Monday, April 13, 2026
In today’s digest, a floating pool in the East River, NYC eyes city-run grocery stores, and who’s using AI the most. 🤖💼
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The city is getting into the grocery business, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani announcing the first municipally run store will open at La Marqueta in East Harlem by the end of 2027. 🛒 (CBS News)
The plan is to open one city-run grocery store in each borough by 2029, partnering with private operators on pricing and labor.
Officials are pitching it as a way to tackle food affordability, especially in neighborhoods where a majority of households struggle to cover basic needs.
The planned floating pool in the East River (aka “+POOL”) is inching forward, but only after clearing an intense health department checklist. 🏊 (Gothamist)
A smaller version will be deployed this summer for a “test run,” with no swimmers allowed until safety questions are resolved.
Regulators are focused on water quality risks — including nearby sewage discharge — before giving the green light for a potential 2027 opening.
March Madness is over, and the winner is… a cleanup of illegal dumping in Soundview? 🧹 (Patch)
The city held its first “Mayor’s Municipal Madness,” a bracket-style competition of local infrastructure fixes, and the Soundview cleanup won the final matchup with 67.7% of the vote.
Not to worry, the runner-up — resurfacing a basketball court in Morrisania — is expected to be finished this weekend.
In other reading:
What you need to know about the newest L’Industrie location in Little Italy (Time Out New York)
An intimate portrait of Basquiat’s early life returns to Brooklyn (Artnet)
From hot dogs to herring: Where to eat on the Upper West Side right now (Gothamist)
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Leaders Are Adopting AI Faster Than Everyone Else
A new Gallup survey suggests AI use at work is picking up steam. 🤖
Half of Americans now say they use AI on the job, but the people using it most often are higher up the org chart.
The survey also dug into why non-users have not adopted the technology in their day-to-day.
Let’s dive in. 👉
💼 The bosses are out in front: In workplaces where AI tools are available, leaders are using them more often than everyone else.
67% of leaders in AI-enabled organizations use AI daily or a few times a week, compared with 52% of managers, 50% of project managers, and 46% of individual contributors.
This likely reflects the kinds of tasks leaders do most: writing, planning, analysis, and communication, all areas where mainstream AI tools fit neatly into existing desk-based work.
Just handing people AI tools is not enough:
🤝 Fit matters: Among workers whose organizations offer AI tools, frequent use is much higher among those who strongly agree the tools work well with existing systems and processes (88% vs. 55%).
🤖 Manager support matters too: Over three-quarters of workers who strongly agree their manager supports AI use are frequent users, compared with 44% of those who do not strongly agree.
🎯 Clear policies help: 68% of workers who strongly agree their organization has clear guidelines are frequent AI users, compared with 47% of those who don’t.
⚠️ Why some workers are holding out:
Gallup found 46% of non-users said they prefer doing work the way it is currently done, while 43% cited data privacy, security, and compliance concerns.
Ethics and usefulness are even bigger dividing lines: 43% of non-users said they are ethically opposed to using AI, and 39% said they do not believe it can help with their work.
🚀 TL;DR: Companies and leaders that get the most out of AI will be the ones that make it part of everyday workflows, train managers to champion it, and answer workers’ concerns directly instead of assuming adoption will happen on its own.
Be part of the convo: Join us on April 23 for our next NYC AI Demos with Pensar and Two Trees at the Refinery at Domino, where we’ll showcase AI solutions powering the startup stack. Register here.
In other reading:
What your AI knows about you (Wall Street Journal)
AI development won’t hit a wall anytime soon — here’s why (MIT Technology Review)
Google brings vertical tabs and improved reading mode to Chrome (MacRumors)
Chapter, an NYC-based Medicare navigation platform, raised $100 million in Series E funding. Generation Investment Management led the round and was joined by Fifth Down Capital, 8VC, and existing investors.
Click Therapeutics, an NYC-based developer of digital therapeutics for medical needs, raised $50 million in Series D funding from Boehringer Ingelheim.
Packz, an NYC-based gamified collectibles platform, raised $10.7 million from Makers Fund, The Raine Group, Courtside Ventures, Sharp Alpha Advisors, and RiverPark Ventures.
Ultralight, an NYC-based EHR startup focused on longevity and personalized medicine clinics, raised $9.3 million in pre-seed and seed funding. The General Partnership led the round, joined by Wisdom Ventures, Anthemis, and Emerson Collective.
Featured event:
⭐ April 23: NYC AI Demos, from Tech:NYC, Pensar, and Two Trees, this month spotlighting the AI startup stack with demos from Justworks, Cognition, Norm Ai, and more to be announced soon. Register here.
Other great events:
April 16: nextNYC VC/Founder Coffee Meetup, an opportunity to connect with local VCs as well as other founders at the beginning of their startup journey. Register here.
April 16: Founder Poker Night, for founders to play some cards and meet other founders who are also building. Register here.
April 16: NYC Founders Breakfast + Pitch Workshop, an exclusive breakfast for venture-backed founders building in NYC who want stronger fundraising positioning and meaningful peer connection. Register here.
April 16: Construction Robotics Summit: From Dirt to Data, bringing together the builders, technologists, and decision-makers advancing robotics across the built environment. Register here.
April 17: Founder Breakfast, a curated breakfast for VC-backed founders, ideally at Seed and Series A building in AI. Register here.
April 18: Enterprise Agent Jam NYC, where you’ll have six hours to build an AI agent from scratch. Register here.
April 20: Communicating Your Value with Confidence, an interactive workshop where you’ll learn a practical, repeatable approach to communicating your value with clarity and confidence. Register here.
April 21: Privacy’s Defender at Civic Hall, a conversation between Tech:NYC President and CEO Julie Samuels and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) Executive Director Cindy Cohn to discuss Cindy's new book, Privacy Defender. The book chronicles Cindy's 30-year battle to protect the right to digital privacy. Register here.
April 23: Founder Unfriendly with Charlie O'Donnell at Newlab, an afternoon exploring the hard truths about fundraising, as part of the launch of Charlie O’Donnell's book, Founder Unfriendly: What Investors Won’t Tell You About Getting Funded. Register here.
April 23: Raising Your Seed Round: How Investors Actually Decide If You're a Good Bet. Register here.
April 23: Founder Finance Night: Poker and a Free Second Opinion (Post Tax Day), for founders who want to play some poker, and startup or SMB founders who want a gut check on their finances. Register here.
April 23: Tech-Driven, Human-Centered: Leading Through Disruption, a panel discussion at the Columbia School of Professional Studies where leaders from technology and business will discuss what innovations demand of managers and teams in real time. Register here.
April 24: Tech Happy Hour, a chance to connect with the NYC tech and startup community to discover shared interests, explore areas for collaboration, and find your next co-founder or key hire. Register here.
April 27: NYC Fintech Coffee, for fintech founders, investors, and enthusiasts to gather around and talk everything fintech. Register here.
April 28: Rillet Recon, a full-day program on the future of AI-native finance. Register here.
April 30: Multi-Agent Hackathon, a hackathon to explore agents that observe a shared space, self-select what they care about, and coordinate without a manager. Register here.
April 30: Fintech Takes 3v3 Classic @ NY Fintech Week, a friendly 3v3 competition complete with good conversation afterwards. Register here.
April 30: The Executive Night, a gathering of ~30 Series A+ founders and investors. Register here.
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