Thursday, July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Thursday, July 31, 2025 

In today’s digest, thunderstorms, free Citi Bike passes, and five NYC founders making inroads in the travel and hospitality industry. ✈️

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  • Hopefully you’re reading this newsletter inside! Officials have issued a travel advisory and flood watch for Thursday into Friday afternoon due to thunderstorms and heavy rainfall in the area. ⛈️ (PIX11)

  • Once the rain dries up this weekend, why not go for a bike ride? Every Saturday this August, Citi Bike is giving out free day passes to New Yorkers. 🚴 (Secret NYC)

    • The offer is part of the city’s Summer Streets, where over 400 blocks of city streets will go car-free on Saturdays throughout the season.

    • Check out all the deets on how to snag a free bike pass here.

  • 14th Street is in the early stages of a glow-up. 💅 The city, with $3 million in funding at hand, will conduct a two-year review aimed at making the street more walkable, accessible, and green. (amNY)
     

In other reading:

  • How to look cool in the heat (New York Times)

  • Mayor Adams nixes City Council action, puts Bally's Bronx casino bid back in play (Gothamist)

  • We are looking for our next Dogue cover star (Vogue)

Ahh, summer. A time when beaches fill up, the sun seems to shine brighter, and afternoons get lazy. ☀️ But don’t tell that to the founders of these five travel and hospitality startups below, who are just not slowing down.

  • New York-based travel startups have raised $354.7 million so far this year, according to Crunchbase data, including funding rounds from three of the companies profiled below (Acai Travel, Journey, and SuiteOp). And since 2020, New York-based travel companies have raised $1.3 billion.

As travel (and the weather) heats up in the dog days of summer, we spoke with five founders who are innovating to improve travel and hospitality across the globe. ⚡

Here’s what each had to say about why they launched a tech company in NYC.

🤖 Riccardo Vittoria, cofounder of Acai Travel, which builds agentic AI tools that give travel agents superpowers:

  • “NYC is the perfect balance between great energy, thinkers, tech, and everything else that matters.”

🧑‍💻 Mita Carriman, founder of Adventurely, a global coworking membership that unlocks unlimited access to inspiring workspaces: 

  • “I’m a proud native New Yorker, and New York will always be one of the most exciting cities in the world when it comes to the future of work and hospitality.”

🏨 John Sutton, founder of Journey, which reimagines loyalty for independent hotels, luxury resorts, and private rentals: 

  • “New York was the right fit for Journey for its access to talent, connection to real estate investors (who own hotels), and a rich history as the hub for some of the World’s most amazing hospitality businesses.”

🚶 Aaron Sekhri, cofounder of Le Walk, the world's first location-based immersive travel app. 

  • “New York is the world's most incredible magnet for talent and ambition. Let it fuel you, and take advantage of it. And enjoy the ride!”

🛎️ Jean-Emmanuel Losi, cofounder of SuiteOp, an operations platform for short-term rental property managers and independent hotels.

  • “New York offers unmatched access to hospitality talent, tech professionals, and capital. But more than that, it’s a city of operators — scrappy, resourceful, and driven.”

In other reading:

  • OpenAI launches Study Mode in ChatGPT (TechCrunch)

  • These are the perks workers are looking for right now (and it’s not just to work from home) (Fast Company)

  • Who will pay for the trillion-dollar AI boom? (The Economist)

  • C8 Health, an NYC-based practices implementation platform for health care, raised $12 million in Series A funding. Team8 led the round and was joined by 10D and Vertex Venture Israel.

  • Daloopa, an NYC-based financial data platform, raised $13 million from Pavilion Capital.

  • OffDeal, an NYC-based investment banking platform, raised $12 million in Series A funding. Radical Ventures led, joined by YC, Rebel Fund, and Centre Street Partners.

  • August 1: Tech Pickleball NYC, a growing community of over 2,000 members who come together on Friday mornings for coffee, bagels, pickleball, and good vibes. Register here.

  • August 4: NYC Founders & Funders, an evening designed to connect the city’s most driven entrepreneurs and forward-thinking investors. Register here.

  • August 5: August Tech Rooftop Mixer, for founders, investors, and tech professionals to enjoy an evening of sunset views, conversations, and connections. Register here.

  • August 5: Fashion & Fashion-tech Mixer, where you can connect with fashion-tech innovators and disruptors. Register here.

  • August 6: How to Raise a Pre-Seed Round in 2025, to learn what investors are actually looking for in 2025, how other founders broke through the early-stage wall, and who you should be talking to next whether for advice, feedback, or funding. Register here.

  • August 7: Early-Stage Poolside Founder Event, bringing together early-stage founders for a relaxed poolside hang. Register here.

  • August 7: August Founder Breakfast, a private breakfast for a curated group of pre-seed to series A founders. Register here.

  • August 8: Deep Dive Into LLMs Watch Party, an all-day watch party and discussion of Andrej Karpathy’s video on LLMs. Register here.

  • September 10: NYC Summit, Primary’s annual invite-only conference, bringing together 2,000 top founders, VCs, and LPs. This year’s speakers include Larry Fitzgerald (Arizona Cardinals), David Karp (Tumblr), Toyin Ajayi (Cityblock Health), Lina Khan (FTC), Kareem Amin (Clay), and more. Apply to attend here.

  • September 23: Deep Tech Forum + Startup Showcase in NYC, bringing together deep tech startups from across the globe alongside corporate innovation leaders, investors, and ecosystem partners, for a full day of mainstage sessions and startup exhibitions. Register with promo code TECHNYC for a 20% discount here.

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