“Silicon Alley just
gets smaller and
larger based on the
overall economy
and people’s
risk profile and
investment. As
long as talented
folks come to New
York City, it will
continue to grow.”
Since 2003, Silicon Alley has joined
Boston and San Francisco as one of
the three leading technology hubs in
the United States. It’s home to buzzy
media companies such as Nick Denton’s Gawker mini-empire as well as
Google’s second-largest U.S. office. All
over Manhattan, there are hundreds—
perhaps thousands—of startups in media,
advertising and finance, such as Meetup,
Thrillist and CollegeHumor.
“Silicon Alley never went away,” says
entrepreneur Jason Calacanis, who
founded Silicon Alley Reporter, a business
magazine that chronicled—and hyped—
the first round of Manhattan’s dotcom excess. “It just gets smaller and
larger based on the overall economy and
people’s risk profile and investment. As
long as talented folks come to New York
City, it will continue to grow.”
Fred Wilson, one of the few venture
capitalists based in Manhattan instead
of in California, says New York is a great
place to launch a startup. Although it is
a small pond compared to Silicon Valley
when it comes to venture capital, it is a
lot less competitive.
“It’s a lot better to be a big fish in a
medium-sized pond,” Wilson says, “than
a medium-sized fish in a big pond.”
