Trekking NYC with
Startup Fever!
By Lani Chau
Swarnav Pujari, Founder of Touchlight Innovations, says “business ideas are hypotheses needing to be validated.” I felt in my element when I heard that and thought, “great! I’ve done plenty of that previously.”
But that’s only one piece.
My journey in the two days of October break participating in the NYC Entrepreneurship Road Trip, hosted by the Gwen M. Greene Center and the Ain Center for Entrepreneurship, opened my eyes to what it really takes to be your own boss.
Erica Rosen, Director of Marketing for Biolite Energy, showing us the stages of prototyping for their CampStove.
WHAT IS THE NYC START-UP CULTURE?
According to Pujari, New York City investors want to see metrics and results before they want to be your investors. It’s a different mentality in San Francisco, where passion and a big idea can win.
No need to fret if you just have an idea though; New Lab, a multi-disciplinary technology center housed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, has you covered with prototyping help (and a network of VCs, domain experts, and corporate partners included in membership). They welcome you whether you have a team or if you’re a one-person company. New Lab’s interior decorating is also on-point, they bring nature inside to you!
Now I can’t talk about interior decorating without talking about WeWork, a company that designs, builds and operates workspaces for companies from startups to large businesses. As we got off the elevator on their main floor, I was cheerfully greeted by vibrant walls with basketball hoops attached. After taking a few steps further in, we saw adorable furry friends freely roaming around the urban-chic, glass and aluminum office, mingling along with the bustling people.
(By the way – WeWork offers free beer on tap and a free latte/espresso bar for all. I didn’t think I could be any more impressed, until I learned about the way they are utilizing data to humanize work and transform the spaces we work in. Not to mention, WeWork Lab can also help if you are at the idea-seed stage.)
Besides being starstruck by the facilities and the nature of the entrepreneurial spirit there, I also got to learn valuable life lessons directly from the NYC entrepreneurs.
The New Lab building, a community that assists the city’s leading companies working in advanced technologies.
FAVORITE MOMENTS & TAKEAWAYS
We all follow a different timeline – you don’t have to start your own business now (perhaps you just want to join a startup), but it’s important to know your opportunities! I feel that going on this trip is an instance of an opportunity I created for myself.
Have you thought about sustainable living recently? Lani Chau ’19 (MS) is investigating the design of renewable energy systems to enhance the portability and integration of green energy technology into the fabric of everyday living. She recently worked on an electrochemical engineering project at Brookhaven National Laboratory, studying solar water splitting. Lani is currently an MS Technical Entrepreneurship and Management candidate with a concentration in Energy & the Environment.
