The document provides an introduction to the New York startup community. It defines what constitutes a startup ecosystem, including startups, investors, talent, mentors, partners and service providers. It lists some notable NYC startups and venture firms. It discusses common misconceptions about startups and lists common roles within startups. It provides advice on how to get involved and recommends attending events, learning to code/design, participating in hackathons, and networking.

1. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY 1
INTRODUCTION TO
THE NEW YORK
STARTUP
COMMUNITY
Kevin Shiiba
Product Manager
General Assembly

2. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY 2
NYC STARTUPS
TECH + GA

3. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I HOW IT IS DEFINED 3
WHAT DEFINES AN ECOSYSTEM?
• Startups
• Investors
• Talent
• Mentors
• Partners
• Service Providers

4. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHO THEY ARE 4
NOTABLE NYC STARTUPS
• Art.sy • Gilt Group • SeatGeek
• Bit.ly • GroupMe • SecondMarket
• Blip.tv • HowAboutWe • Shelby.tv
• Chartbeat • Kickstarter • Tumblr
• Codeacademy • Livestream • Vimeo
• Etsy • Lot18 • Warby Parker
• Fab • MakerBot • Yipit
• Foursquare • OKCupid • ZocDoc

5. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHO THEY ARE 5
NOTABLE NYC VENTURE FIRMS
• AOL Ventures • Founder Collective • RRE Ventures
• Bain Capital • Greycroft Partners • Spark Capital
• Bessemer Venture Partners • High Peaks Venture Partners • Thrive Capital
• DFJ Gotham • IA Ventures • Union Square Ventures
• First Round Capital • Lerer Ventures
• FirstMark Capital • Raptor Group

6. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHAT YOU THINK 6
COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS
FOUNDiNG A
COMPANY iS THE ENTREPRENEURSHiP
BEST WAY TO GET iS TOO RiSKY OF
ONlY
iNVOlVED. TOO HARD TO A CAREER PATH.
GET “iN” OR DEVElOPERS
CAN GET A
GOOD JOB AT
STARTUPS.
SiliCON VAllY iS All NDAs
THAT MATTERS! “PEOPlE JUST NEED
A CODER TO
BUilD MY
Will STEAl
THE lOUDEST
PEOPlE
ARE THE
MY iDEA” WRiTE A BUSiNESS
SMARTEST! PlAN = GET FUNDiNG

7. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHAT YOU COULD DO 7
COMMON ROLES
• Front-End Developer (CSS,HTML) • Business Development (Sales, • Sales (Willingness to find and
• Back-End Developer (Ruby, Partnerships) follow leads)
Python, Java, PHP) • Marketing/User Acquisition (Email • Community Management (Social
• UX/UI Designer (inDesign, Marketing, Social Media, SEO, Data Media)
Photoshop) Analytics) • Operations (Customer Services,
• Product Manager (Light Front-End • Data Scientist (Hadoop, Matlab, Office Management)
Developer, Design) SQL) • Other roles depending on vertical
education

8. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHAT YOU SHOULD DO 8
DO.
• Learn the lexicon and how to best position your skillset
• Think long and hard about what kinds of environments best suit
you and seek out those
• Roll up your sleeves and learn new skills
• Remain humble and figure out ways to give back to the community
even when you’re a giant success
• Don’t be afraid to meet new folks and be open-minded

9. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I WHAT YOU SHOULD NOT DO 9
DON’T.
• Think everyone knows something you don’t
• Listen to the people who tell you no
• Be afraid to ask for help, guidance, and introductions
• Hesitate to offer whatever it is that YOU do best
• Miss out on hackathons, panels, and demo days
• Get discouraged

10. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I FIRST STEPS 10
HOW DO I GET STARTED? ASK YOURSELF:
• What am I passionate about?
• What types of environments suit me?
• What is my risk tolerance?
• What am I good at?
• What part of the tech community best matches up to
my passions and skills? What role?
• How do I best hone these skills necessary to function
in this role?
• Who should I talk to get insight about a company /
role?

11. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I FURTHER STEPS 11
THE BEST WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
• Sign up for events newsletters
• Attend meet ups, happy hours, panels, and classes
• Learn how to code / design
• Go to hackathons and Startup Weekends
• Take interesting people you meet out for coffee
• Be useful – make introductions, give feedback, help
people you meet, keep an open mind
• Blog about our experiences and adventures
• Engage on Social Media
• Hustle

12. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY 12
THANK YOU.
Questions?
Kevin Shiiba
@kevinshiiba
@GA

13. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I APPENDIX 13
BLOGS TO READ
Chris Dixon — http://cdixon.org
Fred Wilson (A VC) — http://avc.com
BetaBeat — http://betabeat.com
SAI — http://businessinsider.com/sai
Paul Graham’s Essays — http://paulgraham.com
Hacker News — http://news.ycombinator.com
TechCrunch — http://techcrunch.com
General Assembly — http://generalassemb.ly/blog

14. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I APPENDIX 14
NEWSLETTERS
Startup Digest — http://startupdigest.com
Charlie O’Donnell — http://thingsgoingtobebig.com/nycevents
Gary’s Guide — http://garysguide.com
General Assembly — http://generalassemb.ly

15. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I APPENDIX 15
NOTABLE ORGS
New York Tech Meetup — http://nytm.org
Hack NY — http://hackny.org
Techies Give Back — http://techiesgiveback.org
NY Hacker / Hacker Union — http://nyhacker.org
We Are NY Tech — http://wearenytech.com
Internet Week — http://internetweekny.com
Social Media Week — http://socialmediaweek.org
NYC EDC — http://nycedc.com
NYC Digital — http://nyc.gov/digital

16. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I APPENDIX 16
COWORKING SPACES
WeWork Labs— http://wework.com
New Work City — http://nwc.co
3rd Ward— http://3rdward.com
Grind — http://grindspaces.com
The Yard — http://workattheyard.com
Hive @ 55 — http://hiveat55.com
Projective Space — http://projective.co
Green Desk — http://green-desk.com
Dogpatch Labs— http://dogpatchlabs.com

17. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I APPENDIX 17
ACCELERATORS
TechStars — http://techstars.com
DreamIt Ventures — http://dreamitventures.com
ER Accelerator — http://eraccelerator.com
NYC Seed — http://www.nycseed.com