Wednesday, July 30, 2025

July 30, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

Wednesday, July 30, 2025 

In today’s digest, cybersecurity VC dollars, rechargeable food cart generators, and MTA fare hikes. 🚇

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  • Subway and bus fares are expected to increase to $3 on January 4, MTA officials announced today. 🚆 (Gothamist)

    • Commuter trains and tolls on bridges and tunnels will also see price increases.

    • Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road riders will no longer be able to buy round-trip tickets, but will be able to purchase day passes that expire four hours after being activated.

  • Goodbye, noisy and polluting food cart generators! And hello, clean, rechargeable, battery-operated alternatives! The Mayor’s Office on Climate & Environmental Justice has launched an initiative with the Street Vendor Project to explore battery-powered alternatives that could potentially electrify food carts across the city. ⚡ (The CITY)

    • As a part of the first phase of the effort, the city is putting meters on some vendors’ generators to measure their electricity usage and gauge what level of battery power they might need if they switch.

  • Today in data you’ve all been anxiously waiting for: NYC saw 1,622 dog-waste-related calls to 311 in the first half of 2025, up from 1,426 during the same period last year. Meanwhile, only eight people have been ticketed in the past two years for failing to scoop the poop. (TimeOut New York)

    • Check out the top 10 ZIP codes with the most dog poop-related 311 calls (and public dog waste bag dispensers) here.


In other reading:

These days, not only does cybersecurity have to be at the forefront of combating cyber attacks and threats from bad actors, it also has to keep up with AI and LLMs. 🤖 

It’s no surprise, then, that the long-term outlook for cybersecurity is strong, even with a pullback in Q1, according to a new report from PitchBook. 💪

  • Market consolidation and public sector tailwinds are anticipated to create openings for new entrants and specialized solutions.

📊 By the numbers: With DEF CON coming up next week, here’s the scuttlebutt.

  • Cybersecurity spending is estimated to grow at a forward five-year CAGR of 12%, faster than the broader IT category, which is expected to grow at 9% over the same period. 

  • Cybersecurity startups raised $3.3 billion across 182 deals in 2025, flat quarter-over-quarter but deal value is up 6.5% from Q1 2024. 

  • Late-stage VC deals saw the highest share of deal value at nearly 50%.

🗽 As for NYC, dollars continue to flow into the cybersecurity sector.

  • There has been $1 billion VC deal activity across 33 deals year-to-date. In 2024, there was $2.8 billion of VC funding across 56 deals.

  • Cyera had the largest VC deal this year by far with $540 million.

Outside of VC funding, New York continues to prioritize cybersecurity. New legislation announced this week requires municipal corporations and public authorities to report cybersecurity incidents within 72 hours and ransomware payments within 24 hours. (MSN)

  • “This legislation strengthens our response and provides our state’s Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services the necessary information to handle reports of attacks and keep New Yorkers safe,” said New York State Governor Kathy Hochul.

In other reading:

  • DOE alums look to speed energy, climate tech deployments (Axios)

  • Actually, maybe you should talk about politics at work (Inc.)

  • Job-hopping isn’t a red flag anymore — it’s a life strategy (Quartz)

  • Ramp, an NYC-based financial ops platform, raised $500 million in Series E-2 funding at a $22.5 billion valuation. Iconiq led, joined by Sutter Hill Ventures, Lightspeed, T. Rowe Price, GV, Emerson Collective, Operator Collective, and Pinegrove Capital Partners. Return backers include Founders Fund, D1 Capital Partners, GIC, Coatue, Avenir Growth, Thrive Capital, Khosla Ventures, Sands Capital, 8VC, Lux Capital, Altimeter, Definition Capital, 137 Ventures, General Catalyst, and Stripes.

  • Wingspan, an NYC-based payroll platform for managing independent contractors, raised $24 million in Series B funding. Touring Capital led the round and was joined by existing investors Andreessen Horowitz, Long Journey Ventures, Distributed Ventures, Company Ventures, and 186 Ventures.

  • South Park Commons’ Founder Fellowship, which helps entrepreneurs start a venture-scale company by targeting support at the “-1 to 0” idea stage. Apply by August 3 here.

  • NYCEDC has released a request for proposals for a Founder Alumni Program and is seeking operators to build a dynamic, long-term network of program alumni from its entrepreneurship programs. Download the RFP and apply by August 4 here.

  • The third annual Environmental Tech Lab, an accelerated innovation program ensuring that New Yorkers can continue to enjoy safe drinking water and a clean environment as the climate continues to change in unpredictable ways. Apply by August 8 here.

  • Fierce Foundry is hosting a five-week Investment Readiness Bootcamp designed to help early-stage female founders prepare for their first institutional raise in the next 6-18 months. Work closely with fundraising experts, financial strategists, brand builders, and active investors to sharpen your pitch, financials, and growth plan. Apply by August 22 here.

  • Precursor Ventures’ How to Raise a Pre-Seed Bootcamp, for founders new to raising venture capital looking to learn the tools and strategies to navigate a pre-seed fundraising journey. Apply by August 22 here.

  • Yale’s Computer Science Fair on September 19, featuring hundreds of students and tech companies. Companies can apply to attend by August 30 here.

  • See NYC is gathering 150 New Yorkers for a three-day summer camp-style experience to share ideas to build a better New York City. Apply here.

  • Company Ventures is hosting AI Review events, a year-long conversation series on the current and future state of AI. Submit your AI-related event for consideration here.

  • Union Square Ventures’ “usvwork” — a casual coworking day once a month for founders and builders in NYC. Apply here.

  • Forum Ventures is accepting pitches to its Forum for Founders program. The firm is investing in 30+ companies over the next three months, offering $100K and admission to its pre-seed accelerator to provide personalized GTM and sales support. Apply here.

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