Tech:NYC Digest: June 29

Tech:NYC Digest: June 29

June 29, 2022 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Wednesday, June 29, 2022 

In today’s digest, results of yesterday’s primary election; yet another “new wave” of covid-19; legal considerations and remote work; and potty talk at the City Council.  Was this digest forwarded to you? Subscribe here. 

By the numbers:  

  • New positive cases statewide: 4,020

    • New positive cases, NYC: 2,256

  • NYC Positivity Rate: 4.3 percent (no change)

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress:

    • New Yorkers with at least one dose: 90.9 percent

    • New Yorkers who are fully vaccinated: 77.7 percent

In today’s latest: 

  • June 28th Primary Election Results

    • Gov. Kathy Hochul took a crucial step to being the first woman Governor elected in New York on Tuesday, fending off a pair of spirited primary challengers. She will face off against Republican Congressman Lee Zeldin, who beat out three fellow Republicans in a gritty race for his party’s nomination.(New York Times)

    • Former Congressman Antonio Delgado received the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor and will face Republican Alison Esposito in the general election.

    • Primary elections were also held for a number of State Assembly seats, with the majority of incumbents winning their elections, and one former data engineer, Alex Bores, winning his election for Manhattan’s Upper East Side Assembly seat.

      • One note: Voter turnout was down 45% statewide and a full 50% in NYC compared to the 2018 Gubernatorial primary. Mark your calendars, the state’s next primary election will be held on August 23rd.

  • COVID positivity rates in New York City have crept back up to late-January levels, as top doctors warn the city may be on the verge of a new wave of COVID-19 driven by the "worst version" of the omicron variant yet. (NBC New York) 

  • The Omicron subvariants known as BA.4 and BA.5 have together become dominant among new coronavirus cases, according to new estimates from the CDC. (New York Times)

  • Mayor Eric Adams has released a plan to make childcare more affordable. The plan calls for helping families access care more easily and expanding services to reach 41,000 more children in high-needs neighborhoods over the next two years. (Chalkbeat NY)

  • And lastly, everyone’s favorite red Muppet Elmo has received the Covid-19 vaccine.

In other reading

:

  • Give us some relief! Pols rally as City Council hears legislation for more NYC public bathrooms! (amNewYork)

  • The office tower has a new job to do. (Bloomberg)

  • The Pandemic is Waning. Anthony Fauci Has A Few More Lessons to Share. (Washington Post)

Remote work can be pretty great: There’s better work-life balance. You don’t have to deal with the stress of commuting. Your home office is always pet friendly. And companies, no longer confined by geographical locations, can hire the best talent possible. But, companies now face significant difficulties in balancing the issues that can come up with remote employment due to established labor arrangements and a legal environment that changes slowly.

  • There are frequently no simple solutions and no one-size-fits-all strategy that will work for every firm.

HR Brew spoke to

to understand the remote-work compliance landscape. Here are some considerations when building a remote-first company:

  • Endless rules: HR professionals may spend hours traversing complicated, antiquated systems due to the various and constantly changing laws. Even remote-first businesses are required by law to have a physical address, and in the majority of the US, this process is still done manually.

  • Potential liability: There is more space for error when companies operate remotely, don't have a centralized headquarters, and distribute their workforce throughout several states. And unfortunately, states don’t provide much leeway for employers to make mistakes.

The good news is that help is available. Small HR teams can get assistance navigating state systems. Working with third party that specialize in company compliance can help companies stay current on the most recent laws, and best of all, these third parties do most of the legwork.

Our takeaway:

Remote work presents an array of legal challenges that will continue to plague employers as this trend cements itself as a necessity for managing today’s workforce. But just because it’s a complicated process, doesn’t mean it can’t be done. Just make sure to have everything in order, and reach out when you need help, and you should be good to go.

In other reading:

  • Networking on Slack Is a New Way to Find a Job, but It Takes Work (Wall Street Journal)

  • Everything you need to know about tech layoffs and hiring slowdowns (Protocol)

  • Why Some People Are Driving 7 Hours to Business Meetings (Wall Street Journal)

  • Amogy, a Brooklyn-based developer of ammonia-based fuels for trucks and ships, raised $46 million in convertible note financing. SK Innovation led the round and was joined by Climate Pledge Fund, AP Ventures, Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures, and Newlab. (Reuters)

  • DataArt, a NYC-based software engineering firm, raised $75 million in private equity funding. FTV Capital led the round. (FinSMEs)

  • Nautical Commerce, a NYC-based multi-vendor platform for marketplaces, raised $30 million in Series A funding. Drive Capital led the round and was joined by Accomplice Ventures and Golden Ventures. (TechCrunch)

  • Sharebite, a NYC-based food benefits platform for workplaces, raised $39 million in Series B funding. Prosus led the round and was joined by Fiserv and Contour Venture Partners, as well as existing investors Reign Ventures, London Technology Club, Not Boring Fund, and others. (TechCrunch)

  • Virtual Facility, a NYC-based provider of alarm automation and management for mission-critical facilities, raised $9 million in seed funding. Camber Creek led the round. (Informed Infrastructure)

Tech:NYC

, in partnership with the

Mayor’s Office of Youth Employment

, is recruiting tech companies to participate in Tech Year NYC, a pilot initiative to broaden access to career pathways in tech to underrepresented youth. If your company would like to participate this summer,

and

. 

URBAN-X

, together with VC fund

JVP

, is accepting applications for its next cohort. Seed to Series B climatetech and urbantech startups building solutions to tackle climate change and create more livable cities are eligible to apply on a rolling basis now. Learn more and

.

Grow-NY

, an initiative of

New York State Empire State Development

(ESD), is accepting applications for its 2022 competition. Startups and/or investors in the food, beverage, and agriculture sectors across 22 Upstate counties are eligible for a cash prize of up to $1 million, as well as marketing support and other resources. Learn more and

.

Company Ventures

is accepting applications for its next

Grand Central Tech Residency

. Beginning in September, the program offers selected startups free office space for one year, zero equity commitment, and other no strings attached resources. Learn more and

.

Antler

, a global early-stage VC, is accepting applications for its summer 2022 New York cohort. Following the six-week, in-person residency, founders will have the opportunity to pitch Antler’s investment committee for $150,000 in pre-seed funding. Learn more and

.

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