State of the New York

Tech Ecosystem 2024

2024 Annual Report | Tech:NYC

A NOTE FROM
OUR FOUNDER

This year, New York’s tech ecosystem proved, yet again, why it’s one of the most dynamic and resilient in the world. 

While navigating a shifting economic landscape and a polarizing political season, tech companies in New York have continued to push boundaries, innovate, and build at an incredible pace. From AI breakthroughs to advancements in climate tech and healthcare, the ideas being generated in our city right now are setting the stage for transformative progress in the years to come.

At the heart of this momentum is collaboration. The rapid integration of technologies like AI into everyday life has opened new opportunities — but also new challenges. At Tech:NYC, we're working alongside our member companies harder than ever to ensure that these advancements benefit every New Yorker, no matter their background or borough. 

By fostering stronger partnerships with government, education, and community organizations, we’re not just building technologies — we’re building a more inclusive and equitable future for our city.

This annual report celebrates the extraordinary contributions of New York’s tech ecosystem and the collective efforts of Tech:NYC’s member companies to grow, adapt, and lead. I couldn’t be prouder of the community we’re creating together.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Onward!

Julie Samuels

President & CEO
Tech:NYC

IN THIS REPORT

NEW YORK BY THE NUMBERS

2024 marked another year where every major indicator of tech ecosystem growth — funding, jobs, innovation — continued to rise. The excitement around AI drove the optimism and innovation across tech.

  • The value of the New York tech ecosystem: The ecosystem as a whole grew — adding almost $50 billion to its value.

  • Venture capital and seed funding raised by startups in 2024: 460+ deals raised $17.7 billion+ in New York.

  • Startups in New York: New York is home to 25,000+ tech-enabled startups.

THE OPTIMISM IN AI

EMPIRE AI

What: Launched in April 2024 by New York State Governor Kathy Hochul (and championed by Tech:NYC), Empire AI is a bold partnership of New York’s leading public and private universities coming together to establish a state-of-the-art artificial intelligence computing center, housed at the University at Buffalo.

Why: Empire AI is now the national model in responsible AI innovation, allowing New York’s leading research institutions to pioneer safe, equitable, and accessible AI research and development that is benefitting every corner of New York’s economy.

Who: Empire AI comprises New York’s public universities, its top private schools — Columbia, Cornell, NYU, and RPI — and the Flatiron Institute, all in one powerful consortium promoting responsible research and opportunities focused on advancing the public good.

What else: 

  • Two out of three New Yorkers support Empire AI.

  • Empire AI will be an energy efficient computing facility, sustainably powered by clean and renewable hydropower from Niagara Falls and recirculating heat generated from the facility to warm dorms on campus.

  • In October 2024, thanks to a philanthropic contribution of computing power and staffing, the first phase of Empire AI — Alpha — launched 18 months ahead of schedule.

EMPIRE AI PRESS

THE BUFFALO NEWS

Empire AI research getting head start at UB

NEW YORK POST

Here’s how much artificial intelligence will add to New York’s economy

WKBW

'This is groundbreaking': University at Buffalo to be hub for AI

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Using AI to help fight climate change

CRAIN’S NEW YORK BUSINESS

Hochul's Empire AI plan will protect American leadership in innovation

TECH + NEW YORK’S ECONOMY

Real Estate

  • Thanks to new office investments from companies like IBM, Google, and Apple, return-to-office continued to grow in 2024.

  • In general, Manhattan leasing in the first half of 2024 was up 20% compared to the first half of 2023.

Jobs

  • The 369,000+ tech jobs across NYC made up 7% of the overall workforce.

  • NYC led the U.S. in demand for AI talent, with 14,448 unique job postings for AI-focused roles from July 2023 to July 2024, a 44% increase from the previous year.

Climate

  • More than 133,000 jobs in NYC — about 3% of all NYC jobs — were created by green economy startups.

Fintech

Health & Wellness

TECH:NYC BY THE NUMBERS

This year, we grew the roster of companies that engage directly with our work — our membership includes the largest tech employers in the City, the smallest most promising startups, and everything in between.

  • We launched Startup:NYC, a program dedicated to providing resources, support, and networking opportunities to help underrepresented founders thrive and succeed in the NYC startup ecosystem.

  • Our members invested in virtually every tech-enabled vertical across the City.

  • Our members and work covered all boroughs of NYC.

POLICY WINS

Anchored by the success of Empire AI, this year, we increased our policy engagement in the City and in Albany, working hard to ensure that New York is the best place to build and grow a tech company.

A selection of ways we helped move New York forward:

$275 million in funding allocated by New York State and $125+ million in non-government funding launched the Empire AI Consortium, a private-public partnership that will allow universities and research institutions in New York to access AI super-computing technology.

Governor Hochul signed into law new requirements for state agencies to evaluate and consider cloud technologies when building or replacing storage and other technological infrastructure.

New York State and Governor Hochul launched an Emerging Technology Advisory Board (on which our President & CEO Julie Samuels sits), alongside co-chairs Dr. Tarika Barrett of Girls Who Code and Arvind Krishna of IBM. This board developed recommendations for the Governor in several key areas of emerging technologies.

Thanks to the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, roughly 80,000 new homes will be created and many more protected with $5 billion in new funding through the rezoning initiative that Tech:NYC proudly supported.

Our calendars were full, our connections widespread.

In addition to all the other events we hosted, Tech:NYC continued to connect tech leaders committed to growing New York with: 

  • State Senators (~20)

  • Assembly Members (30)

  • NYC council Members (~10) 

  • And other policymakers and senior staffers.

In 2024, we held events with:

  • U.S. Senators Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand, and Cory Booker 

  • Governor Kathy Hochul 

  • Congressmen Ritchie Torres, Gregory Meeks, and Hakeem Jeffries

  • Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, and many more.

Tech:NYC engaged directly on many issues impacting the growing tech economy, including:

  • LOADinG Act

  • NYS SAFE for Kids & Child Data Protection Act

  • AI usage in City agencies

  • New York City and State Cloud First Policies

  • Social Media Terms of Service

  • Restaurant delivery app regulations and fees

  • E-bike charging and battery safety, and much more.

TECH:NYC EVENTS

Events are a key pillar of Tech:NYC, an effective means to building impactful relationships between members and leaders in policy, academia, media, different industries, nonprofits, and all the other integral sectors that drive growth in New York City.

2024’s highly-curated events ranged from summit-size media collaborations (Axios AI+NY Summit) to intimate coffees with members and council members at our new offices.

Among the 85+ gatherings by Startup:NYC, Tech:NYC Foundation, our policy get-togethers, and more, highlights included:

New York Tech Week 2024

Led by a16z, NYTW has turned into an annual tentpole event in the City’s tech calendar. This year, Tech:NYC hosted or partnered on 10 events, including kickoff cocktails with Union Square Ventures and Mayor Eric Adams, a defense tech panel with Bloomberg, Axios’ AI+NY Summit, an AI for Good workshop with Robin Hood, and much more. 

Photo credit: Tom LeGoff

Tech:NYC @ DNC

A packed reception during the Democratic National Convention that highlighted the strength of New York’s government and tech leaders against a national backdrop.

The Quarterly Media Happy Hour

Once a quarter, Tech:NYC hosts an agenda-free, off-the-record gathering for the storytellers of tech’s rise in New York to connect — journalists and communications leaders from our member companies.

Cornell Tech @ Bloomberg

Our popular speaker series with Cornell Tech and Bloomberg entered its tenth season. This year, the stage hosted some of New York’s most prominent founders and investors including Amanda Eilian and Lisa Blau (Able Partners), Margaret Lim (Amex Ventures), David Gandler (Fubo), Michael Mignano (Lightspeed Venture Partners), and Ami Luttwak (Wiz).

Photo credit: David Vassel

Tech ‘Tinis at the Somos conference in Puerto Rico

Our annual cocktail bash has become a fixture of the tech presence at this unique conference, and this year was larger than ever.

The New York Tech Summit

Tech:NYC partnered with Crain’s New York Business for the second year to share insights featuring private-public luminaries including Frank Reig (Revel); Empire AI’s Greg Morrisett (Cornell Tech), Stacie Bloom (NYU), and Jeannette Wing (Columbia); Tarika Barrett (Girls Who Code), Laura Peterson (Accenture), Andrew Kimball (NYCEDC), and many more.

And much more!

The eventful year included happy hours at SXSW, monthly startup socials, policy happy hours, intimate policy dinners with electeds and our members, and so much more.

STARTUP:NYC

In 2024, Tech:NYC launched Startup:NYC, a pioneering initiative dedicated to empowering startup founders within the City’s diverse and dynamic ecosystem.

The program, supported by EY, Google.org, Gunderson Dettmer, Justworks, M13, and Rho, is designed to provide resources, mentorship, and community for early-stage companies, with a focus on making New York the best city in the world to build and scale innovative businesses.

Since its launch, Startup:NYC has received 250+ applications to join the community, finally bringing together 28 remarkable founders solving some of today’s most pressing challenges across industries.

Startup:NYC Season 1 — A Closer Look at Digital Health

In line with the growing demand for digital and physical wellness solutions, Startup:NYC’s inaugural cohort focused on health and wellness tech.

These nine founders are pioneering advances in wellness, digital health, fitness, and longevity, placing New York at the center of the health tech conversation. Through specialized resources and connections to funding networks — including our VC Council — Startup:NYC has empowered these startups to create meaningful impact in both local and global markets.

With support from our VC Council, we narrowed the applicant pool to the most promising early-stage companies and delivered a targeted program that included:

  • Intimate, curated gatherings that allowed founders to connect, share insights, and learn from peers. We brought house guests to provide founders pro bono office hours, product feedback, VC office hours, and more. We hosted multiple iterations this year, including one in partnership with NYCEDC’s Founder Fellowship, and a week-long Founder House during New York Tech Week.

  • Access to experienced mentors, invitations to high-quality training sessions, and introductions to investors in both group and one-on-one formats. 

    Additional programming, including tailored workshops on scaling strategies, go-to-market planning, and fundraising, provided invaluable tools to accelerate growth and secure funding.

  • Startup:NYC hosted a series of curated events throughout the year, giving founders unique opportunities to connect with experienced founders, investors, and key stakeholders across New York’s tech ecosystem.

In partnership with Visible Hands, Tech:NYC proudly presented the first-ever SEEN Summit — a high-energy marquee event designed to celebrate and elevate underrepresented founders and problem solvers in the NYC tech ecosystem. 

The Summit also introduced the inaugural SEEN 50, highlighting standout founders across sectors building in New York.

SEEN: The Spotlight on Diverse Innovators

Photo credit: Erica Price

The SEEN Summit emphasized Tech:NYC’s continued commitment to not only supporting diversity in the startup community but also positioning New York City as a leading ecosystem for inclusive innovation.

Companies to Watch

The Companies to Watch series, a key initiative within Startup:NYC, highlights startups across sectors that are bringing transformative solutions to market. These spotlights showcase the founders’ innovative work and introduce them with new partners and audiences, fostering further growth and exposure. This year, we featured 27 trailblazing startups.

TECH:NYC FOUNDATION

The Tech:NYC Foundation is our commitment to social impact that drives tech’s role as the best corporate citizen of New York.

Decoded Futures: AI Meets Nonprofits

The Tech:NYC Foundation launched Decoded Futures, a program that leverages AI to support our city’s nonprofits. The initiative is seeded by funding from Robin Hood Learning + Technology Fund and Google. 

Who: In its first phase, Decoded Futures is working with 100+ education and workforce nonprofits across NYC before expanding to other sectors. 

How: The program is structured around research, capacity-building programming, and tailored support to help nonprofits integrate AI into their operations.

  • Programming is underway, with the current phase focusing on research and pilot events.

A new report by Decoded Futures shed light on the state of AI adoption among NYC education and workforce nonprofits. 

  • While these organizations see AI's potential to boost their impact, many face barriers such as resource constraints, ethical concerns, and uncertainty about implementation. 

  • Early pilots reveal that with hands-on support, nonprofits can rapidly progress in applying AI to their work. 

The report emphasized the need for sustained training, tailored guidance, and collaborative infrastructure to help nonprofits integrate AI effectively and responsibly into their operations​​.

CS Fair 2024

The Computer Science Opportunity Education Fair (CS Fair) inspires public high school students to pursue interests and careers in tech. Hosted by Gotham Gives in partnership with Tech:NYC, NYSPS, and Microsoft/TEALS, it is the City's largest gathering of students studying computer science. 

And this year’s CS Fair was our largest yet:

  • 2,000+ high school students

  • All 5 boroughs represented

  • Participation from 40 tech companies

FutureReady: 1,000 Students in Tech Internships

  • FutureReady provides New York City public high school students with valuable career exploration opportunities in high-growth fields such as healthcare, technology, business, and education.

  • Through a partnership with NYC Public Schools and Grant Associates, Tech:NYC has placed nearly 1,000 students in technology-focused micro-internships over the past two years.

  • Five-week micro-internships focus on:

    • Cybersecurity

    • Data analytics

    • Software engineering

Teams of students tackle workplace challenges designed by our member companies, culminating in impressive project presentations.

Thanks to our partners this year, who included: 

Accenture | Carta | Clear | Deloitte | Google | GrubHub | Hiveclass | Rain | Solana Foundation | Stripe | Warby Parker 

Thanksgiving and Holiday Cheer: Tech and Turkeys!

This year, the Tech:NYC Foundation raised $35,000 from our member companies — more than double last year’s total — to support families across the five boroughs. 

  • With this funding, we helped 16 nonprofit partners distribute over 3,000 meals in 29 locations citywide. 

  • This included a new partnership with the Public Housing Community Fund, which enabled us to deliver 1,500 turkeys directly to NYCHA residents. 

This success reflects the growing network of support from the tech sector and our collective deepening commitment to giving back to the City.

TECH:NYC RESEARCH

Affording an apartment in NYC is a challenge — even for tech workers

New York remains a top destination for tech talent, but soaring rents have made it increasingly difficult to find affordable homes in NYC. Our survey with StreetEasy found that New Yorkers earning the average annual wage could afford less than 5% of rentals on the market in 2023. Tech workers — whose wages are higher than the average — could afford one in three rentals.

How Generative AI will unlock big value in the Big Apple

A survey, in partnership with Accenture, of 500 C-level executives in NYC across 20 industries showed the colossal economic benefit of generative AI adoption when harnessing opportunities across three key areas: Accelerating economic growth and productivity; attracting AI talent; and scaling AI responsibly.

Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2024

Analyzing 300+ innovation ecosystems and powered by insights from Tech:NYC, New York City Economic Development Corporation, and other innovation leaders worldwide, the Startup Genome report found that NYC maintained its position as the second-strongest tech hub in the world.

PRESS

Tech:NYC was cited in 105+ stories in 2024 across dozens of local, national, and broadcast outlets. 

You saw us in:

PIX 11

Tech fair helps teens from Washington Heights get digital careers

NEW YORK TIMES

Convention insider: Chuck Schumer takes Chicago

BLOOMBERG TV

New York Tech Week kicks off

NEW YORK POST

Move over, Silicon Valley: These neighborhoods are the epicenter of NYC’s tech boom

NY1

New York lawmakers eye lessons from other states to draft new AI regulations

AMNY

42nd Street Shuttle now fully equipped with 5G as MTA plans to connect all tunnels with cell service

This year we also partnered with City & State to launch a podcast miniseries: “How’d they do it: Tech in the cities,” featuring interviews with groundbreakers at the intersection of technology and government.