The Big Tour
Dozens of New York City’s technology startups welcomed visitors to a citywide open house June 10 as part of Internet Week New York 2011, and I jumped on the chance to visit several of them with a group of young entrepreneurs. We spent the afternoon traveling through Midtown, NoHo, and SoHo, strolling through vibrant work spaces, and mingling with the people behind these innovative companies. Scroll through the following slides to discover some of the newest, coolest tech ventures in the Big Apple.
—Text and photos by John Harrison
Hashable
Launched: 2010
Top exec: Michael Yavonditte, founder and CEO
What they do: Provide an online platform for tracking people-to-people connections by allowing users to exchange digital business cards, make introductions, and “check in” to meetings and gatherings.
Office oddity: A putting green right in the middle of the office.
The experience: Hashable headquarters spans nearly the entire 16th floor of the Midtown building. We strolled around the very open workspace (which the company shares with mobile advertising startup Tapad), met with barefoot employees, and took a few swings on the putting green. One couldn’t ask for a more relaxed, friendly working atmosphere.
Meetup
Launched: 2002
Top exec: Scott Heiferman, CEO
What they do: Manage the world’s largest network of local groups organized around shared interests and purposes.
Office oddity: The “Meetup” inflatable dinosaur sitting at the office lunch table.
The experience: We traveled down to NoHo, where the first stop was Meetup. Once upstairs, we were greeted with Sangria and guided through the bright-red office, easily the most eclectic space of the day. The walls are nearly covered floor-to-ceiling with photos of Meetup gatherings, holiday lights twinkle from some of the desks, and Meetup group T-shirts hang from the ceiling. One gentleman even zipped by on his scooter.
Blip.tv
Launched: 2005
Top exec: Mike Hudack, CEO
What they do: Provide video-sharing services for independent Web-show creators.
Office oddity: The conference rooms, which are named after Tom Cruise movies.
The experience: We walked next door to the Blip.tv headquarters. The office was far more traditionally decorated, though the Guitar Hero station tucked away in a corner was slightly unexpected. After speaking to representatives for Blip.tv, we strolled to the far side of the room to visit Sawhorse Media, which develops platforms for social-media analysis. The two firms combine to create a pleasant, though a bit stagnant, working environment.
AOL Ventures
Launched: 2010
Top execs: Mike Brown Jr. and Jon Brod, founders
What they do: Serve as the venture capital arm of AOL, investing in early-stage consumer startups.
Office oddity: A classic, red telephone booth situated on one side of the office.
The experience: We made one more stop in NoHo to peep inside the home of AOL Ventures, where we were ushered into the most beautiful loft space of the day. Complete with stunning brick archways and hardwood floors, the room feels more like a trendy SoHo lounge than a bustling NoHo workspace. Here, four long tables littered with laptops play host to four separate entities, including MapQuest and Movie Pass (launching later this year).
Thrillist
Launched: 2005
Top exec: Ben Lerer, co-founder and CEO
What they do: Men’s media company that provides online newsletters recommending local products and services.
Office oddity: The fully stocked bar in the office kitchen.
The experience: We cut over to SoHo to visit Thrillist, where the folks telling men what’s cool have an appropriately cool workspace. The Thrillist operations are in one room and the Thrillist Rewards and Jackthreads (the company’s first acquisition) operations are in another. Both spaces are filled with moving, chatting employees, and if workers find themselves in need of an extra pick-me-up, a stiff drink is never far away.
Patch
Launched: 2008
Top exec: Warren Webster, president
What they do: Provide hyper-local news coverage in towns and communities across the country.
Office oddity: The stuffed-animal monkey dressed in an astronaut costume hanging from the ceiling.
The experience: The next stop along the tour was just around the corner at Patch, where we were greeted by several smiling tour guides. Inside the business operations headquarters, it took a moment for our eyes to adjust to the startlingly green walls. Our group did like the colorful flower door curtains and massage chair. We enjoyed meeting Olive, one of the four-legged office-goers in the dog-friendly workspace.
Gawker Media
Launched: 2002
Top execs: Nick Denton, publisher
What they do: Publish Web publications including Gawker, Gizmodo, and Jezebel.
Office oddity: A bright orange surfboard on display.
The experience: We walked over to Gawker, where the 4th-floor walkup left us wishing we had made the company an earlier stop on our journey. The tour was less structured, as we were told we could stroll around as we pleased. Luckily, the welcoming extended to the roof deck upstairs, where we found plush seating and bright sunshine. Inside, the atmosphere was starkly different: eerily dark and dead silent, despite the fact that everyone works in one big room.
WeWork Labs
Launched: April 2011
Top execs: Matt Shampine, Jesse Middleton, and Adam Neumann, founders
What they do: Offer low-cost office space to NYC entrepreneurs, developers, and early-stage startups.
Office oddity: Doodles of playful robots on the glass workspace dividers.
The experience: Our adventure concluded at WeWork Labs, where Shampine and Neumann welcomed us into their relatively simple workspace for early-stage projects. They explained that a long waiting list has developed for the $250/month desk space, which includes amenities like conference rooms, printing services, and tons of sunlight. For those just getting started on the next Meetup, Hashable, or Thrillist—the space is ideal.
Back to: NYC Tech Tour: 10 Startups, 8 Offices, 1 Afternoon
