Wednesday, September 30, 2026
In today’s digest, the World Cup economic numbers are in, NYC’s second-home tax hits a legal snag, and AI 🤝 HR.
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NYC is taking an economic victory lap from the World Cup. The month-long tournament generated an estimated $2 billion for the city’s economy and $3.5 billion across the New York-New Jersey region, according to preliminary estimates. ⚽ (PIX 11)
About $1.3 billion came from direct visitor and operational spending, supporting more than 12,000 jobs across hospitality, food service, retail and other industries.
The $3.5 billion regional impact is impressive considering earlier projections that the tournament would only bring in $3.3 billion.
A Staten Island judge has ordered NYC to start over on its rollout of the new tax on high-end second homes, ruling that the city’s process for identifying who owes the tax was flawed. 🏠 (New York Times)
The city quickly appealed, putting the ruling on hold for now as it tries to keep the tax on track for this fiscal year.
The tax is expected to raise roughly $500 million annually and applies to certain second homes valued above $1 million for condos and co-ops and $5 million for one- to three-family homes.
Greenpoint, emphasis on the “G.” Greenpoint businesses can breathe easier this holiday season, as the MTA has scrapped three planned December weekend shutdowns of the G train after crews finished critical tunnel repairs ahead of schedule. 🚇 (Secret NYC)
The change comes after a Shop Small Greenpoint report found most surveyed businesses saw sales fall at least 22% during previous shutdown weekends, with 39% cutting staff shifts or hours.
In other reading:
Why New York City has become an AI Mecca (The City Reporter)
Largest ‘Trick-or-Streets’ unveiled for NYC: Things to know (PIX 11)
This downtown food fair is serving $10 lunches from 10 great NYC restaurants (Time Out New York)
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AI Reshapes the Hiring Playbook
As AI becomes a workplace priority, a new survey suggests adoption in HR is moving faster than the strategies, training, and guardrails needed to manage it.
The report surveyed 204 HR professionals, 73% of whom held leadership positions. Here’s what to know:
AI is already a priority: 77% of respondents said AI adoption is at least a moderate priority for their HR department, rising to 84% when asked about their companies overall. HR, IT, and executive leadership are all heavily involved in deployment. 🤖
But only 45% rated their HR department’s participation in their company’s AI transformation as high or very high.
And while 13% said HR discusses AI strategy with employees weekly, 29% said their HR teams never do.
Where AI shows up: 57% of HR departments are prioritizing AI for talent acquisition, recruitment, and hiring, second only to internal communications. 💬
AI is used most for sourcing candidates (64%), screening (51%), and communicating with applicants (40%); just 5% reported using it to make hiring decisions.
🔄 The hiring process may be changing, too: With AI making résumés and cover letters easier to produce, some employers are putting more emphasis on skills and practical assessments rather than relying solely on employment history.
That could mean assessing how candidates actually perform tasks, interact with colleagues, exercise judgment, and use AI — not simply what appears on a résumé.
LinkedIn has responded to the deluge of apps with its own AI: Its Hiring Assistant helps recruiters sort applications and identify candidates, and LinkedIn says the tool will not automatically reject applicants.
The guardrails are catching up: 43% of HR departments have an AI governance framework in place and another 29% are building one, while 17% of respondents don’t know whether their department has one.
Just 26% said their organizations have processes to check AI systems for bias, while another 29% are building them.
Training is the next hurdle: Over half of HR departments are pursuing AI courses and 48% are using experimentation to upskill employees, but 20% haven’t pursued any AI upskilling at all. 🎓
The takeaway: Companies may be eager to put AI to work, but HR teams are still building the governance, training, and processes needed to increase broader adoption.
In other reading:
A collection of HBR’s most insightful research on AI at work (HBR)
LinkedIn’s CEO on how AI is reshaping hiring (Wall Street Journal)
Who’s buying ChatGPT ads? I analyzed 15K advertisers (Bloomberry)
Elio Mortgage, an NYC-based AI-native mortgage company, raised $5.1 million in pre-seed funding. Motive Partners and Social Leverage led the round.
The Startup Station is now accepting applications for Speed Pitch, its October 21 event in New York City that matches pre-seed through Series A founders with VC investors based on sector, stage, and check size. Selected founders get three guaranteed 1:1 investor meetings, plus investor-readiness training, legal office hours, and other resources. Apply here.
The Environmental Tech Lab is accepting applications from early- and growth-stage companies with technologies that could help address challenges facing NYC’s water and wastewater network. The public-private initiative from the NYC Department of Environmental Protection and Partnership Fund for New York City will focus this year on planning and field operations, infrastructure failure prevention, and resource and energy recovery. Apply here by October 23; an applicant information session will be held October 8.
Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator is accepting applications for its Winter 2027 Cohort. The four-month program provides early-stage startups with $150,000 in seed capital, access to New York City’s largest mentor network, hands-on operational support, and over $1 million in partner perks and cloud credits. Apply here by November 2.
Blue Ridge Labs is accepting applications for its 2027 Catalyst cohort, a 16-week Robin Hood accelerator program for pre-seed startups and early-stage tech nonprofits using software, AI, and data to expand economic mobility for low-income New Yorkers. Selected ventures receive $100,000 in investment or grant funding, plus tailored coaching in product, finance, sales, marketing, and engineering. Apply here by November 13.
Techstars New York City Accelerator is accepting applications for its upcoming hybrid cohort. The program backs founders reshaping health, climate, AI/ML, fintech, enterprise SaaS, and beyond by leveraging NYC’s unmatched ecosystem to help startups reach product-market fit. Selected startups receive $220,000 in funding and tailored mentorship. Apply here by November 18.
CUNY 2x Tech’s NYC Tech Talent Pipeline Residency Program, connecting high-potential Computer Systems Technology students with NYC-based employers for 10-week, full-time internships focused on software engineering and data analytics. Employers can express interest here.
The NYC Tech Talent Pipeline Residency Program is also looking for volunteers to conduct mock technical interviews for students pursuing tech careers. Volunteers can schedule interviews flexibly, with resources provided to help students prepare for internships and entry-level roles. Sign up here.
HubSpot’s How You Hustle, where you and your business could be featured and receive free press exposure to their 1.5 million subscribers. Apply here.
Have startup news worth sharing? Founder Gazette is looking for startup news and founder stories from the tech community. Submit your company updates, milestones, and founder stories through its submissions page for a chance to be featured.
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