (+135)

  • Statewide Fatalities: 2 (-5)

  • NYC Positivity Rates: 

    • NYS reports: 2.1 percent (+0.1 percent)

    • NYC reports: 2.7 percent (+0.1 percent)

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress:

    • Percentage of adults (18+) with at least one dose: 74.9 percent

    • Percentage of total population with at least one dose: 62.7 percent

(For fuller breakdowns, find the state’s numbers here and the city’s numbers here.)

Today’s latest:

We wanted to use this section a bit differently today to bring you an update on Tech:NYC:

Today we announced our founding Executive Director Julie Samuels will transition out of her role to welcome new leadership at the organization. Read her full statement here.

  • Since launching Tech:NYC in May 2016, she has grown the organization from five initial member companies to more than 800, including the city’s largest tech employers, newly launched startups, and everything in between.

Julie and our chair, Fred Wilson, spoke with Crain’s New York about everything Tech:NYC has accomplished in its first five years — initiatives that support immigrant entrepreneurs, a robust transit infrastructure, and accessible computer science training programs, just to name a few. (Crain’s New York)

More broadly, Tech:NYC has helped foster the tech sector as a driver of the local economy — and the city’s recovery — and as a valued community partner. The next leader of Tech:NYC will have the opportunity to carry on that work under a new administration in City Hall.

  • “I've long believed that fresh ideas and leadership are crucial for this organization's continued success, and for that reason I’m excited to hand the reins to the next leader and support them as they take on new challenges with the organization,” she said. 

The good news is Julie isn’t leaving just yet. She’ll stay in her role through a transition period for the next few months as we look for her successor, and she’ll also remain on the Board of Directors.

We’re excited for this next phase of Tech:NYC’s growth. Onward!

In other news:

  • A third dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine can "strongly" boost protection against the Delta variant — beyond the protection afforded by the standard two doses. (CNN) Company data shows vaccine protection remains robust six months afterward, and so far, federal health officials are not recommending booster shots for the general public. (Washington Post) 

  • As the Delta variant spreads, many New York City parents worry about the upcoming school year. Students will return to in-person learning this fall, and no remote option will be available. All public schools teachers and students will also be required to wear masks while in school buildings, regardless of vaccination status. So far, the city hasn’t made any changes to that plan. (New York Times)

  • Wegmans will open its first Manhattan store in 2023. The store will be at 770 Broadway, the site of the recently shuttered Astor Place Kmart. The 30-year lease for the street and lower levels of the building will give the store 82,000 square feet of space. (NBC New York)

  • Danny Meyer, the restaurateur behind Gramercy Tavern, Union Square Cafe, and more than a dozen other revered establishments, says he will require both customers and staff to be vaccinated to dine indoors beginning September 7. (Grub Street) Meyer’s announcement marks a prominent addition to the list of private businesses implementing a vaccine mandate policy, a trend that increasingly seems to be becoming the industry default.

Twitter has joined a growing list of tech companies hitting the pause button on return-to-office plans. Last night, the company announced it will close both its New York and San Francisco offices immediately as COVID-19 cases surge across the country. (CNBC)

  • The company has also decided to pause future office openings, effectively immediately. 

The decision comes just two weeks after the social media company reopened their offices in both cities, though it’s unclear how many employees had been working out of the now-closed offices.

  • “We’re continuing to closely monitor local conditions and make necessary changes that prioritize the health and safety of our Tweeps,” a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement.

Twitter is the latest tech company to either delay their reopening or close their offices due the Delta variant.

  • Google announced Wednesday it would delay office returns to October, a month later than its original September date. The company said it would also require all employees to be vaccinated in order to return to the office. (New York Times)

  • Facebook shortly after announced it too would apply a vaccine mandate policy to its workers. (Vox)

  • Apple also has pushed its return-to-office date back a month from early September until October at the soonest. (Bloomberg)

Our takeaway: Some tech companies with smaller workforces like Asana have also announced delayed reopenings, but so far, it's the largest global tech employers who are making these calls to delay. What to watch for next: if these changes set the tone in encouraging smaller companies and startups’ to adopt similar plans. (For what it’s worth, we think it will.)

In related reading:

  • The Great Debate of 2021: WFH or RTO? (New York Times)

  • Why Managers Fear a Remote-Work Future (The Atlantic)

  • Companies tap a new talent base: their own (Axios)

  • Work-From-Anywhere Perks Give Silicon Valley a New Edge in Talent War (Wall Street Journal)

  • Daisy, a New York City-based property management company, raised $4.5 million. Aleph led the round.

  • Lithic, a New York-based card issuing platform for developers, raised $60 million in Series C funding. Stripes led, and was joined by Bessemer Venture Partners, Index Ventures, Exor, Rainfall, Tusk Venture Partners and Commerce. (PR Newswire)

  • Realm, which aims to help homeowners maximize the value of their property with its data platform, has raised $12 million in Series A funding led by GGV Capital. Existing backers Primary Venture Partners, Lerer Hippeau, and Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures also participated in the round. (Alleywatch)

  • Squire, a New York-based provider of barbershop management software, raised $60 million in Series C funding at a $750 million valuation led by Tiger Global. (TechCrunch)

  • August 10: Virtual: How Tech Companies Expand Internationally, with Accel partner Rich Wong, Atomic founder in residence Swathy Prithivi, Asana head of global revenue Oliver Jay, and others. Hosted by Protocol. Register here.

  • August 11: Virtual: Fostering Innovation Post-COVID, with Refraction CEO Esther Lee, Company Ventures’ Urban Tech Hub executive director Robinson Hernandez, and others. Hosted by Savills. Register here.

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