This document provides an introduction to the New York startup community. It discusses notable NYC startups, common roles at startups, misconceptions about startups, and first steps for getting involved such as attending events, learning to code, and participating in hackathons. The document recommends blogs, newsletters, organizations, coworking spaces, and accelerators for continuing engagement with the NYC startup ecosystem.

1. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY 1
INTRODUCTI
ON TO THE
NEW YORK
START UP
COMMUNIT
Anna C. Lindow
Director of Content Strategy
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 3
WHO THEY ARE
NOTABLE NYC STARTUPS
• Art.sy • Gilt Group • SecondMarket
• Bit.ly • GroupMe • Shelby.tv
• Blip.tv • Kickstarter • Tumblr
• Chartbeat • Lot18 • Warby Parker
• Codeacademy • MakerBot • Yipit
• Etsy • OKCupid • ZocDoc
• Foursquare • SeatGeek

4. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
HOW IT IS DEFINED 4
WHAT DEFINES AN
ECOSYSTEM?
• Startups
• Investors
• Talent
• Mentors
• Partners
• Service Providers

5. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I 5
WHAT YOU THINK
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

6. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
WHAT YOU COULD DO 6
COMMON ROLES
• Front-End Developer (CSS,HTML) • Business Development (Sales, • Sales (Willingness to find and
• Back-End Developer (Ruby, Partnerships) follow leads)
Python, Java) • 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

7. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO 7
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

8. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
WHAT YOU SHOULD NOT DO 8
DON’T.
• Think everyone knows something you don’t
• Be afraid to ask for help, guidance, and introductions
• Hesitate to offer whatever it is that YOU do best
• Get discouraged

9. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I 9
FIRST STEPS
HOW DO I GET STARTED? ASK
YOURSELF:
• What am I passionate about?
• What types of environments suit me?
• What am I good at?
• What part of the tech community best matches up to
my passions and skills?
• How do I best hone these skills and communicate
them to others?

10. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I 10
FURTHER STEPS
THE BEST WAYS YO 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

11. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY 11
THANK YOU.
Questions?
Anna C. Lindow
@annalindow
@GA
anna@generalassemb.ly

12. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
APPENDIX 12
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

13. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
APPENDIX 13
NEWSLETTE
RS
Startup Digest — http://startupdigest.com
Charlie O’Donnell — http://thingsgoingtobebig.com/nycevents
Gary’s Guide — http://garysguide.com
General Assembly — http://generalassemb.ly

14. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
APPENDIX 14
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

15. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
APPENDIX 15
COWORKIN
G 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

16. GENERAL ASSEMBLY I INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW YORK STARTUP COMMUNITY I
APPENDIX 16
ACCELERAT
ORS
TechStars — http://techstars.com
DreamIt Ventures — http://dreamitventures.com
ER Accelerator — http://eraccelerator.com
NYC Seed — http://www.nycseed.com