New York City is known as the banking capital of the world. But don’t forget about tech.
In the past decade, the Big Apple has seen an 18 percent growth rate in tech sector jobs, resulting in $124.7 billion in economic input. And so far, 2021 looks to be much of the same.
In March, Capitolis, a startup that provides tech support to capital markets, raised $90 million in Series C funding. The same month, Gatsby, whose mobile app allows for safe and fair no-commission options trading, raised $10 million.
As New York City increasingly finds itself in a head-to-head battle with Silicon Valley as being America’s tech capital, Built In NYC highlighted 21 companies that we think are positioned for success this year.
What they do: Altana AI is an artificial intelligence company that helps governments, enterprises and financial institutions to build better global commerce.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: In November of last year, Altana AI secured a $7 million investment, which they’ll use to de-risk supply chains and ensure that they’re safer.
What they do: Bodhala is a machine learning-based tech startup that delivers technology and services to legal departments.
Founded: 2013
Why we’re watching: In a late March blog post, Bodhala CEO and co-founder Raj Goyle addressed why he thinks some legal tech startups succeed or fail, distilling it down to three points: price, data and knowledge.
What they do: Companies use BrightHire to hire interviewees in a faster, better and more equitable manner by running structured video interviews that can be reviewed and shared.
Founded: 2019
Why we’re watching: In 2020, BrightHire raised $3 million for its intelligent interviewing assistant that ensures interviews are being conducted with the company goals and values in mind. The company continues to grow, with positions open in engineering, customer success, marketing and product.
What they do: Bulletin provides a platform that helps retailers and partners source inventory from a curated portfolio of brands.
Founded: 2016
Why we’re watching: Bulletin is growing, looking to fill positions in marketing, product, design, engineering and brand partnerships.
What they do: Capitalize’s mission is to help Americans save for retirement, which is why it’s developed a product that helps people digitally locate their old 401(k) and transfer it into a new account without paperwork, phone calls or faxes.
Founded: 2019
Why we’re watching: In February, the fintech startup raised $12.5 million, which they’ll use to reach more customers and add new features that will help people better manage their retirement savings over time.
What they do: Capitolis is a startup that provides tech support to capital markets players like brokers and banks.
Founded: 2017
Why we’re watching: In March, Capitolis raised $90 million in Series C funding led by Andreessen Horowitz, and plans to use this fresh investment to further develop its product, bolster its sales efforts and grow its team.
What they do: Dandy is a fully-digital, dental lab service with a platform that’s designed to deliver everything from dentures, crowns, bridges, aligners and more.
Founded: 2016
Why we’re watching: Dandy continues to grow, hiring for a slew of open positions in engineering and product, finance, marketing, talent and operations.
What they do: DriveWealth’s cloud-based API-driven brokerage infrastructure platform can power anything from trading to investing to retirement in real-time fractional shares.
Founded: 2012
Why we’re watching: DriveWealth recently announced a new partnership with Templum, which provides capital market infrastructures for alternatives and private securities. And they’re also hiring a wide range of positions in engineering.
What they do: The goal of Ethyca’s global data privacy platform for engineers and data teams is to help build peoples’ trust in internet scale and data-driven business.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: In 2020, Ethyca raised $13.5 million and launched a new product, Ethyca Pro, which is a self-service privacy solution that integrates with any enterprise data stack to perform compliance tasks without manual effort.
What they do: Gatsby is a fintech company aimed at younger traders whose mobile app allows for safe and fair no-commission options trading.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: In March, Gatsby announced it had raised $10 million, which is its latest push to challenge other trading apps that have grown in popularity with younger generations.
What they do: Heartbeat Health is a healthtech company that combines technology and specialist-level knowledge to focus on the early diagnosis and management of heart disease and its risks.
Founded: 2017
Why we’re watching: Heartbeat Health is growing fast, hiring for open positions in engineering, design, product, marketing and operations.
What they do: Hydrant is an e-commerce and fitness company that makes an electrolyte mix that provides rapid hydration in a convenient packet.
Founded: 2017
Why we’re watching: In April, Hydrant raised $8.5 million in funding from sports starts like NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers and tennis player Sloane Stephens. According to Business Insider, co-founder John Sherwin said much of the funding will go to marketing.
What they do: Ontra is a legal tech company that pairs corporate attorneys with cloud-based software to offer end-to-end solutions for routine legal work.
Founded: 2014
Why we’re watching: In February, Ontra announced that it would be expanding its presence in the Asia Pacific region with an office in Singapore. This follows the expansion they made in the fall of 2020 in Hong Kong.
What they do: Leap’s retail platform develops and operates retail stores for growing brands by leveraging technology, store management and real estate experience.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: In March, Leap’s co-founder and CEO, Amish Tolia, spoke with Footwear News about how brands can utilize brick and mortar during the e-commerce boom. “There is a ton of opportunity in the marketplace right now as there is a large supply of vacant retail locations,” Tolia said.
What they do: LEX is a fintech real estate company that provides investors the opportunity to purchase into individual commercial real estate properties through the publicly issued stock of the issuer.
Founded: 2017
Why we’re watching: LEX is on a mission to democratize the $13 trillion U.S. commercial real estate market, and in 2020, the company made a big step in doing so. It partnered with Nasdaq for $100 apiece property trades.
What they do: Pinwheel’s platform provides the API that makes it simple for consumers to connect payroll accounts to any app.
Founded: 2019
Why we’re watching: In March, Pinwheel released a new API documentation that makes it easier for users to integrate with Pinwheel, allowing direct deposit switching, paycheck-linked lending and income and employment data.
What they do: Real is a mental health startup that leads virtual group therapy sessions across a variety of issues. It’s redesigning mental health care through its core product, Therapy Pathways, which is a convenient and cheaper option to traditional therapy that includes eight on-demand sessions tailored to fit the user’s mental health goals.
Founded: 2020
Why we’re watching: In April, Real raised $10 million led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with participation from new investors like U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe and Minnesota Vikings linebacker Eric Kendricks.
What they do: Runway’s toolkit adds artificial intelligence capabilities to design and creative platforms.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: At the end of last year, Runway raised $8.5 million. The company continues to grow, with positions open in design, engineering and operations.
What they do: Snappy is an all-in-one gifting platform for organizations that lets recipients choose a gift they actually love, making corporate gifts more personal.
Founded: 2015
Why we’re watching: Snappy’s fully remote office is growing, with job openings in operations, people, product, research and development, sales and design.
What they do: Tomorrow Health’s mission is to reimagine healthcare in the home by improving the way individuals and families manage home medical equipment and supplies.
Founded: 2018
Why we’re watching: In April, Tomorrow Health raised $25 million in funding led by Andreessen Horowitz, so they can further deliver home healthcare at scale.
What they do: Welcome is making it easier to measure pay equity by providing people leaders with a compensation planning, benchmarking, and communication platform.
Founded: 2019
Why we’re watching: Welcome is growing after a $6 million funding last year and looking to fill open positions in data science, engineering, design, marketing and sales.
