Tech:NYC Digest: September 8

September 08, 2023 • Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

Friday, September 8, 2023

We’re back with another end-of-week edition of the Tech:NYC Digest, featuring our favorite five highlights in New York tech this week.

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Meta, TikTok and more take down thousands of subway surfing videos (City & State)

A new citywide campaign to warn against the dangers of subway surfing launched this week. The MTA tapped a group of local high school students to design it, and they wanted to involve all of the major social media companies to help. There’s a unique public-private precedent for efforts like this: Our president Julie Samuels was on hand for the campaign launch, where she said: “These moments where the companies work with the city, work with the state, to make New York work better for New Yorkers – you’re going to see more and more of those moments.”

Brooklyn Army Terminal will host climate innovation program (City & State)

A new progam spearheaded by the city’s Eonomic Development Corporation is an early step in what will become a major citywide initiative to prototype, deploy, and scale tech tools solving urban challenges – all in its own real-world environment. Starting with climate tech makes a lot of sense: As a burgeoning hub of climate startups, with some of the world’s leading climate investors and laws like Local Law 97, NYC has a unique opportunity to set the national standard on what large-scale climate change agendas can look like in other cities.

5 Questions for Albert Wegner (Politico)

Speaking of leading climate investors: Union Square Ventures managing partner Albert Wegner is one of them, and he says the climate crisis – and how quickly it has accelerated in 2023 – isn’t getting enough attention. At the end of last year, USV launched its second fund dedicated to early-stage investments that reduce and remove emissions, but also those that can execute effective adaptation measures.

‘We Don’t Look Ready’: Janette Sadik-Khan on how to get congestion pricing right (New York Magazine)

Cashless tolling structures are already being prepared for when congestion pricing rules are expected to go into effect next year, but Sadik-Khan, the former transportation commissioner under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, says there’s still a lot of work to do. Despite that to-do list, she says it will “reap a huge street dividend:” Congestion pricing is projected to take one in five cars off the road, opening up space to create more dedicated bike, e-bike, and scooter lanes.

New York’s 14 Most Anticipated Restaurants for Fall (Bloomberg)

Fried chicken, fine dining, and pizza are all of the list. Our recommendation: All of the above.

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