Friday, August 14, 2026
Welcome to another Friday edition of the Tech:NYC Digest, featuring our favorite five highlights in New York and tech this week.
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We think we just discovered some new species living in New York City (Vox)
New York may have a few tiny residents science has never met before. 🐛 Back in June, Vox set up insect traps across New York City, and over the course of the summer they have been collecting thousands of specimens and sending them to a DNA barcoding lab for analysis.
Early results suggest that more than two dozen groups of flies and wasps may be unlike anything currently in a major biodiversity database.
Scientists still need to confirm the findings through further review, but the project is a reminder that NYC is still full of surprises.
Yelp just revealed NYC’s 50 most-saved attractions (Secret NYC)
New York’s collective “save for later” list has quite a bit of range. Yelp recently ranked the 50 most-saved attractions in NYC, using saves, ratings, and attraction categories to capture where New Yorkers and visitors are most eager to go next. 🗽
Manhattan swept the top 10, led by Chelsea Market, the High Line, the Met and MoMA, with Top of the Rock, Smalls Jazz Club, Strand Bookstore, and Kinokuniya also making the cut.
To keep the list citywide, Yelp included 10 attractions from each borough, surfacing some outerborough-favorites like Queens Archery, the New Fulton Fish Market, Fort Wadsworth, and the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art.
I moved to NYC at 22 and found the perfect roommate. She was 70 (Business Insider)
In New York, sometimes the best roommate is the one you least expected. 🏠
A 22-year-old man who moved to the city for work found a short-term rental with a 70-year-old woman named Aleyda after struggling to find a safe, affordable place.
The arrangement came with house rules, home-cooked meals, and a roommate who often had a busier social life than he did.
He eventually moved into an East Village apartment with some friends, but said living with Aleyda gave him stability, comfort, and a very New York introduction to saying yes to unusual opportunities.
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New Yorkers can’t stop lining up for this sushi (New York Times)
The city’s hottest dinner reservation might be the 8pm discount sushi line. 🍣 New Yorkers are lining up at East Asian grocery chains like Ten Ichi Mart, Hashi Market, Sakura Market, and Genkiya Mart for nightly discounts on sushi, sashimi, and onigiri.
At some stores, fresh sushi goes 50% off after 8pm, turning a $12 salmon roll into a $6 bargain before unsold items are tossed at closing.
The crowds move fast, and regulars recommend getting there early for the best selection.
New York will compost and target dog waste in the city (New York Times)
City Hall is taking New York’s sidewalk minefield seriously. The City Council passed a package of bills known as the Safe and Clean Outdoor Ownership Practices (“SCOOP”) Act aimed at cutting down on dog waste in parks and on sidewalks. 🐶
The package includes new signage, education campaigns, and attachments for at least 1,200 public trash cans to hold dog-waste bags.
Another proposal — put forward by Zola Co-CEO and Tech:NYC board member Rachel Jarrett, and Zola Head of Merchandising and Tech:NYC Grid Fellow Connie Cyran — argues that the city should set up dedicated dog waste dispensers with compostable bags which can be routed to specialized composting facilities, rather than sending millions of plastic poop bags to landfills every year.
Watch your step this weekend, New York! 🐕
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