We love New York. Not just because we have alumni companies there. NYC's startup scene has plenty of swagger, but it's underpinned by a scrappy, street-smart ethos that is a refreshing hybrid of East Coast / West Coast sensibilities.
How so? Here's the breakdown:
- There's real diversity in the company types you'll find crammed into co-working spaces, incubators and accelerators up and down the island. The NYC scene was not born on a tech bubble, nor was it created in a deep recession. It's not a place obsessed with unicorns, despite the towers of wealth that flank the streets. People weren't invited to the startup party in NYC...the party came to them. As a result, it was much harder to limit who got to drink from the punch bowl.
- Everyone is new(ish). There are fewer "godfathers" of the startup scene in NYC. In SV, the scene originated from the growth and success of an initial group of tech companies that got HUGE. Those who made money from these companies, as founders and investors, went on to seed a wave of activity that made Silicon Valley a startup mecca. Almost from the beginning, the scene had lineage, names and faces you needed to be associated with to garner credibility. Royalty. Not so much in NYC. I am sure that will change over time, but it still feels like a place where you can make it, even if Jason Calacanis never mentions you in a newsletter.
- New York never got totally drunk on the Silicon Valley Kool Aid. Maybe a little woozy, but not blackout smashed. The startup beer goggles aren't as thick. The dream is a little dirtier in New York. No less grand, just a little rougher around the edges. Because RevUp is designed for companies that are focused on revenue as the primary driver of growth, the hustle and grind mindset is right up our alley.
As Silicon Valley's monopoly of the startup news reel seems to be softening, it's a perfect time to celebrate the fast progress NYC has made becoming a global destination for entrepreneurial greatness. With a piece of pizza and a $20 artisanal cocktail in hand, I salute you, NYC.
We've got NYC office hours coming up on February 16 and we are already looking forward to this year's NYC Tech Day on April 21. The next round of apps for RevUp are due soon, and it was not an accident that when Betaspring launched RevUp, the first company we invested in was from NYC.
For more on RevUp and what it takes to apply, start here.