Monday, May 13

Weekly startup and VC news, curated for you

Author

Juliet McAlee
May 13, 2024

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Hello!

ICYMI, TechDay was last Friday! And we want to start off this week’s edition of TechDay Express with some HUGE thank yous to…

  • The exhibiting startups and their teams. You all rocked it on the show floor and showcased what makes NYC’s startup community the most exciting and innovative in the world.

  • Our Main Stage speakers Shai Goldman, Dorothy Chang, Zehra Naqvi, Andrew Yeung, Victoria Kennedy, John Hill, Ben Sun, Aubrie Pagano, Olivia O'Sullivan, Jeremy Kagan, Joshua Rahn, Jesse Middleton, Octavius Moore, Charlie Stephens, Chris Cunningham and Erica Duignan Minnihan for your insights on the NYC ecosystem.

  • Everyone who attended our biggest event of the last 5 years.

TechDay was an amazing day chock full of innovation and inspiration from the NYC startup ecosystem. We are grateful to all the exhibitors, attendees, and speakers who made our 10th anniversary even more special.

Now onto your favorite curation of startup and VC news.

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🌟 What’s New This Week 🌟 

💼 Big tech has unleashed a wave of AI lobbyists in D.C., and they’re making headway.

🎓 Here are 32 U.S. universities, ranked by the number of funds graduated founders raised in the last year.

🤖 In Q1 2024, early-stage valuation for AI startups reached $70M.

☁️ The Spanish Startup Association issued an antitrust complaint against Microsoft.

👥 Startups that participated in an accelerator are 3.4% more likely to raise VC, according to a recent study.

📚 Dive A Little Bit Deeper 📚

💰 CLEAR GOALS, FULL PROFITS, CAN’T LOSE  — Despite what many in the startup community believe, VC funding isn’t the be-all, end-all for success. You must be profitable to keep your company going during a dry spell.

💁‍♀️ AIMLESS SWIPING IS FOR THE BIRDS — IRL social startups have been cropping up as of late to address the loneliness epidemic among Gen Z and Millennials. These apps are stylish and have a fair share of end-users, but some VCs are skeptical of their scaling potential.

📢 MAVERICK MANAGER WOES — By nature, many startups are disruptive in their operations by shaking up traditional company culture and management methods. But do these ‘maverick’ approaches always work?

🌳 IT’S NEVER TOO EARLY TO START — In March, the SEC approved rules that standardize climate-related disclosures from public companies and in public offerings. What does this have to do with your early-stage startup? Short answer: more than you would think.

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⚡️ Question for the Community ⚡️

VCs and investors: when conducting due diligence, which snags arise the most?

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Results from last week’s poll: