We talk a lot about the New York tech scene. Actually, here at Built In NYC, that's just about all we talk about. But every so often, there's an opportunity to catch a glimpse of the entire scene from an outside perspective.
A couple of weeks ago, we met the people at
. Andela is a company that finds top African software developers and places them with U.S. tech companies as full-time, distributed team members. Last month, Chiemeka Alim and Emmanuel Isaac, two Lagos, Nigeria-based software engineers who are on the team at 2U traveled to NYC to work in-person at the company for two weeks. It was their first time in the U.S., so we asked them to share their perspective on the NY tech scene and the city more broadly.
Built In NYC: What's your impression of the tech scene here? Was it what you expected?
Chiemeka: The tech scene was what I expected, having watched some techie videos, based on the little interactions I had with it (my client work and the tech meetup I attended).
Emmanuel: It was definitely what I expected. I had the opportunity to attend a TechCrunch meetup in Brooklyn, where people pitched their startups. It was exciting, educating, and enlightening at the same time. My favorite pitch was about a dating application, named BAE, and guess what? The pitch came out tops!
Built In NYC: What about NYC as a whole?
Chiemeka: As for the city, nothing really prepares one better than a personal experience — except maybe VR, which isn’t fully here yet. The way the houses are constructed, with blocks of tightly compacted apartments, high-rise buildings everywhere… my favorite part is the subway.
Emmanuel: Truth be told, my expectations were exceeded. I mean, the buildings were really tall, the streets and traffic were organized and spotlessly clean. I was a frequent visitor of the Chelsea Market, which was always clean. It was really cool to see people clean up after themselves after a meal in a park.
The weather, although colder than I expected, was also another thing I appreciate about NYC. Having spent the entirety of my life in a tropical climate, it was really nice to get some "chill."
Built In NYC: Would you be interested in returning and working here, or would you prefer to do something in your home town after completing Andela's program?
Chiemeka: I would very much be interested in returning and working from there for a while. After a while, I would want to return home.
Emmanuel: I would totally be interested in returning and working there!
Built In NYC: What was the culture like at the tech company you're working for?
Chiemeka: 2U has a really open culture. They discuss everything from work to politics to historical facts. I love the way everyone seems to be open with everyone else, from the tech lead to the relative newbies (me and my Andela colleague). At one point, one of the top managers asked who could help him “baby-sit” his cat.
Emmanuel: Unsurprisingly, the culture at 2U isn't too different from Andela Nigeria's. I am glad to have had face-to-face interaction with talented, driven, ambitious and brilliant people on a day-to-day basis.
Built In NYC: What do you think about the food in NYC?
Chiemeka: I liked the variety. There was a LOT to choose from, I constantly had issues picking what to eat and almost always handed the menu to one of my companions to pick a meal for me. I also noticed that most of the food goes with cheese. I tried a variety, but my tastebuds were just not cooperating. In the end, I missed Nigerian food.
Emmanuel: I am a foodie, and I tried out as many dishes as possible: Mexican, Thai, Italian, Chinese, American, and Indian amongst others that I can't remember now. I don't know why I disliked Tofu, but I enjoyed every other food I tried, some more than others. And my, all meals had really long names, a sharp contrast from the naming convention of Nigerian meals.
