Tech:NYC Digest: October 5

Tech:NYC Digest: October 5

October 05, 2021 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

In today’s digest, state transportation infrastructure in limbo as feds stalemate, city libraries end late fees on checkouts, and Protocol shares a new manual for tips to achieve an inclusive workplace.

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By the numbers:

  • New positive cases statewide: 3,877 (+981)

    • New positive cases, NYC: 1,153 (+91)

  • Statewide Fatalities: 38 (+14)

  • NYC Positivity Rate: 1.3 percent (no change)

  • Statewide Vaccine Progress:

    • Percentage of adults (18+) with at least one dose: 84.8 percent 

    • Percentage of total population with at least one dose: 71.9 percent

Today’s latest: 

  • The effectiveness of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine against infection decreases over time, falling from a peak of 88 percent one month after receiving the two-shot series to 47 percent six months later. (CNBC)

    • However, its protection against COVID-related hospitalizations persists, remaining 90 percent effective for all coronavirus variants of concern — including Delta — for at least six months, according to the study.

    • AstraZeneca plans to ask the FDA to grant emergency authorization for an antibody treatment to prevent COVID-19 in high-risk individuals. If authorized, it would become the first such preventive treatment  available in the US. (New York Times)

  • One day after the vaccination mandate took effect for NYC public school employees, approximately 8,000 out of all 148,000 Dept. of Education employees, including 3,000 out of 78,000 teachers, remain unvaccinated. Most were replaced with substitutes.

    • The vaccination mandate faces another legal challenge today, led by a special education teacher and ten other employees who were denied a religious exemption. They are asking a federal judge to intervene, and a hearing was set for this morning. (ABC New York)

  • A massive federal plan to spend $550 billion on public transit, bridges, and highways stalled in Congress last week, prompting transportation watchdogs to sound the alarm about potential long-term impacts to big-ticket New York projects. (THE CITY)

    • The legislation would be a windfall for transportation projects around the state, including airport improvements, new rail tunnels under the Hudson and East rivers, and the next phase of the Second Avenue Subway.

    • The MTA, the nation’s largest mass transit agency, stands to gain more than $10 billion from the bill. Those funds would boost the agency’s next capital plan and cut into as much as $47 billion in debt over the next two years as the MTA tries to rebound from the pandemic.

  • Brooklyn Public Library, New York Public Library, and Queens Public Library are canceling late fees, making New York City's library system the biggest in the country to eliminate such fines. This policy change affects books and other materials, and any current late fines are now cleared. (Gothamist)

In other reading:

  • SoHo Catered to Free-Spending Tourists. What Happened Without Them? (New York Times)

  • Every Town Can Be a Scooter Town. Even, At Last, NYC. (Slate)

  • 21 Terrific Places for Breakfast in Manhattan, Mapped (Eater NY)

With tried and true workplace norms turned upside down by the hybrid-remote work future, tech companies of all sizes are readjusting their DEI strategies to match. (Protocol)

The good news: Diversity measures seemed to have taken a backseat during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, but since April 2020, diversity job postings have steadily climbed. 

  • As of August 31, the share of DEI-related job postings per million is up 52 percent compared to August 2020. Compared to February 1, 2020, DEI-related job postings were up 76 percent at the end of August 2021.

But, there’s still lots of work to be done. For one, tolerance is not the same as inclusion, and understanding both is key.

  • "True inclusion is where everybody has the potential to access power and have control, "Y-Vonne Hutchinson, founder and CEO of the DEI consulting firm ReadySet, told Protocol. "I think anything short of that is just tolerance." 

The way employees think about inclusion has also rapidly changed. Here are some tips for how to ensure your efforts are effective:

  • Avoid performative allyship: Workers expect action and want company leaders to do more than throw money at a nonprofit to demonstrate that it cares. 

  • Listen and then act: Effective organizations take the time to listen and gauge where their employees are at when it comes to inclusion. 

  • Unconscious bias training does not solve everything: Training is just one tool of many that companies should use to address diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

  • Fix inclusion and fix the pipeline: If a company can manage to fix problems related to inclusion, they might also fix the pipeline problem. Inclusion and retention are often closely linked. People are more likely to leave if they don't feel welcome or included in the workplace.

  • Employee resource groups can still create belonging: ERGs are still critical to creating more inclusive workplaces, but treating it like a side project can hinder effectiveness. ERGs are legitimized by paying the leaders and offering them the resources and autonomy to thrive. 

In other reading: 

  • Copia Automation, a New York City-based automation software company for industrial applications, raised $14.2 million in Series A funding. Lux Capital led the round and was joined by Construct Capital and Ironspring Ventures.

  • Hopscotch, a New York City-based B2B payments startup, raised $3.6 million in seed funding. Noemis Ventures and Stellation Capital led the round and were joined by investors including Valar Ventures, Valor Equity Partners, 3KVC, Red & Blue Ventures, NfX, Brightlane Ventures, Switch VC, and The MBA Fund. 

  • Kingdom Supercultures, a New York-based developer of natural microbial cultures, raised $25 million in Series A funding. Shine Capital led the round and was joined by Sequoia Capital, YC, Lakehouse Ventures, and Brand Foundry Ventures.

  • PixieBrix, a New York City-based no-code tool for modifying website interfaces, raised $3.5 million in seed funding. New Enterprise Associates led the round.

  • Studs, a New York City-based ear piercing startup, raised $20 million in Series B funding. Spark Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Thrive Capital, First Round Capital, and Lerer Hippeau.

  • TrialSpark, a New York-based drug development platform, raised $156 million in Series C funding. Sam Altman and Lachy Groom co-led the round and were joined by Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, Casdin Capital, Dragoneer, Section 32, John Doerr, Spark Capital, Felicis Ventures, Sound Ventures, and Arrowmark.

  • October 6: In-person: 2021 Propelify Innovation Festival, with Tech:NYC founder and executive director Julie Samuels, Capsule founder and CEO Eric Kinariwala, Boxed CEO Chieh Huang, Bowery Farming founder and CEO Irving Fain, and others. Hosted by TechUnited:NJ. Register here.

  • October 6: Virtual: What It’s Like to Exit: Getting Bought, with former Chartbeat and Scroll CEO and Betaworks CEO John Borthwick. Hosted by Betaworks. Register here.

  • October 6: Virtual: The Future of New York City, with Brooklyn Borough President (and Democratic nominee for Mayor) Eric Adams. Hosted by Savills. Register here.

  • October 7: Virtual: Industry Needs in Manhattan, with ABNY CEO Melva Miller, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce CEO Jessica Walker, and others. Hosted by NYCETC. Register here.

  • October 12: Virtual: Early-stage Fundraising Workshop, with Tribeca Venture Partners co-founder and managing partner Brian Hirsch. Hosted by Tribeca Venture Partners and Silicon Valley Bank. Register here.

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