Tuesday, June 17, 2025

June 17, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Tuesday, June 17, 2025 

In today’s digest, voting timelines, Juneteenth events in NYC, and the future of work with AI. 🤖

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  • Early voting for the Democratic mayoral race, among others, runs from June 14-22, and Primary Day is June 24. But how long after you cast your ballots will we know the results? (The CITY)

    • The answer: Unofficial, first-choice-only results will be released when the polls close on June 24, but if no candidate wins more than 50% of first-choice votes, the final and official results may not be available until weeks later.

    • A reminder you can find your polling location here. ☑️

    • In related news, mayoral candidate and City Comptroller Brad Lander was arrested by ICE agents at immigration court today after he linked arms with a person that authorities were attempting to detain. He has since been released.

  • In addition to the mayoral candidates, there’s another group creating buzz in New York. Bees are back in NYC this summer, and swarms have been spotted across the city. While bees may look scary, if you see a swarm, best to leave it alone. 🐝 (Gothamist)

    • Bees are actually a crucial part of the city’s ecosystem, and the city has installed “bee hotels” and “bee bunkers” to help at-risk species thrive. 

  • Thursday is Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. Here’s how to mark the day in NYC, ranging from programs to concerts and food festivals. (TimeOut New York)

In other reading:

From the C-suite to customer service, AI is redefining how we operate, hire, and grow. And the latest data makes clear that we’re still in the early innings.

🚨 Big shifts ahead: IBM’s recent CEO Study surveyed 2,000 global executives and the message is loud and clear:

  • New titles, new tools: 54% of CEOs are now hiring for AI-related roles that didn't exist a year ago.

  • All eyes on ROI: 85% expect a positive ROI from AI efficiency investments by 2027.

  • James Bond era: 61% are actively adopting or preparing to scale AI agents across their businesses.

🦵 But here’s the kicker: Most leaders still think of AI adoption as picking the right tools. Not enough are rethinking roles, workflows, and organizational DNA.

“One of the biggest misconceptions I’m seeing is that companies think bringing AI into their workforce starts and ends with adopting new tools,” said Kim Morick, IBM Global HR Technology Practice Leader. “They assume selecting the right platforms is enough, without fully addressing how work, roles and skills need to evolve alongside the technology.”

🧠 CEOs see strategic leadership and specialized talent as essential to make the most of AI:

  • 69% of CEOs say success depends on empowering a broad group of strategic decision-makers.

  • 67% say standing out requires placing the right experts in the right roles with the right incentives.

  • Surveyed CEOs say that 31% of the workforce will require retraining and/or reskilling over the next three years.

🗽 The NYC edge:

  • With 2,000+ AI startups, 40,000 AI-skilled workers, and an AI ecosystem that touches everything from finance to fashion, the city is well-positioned as a global leader in AI.

In other reading:

  • OpenAI is Dorothy: How ‘The Wizard of Oz’ helps explain the dizzying AI landscape (Semafor)

  • The remote work revolution is here to stay (The Hill)

  • The 39 definitive rules of office fashion (Washington Post)

  • Extend, an NYC-based document processing platform, raised $17 million in combined seed and Series A funding from Innovation Endeavors, YC, and Character VC.

  • Nabla, an NYC-based clinical AI assistant, raised $70 million in Series C funding. HV Capital led the round and was joined by Highland Europe, DST Global, and existing investors Cathay Innovation and Tony Fadell’s Build Collective.

  • June 18: AI Show Not Tell — Ditch The Deck, a social meet-up curated for NYC-area technologists, founders, developers, and investors. Register here.

  • June 18: HackwithNewYork, an eight-hour hackathon bringing together the brightest minds in tech, creativity, and innovation. Register here.

  • June 19: AI Edge: Prompt Gauntlet: Battle Royale, a chance to sharpen your AI prompt-engineering skills while competing head-to-head with others. Register here.

  • June 20: NYC Tech Night, to connect with fellow tech enthusiasts, share ideas, and explore the latest developments in agentic AI. Register here.

  • June 20: Tech Pickleball NYC, bringing the NYC tech community together in a fun and casual format and to bond over a shared passion for Pickleball. Register here.

  • June 24: NY Enterprise Tech Meetup: AI-Powered Hypergrowth in Healthcare with Adonis & Tennr, to learn firsthand from founders who have navigated it all: product-market fit, go-to-market motion, fundraising, and building with AI. Register here.

  • June 25: Techie Tapas, to give techies a space to network, collaborate, and build community. Register here.

  • June 25-26: Fundraising Strategy & Storytelling, a two-day workshop for early-stage founders to tighten their pitch, refine their deck, and get live feedback on fundraising strategy from top investors and operators. Register with promo code BRDERLESS20 here.

  • June 26: When AI Meets Affordable Housing – Justice Through Code Graduation Showcase, a virtual showcase featuring four affordable housing AI solutions developed by fellows from Columbia’s Justice Through Code program. Register here.



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