NewYorkCity’s

AIAdvantage2025Report|DrivingEconomicGrowth&TechnologicalTransformation2

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

3NYCEDC

-AICollaboration

72Appendix74AppendixA:GlossaryofKeyTerms

74AppendixB:SubsetofNYC-basedNonprofitsand

Think

Tanks

76AppendixC:MethodologyforClassificationofInstructionalPrograms(CIP)Analysis77Appendix

D:NYC-based

Bootcamps

and

Certificate

Programs

with

AI

Integrations

79AppendixE:Endnotes

80Chapter

1:NewYork’sStrategicPositioninAI

14NYCAIStartupandVentureEcosystem

15NYC’s

Broader

Technology

Ecosystem

and

Opportunities

for

Applied

AI

18NYCAIFirmRealEstateLeasing

27WorkingandLearninginNYC’sAIEcosystem

35Chapter2:NYCOccupationsandAIExposure

48Chapter4:Challenges,Concerns,andResponsibleAI58Chapter5:ActionstoUnlockNewYorkCity’sAIPotential

62TableofContentsChapter3:NYCEDC’sFoundationalInvestmentsinNYC’sTechandAIEcosystem52NYCEDC

IntroductoryLetter

4ExecutiveSummary

5Artificialintelligence(AI)israpidlyadvancinganeweraofeconomicgrowthandtechnologicaltransformationonascaleequivalent

to

theriseofpersonalcomputers,theinternet,andtheinformation

age.

AsemergingAIapplicationsauto-generatenewcontent,researchandanalysis,andadditional

softwarecode,virtuallyeveryeconomicsectorisinvestingin

thepromiseofAI

tomassivelyincreaseproductivity.AIisbotha

technology

toolanda

technologysubsectorinandofitself.

SinceChatGPT

wasfirstreleased

to

thepublic

twoyearsago,explosivedemandandinvestmentactivityin

thisemergingtechnologyhasdrivenresearch,applicationandservicedevelopment,infrastructuregrowth,andtalent

resourcing

torapidscale.

ThisAIboomhasalreadyproduced

over2,000AI

startups

based

in

New

YorkCity

and

in2023alone,approximately

one-third

ofventurecapitalraisedbyNYCstartupswasdirected

to

AI.ThegrowthofthistechnologysectorinNYCislargely

areflectionofitsunprecedentedmarketimpactand

scale.McKinseyestimates

thatAIcouldcontribute$13.6trillion

to$22.1trillion

annually

to

the

globaleconomy.i

TheUnitedStatesisattheforefrontofglobalAIadoptionandassuch

theeconomicimpactis

expected

to

be

significant.With

a$1.3trillion

GDP

economy,andmoreFortune500companies

thanany

othercity,NYCisalreadyalivinglaboratoryfortheapplicationof

AI.BecauseofthescaleanddiversityoftheNYCeconomyandthedepthoftheAIindustrybasedhere,NYCisrapidlyemergingasthegloballeaderin

AppliedAI—thecreationandadoptionofAIsolutions

forreal-worldproblemsspecifictoeachofNYC’smanyindustries.New

York

City

Economic

Development

Corporation’s

(NYCEDC)role

is

to

ensure

New

York

City

is

equippedtoleadandthatourworkforceandentrepreneurscanaccess

theopportunitiesAIbringsforaprosperous

future.Since

its

creation

in1991,NYCEDChasfocusedonbuildingamorevibrant,resilientlocaleconomybydiversifyingitsindustrysectors,broadeningNYC’sstrengthinfinancialservicesbygrowingemergingsectorslike

technology,lifesciencesand

thegreeneconomy.RecognizingAIasacriticalforceinshapingthefuture,NYCEDCiscommittedtosecuringNYC’sleadershipinAItobuild

anevenstrongerlocaleconomywhileensuringallNewYorkerscanparticipate.Incompilingthisreportandsetofrecommendations,createentirelynewones.We’vegotastrongtechfoundation.Google,Meta,IBM,Microsoft,Apple,andAmazonhaveopenedacombined6millionsquarefeetofspaceinNewYorkCityinrecentyears.OpenAI,makerof

ChatGPT,

justopenedanofficeintheiconicPuckBuildinginManhattan.Over40,000AI-readyworkers,

1,200active

investors,and

over2,000AI-startups–including35AI

unicorns–already

call

New

YorkCity

home.We’ve

got

the

talent.Since2021,500,000recent

graduates

have

flocked

to

New

York

Cityandanequalnumberareenrolledinouracademicinstitutions.We’veproducedSTEMPhDsthree

timesfasterthantherestofthecountry.AndtheMayorandGovernoraredoublingdownonthe

AItransformation.NYCEDCisworkingwithTech:NYCtolaunchanewbrandingcampaigntospotlightourtechecosystem

andtostandupan“AIAdvisoryCouncil”toguideitsequitablegrowth.We’relaunchingan“AINexus”program

tosuperchargeAIadoption.AndcityagenciesarepilotingAIeducationatourpublicschools,

universities,andlibraries,toequipeveryNewYorkerwiththetoolstothriveinanAI-driveneconomy.

Allof

this,buildingontheMayor’sambitious2023“ArtificialIntelligenceActionPlan,”

whichlaidafoundationforresponsibleandinnovativeuseofAIacrosscitygovernment,andtheGovernor’s2024

“Empire

AI”launch,which

provided$400million

in

funding

to

secure

New

York’s

place

at

the

forefront

ofsupercomputinginfrastructureandinnovation.ThisisNewYorkCity’sAIadvantage,andI’mproudofmyteam’sworkinproducingthiscomprehensivereport.If

you’re

an

AI

founder,researcher,or

investor

ready

to

take

on

the

world,then

New

York

City

isreadyfor

you.Sincerely,Fellow

New

Yorkers,New

York

City

is

the

Applied

AI

capital

of

the

world.Our

economy

isvastanddiverse,withfast-growinglifesciences,greeneconomy,andtechindustriesintersectingourworld-leadingfinanceandculturalsectors.

AndtherearebigAIopportunitiesineveryoneoftheseindustries.NewYorkCityAIstartupsarealreadydevelopingtoolstohelplawyersgrind

through

terabytesofdocuments,clothingretailers

tominimizefabric

waste,andbanks

toissuemicro-loans

tosmallbusinesses.

They’reoptimizingpowerdistributionacrossgreengrids,anddeveloping

tech

thatmightdetectrarecancers

earlierorsynthesizelife-savingdrugsfaster.AIcompanieshereareaugmentingexisting

jobsas

they4

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

5ExecutiveSummary

President&CEO,

NYCEDCAndrewKimballNYCEDCengagedover100globalstakeholdersincludinglarge

corporations,startupfounders,venturecapitalists,nonprofits,

andpublicagenciestoidentifyNYC’seconomicdevelopment

opportunitiesastheyrelatetoAI.Chapter1describes

New

York

City’s

strategic

position

as

a

world-leadingAIecosystem.

Witharobusttalentpoolandleadingacademicinstitutions,abundantaccess

tocapital,anda

thrivingstartupecosystem,NewYorkCityisuniquelypositionedtoleadthe

AI

boom.There

are

more

than360,000people

employed

intechnology

in

New

York

City

and

the

city

is

home

to

over25,000

techstartups.Today

there

are

over40,000workers

in

the

New

York

metroarea

with

AI

skills.New

York

City

is

home

to

over

1,200active

venturecapitalfirmswithAndreessenHorowitz,IndexVentures,Lightspeed,

andSequoiaCapitalallrecentlyexpandinghere.NewYorkCity’sworld-renowneduniversities,includingNewYorkUniversity,ColumbiaUniversity,Cornell

Tech,and

the

City

University

of

New

York(CUNY),

graduated

over87,000AI-ready

degree

holders

from2018to2023.AndAIresearchhubsaresproutingacrossNYCatGoogle,Meta,IBM,

andMicrosoft,theFlatironInstitute,MemorialSloanKetteringCancer

Center,andMountSinai.Chapter2addressestheanticipatedshifttotheworkforcethat

AI

willbring.AstheadoptionofAIreshapesindustries,itisexpected

toredefineexistingoccupationsandorganizationstructures,and

tocreatedemandfornewskillsets.Withsuccessivegenerationsof

improvedAI

technologyandwidespreadavailabilityofAIservices,

industrieswillincreasinglyuseAItocreatenewcontent,research,

anddataanalysis.Finance,realestate,legal,professionalservices,

healthcare,lifesciences,media,andcreativecompaniesarerapidly

leveragingAI

tooptimizeoperations,enhancedecision-making,and

elevatecustomerexperiences.

Toharness

these

toolseffectively,

entirelynewoccupationswillbecreated,spanningeverythingfromspecialized

technicalengineeringpositionsincludingprompt

engineeringrolestocriticalrolesingovernance,ethics,andcompliance,includingAIethicsandcomplianceofficers.WhilesomeoccupationsareexpectedtobedisplacedbyAI,farmore

jobsareexpected

tobeenhanced

throughAIassistance,allowingworkerstocompletetasksmoreefficientlyandwithincreasedproductivity.AccordingtoanAccenturesurveyof500NYC

C-level

executives,97percent

firmly

believe

that

AI

will

yieldanetpositiveimpactonsociety.ii

Whileopinionsvarywidelyonbotheconomicandworkforceimpacts,thenumbersarealllarge.

TheWorldEconomicForumprojectsnet

jobgrowth,includingnew

jobcategoriesresultingfromAIadoption,iii

andMcKinseyprojectsthe

New

York

City

region

will

add200,000net

jobs

by2030

onfactorsincludingadoptionofAIandother

technologicalshifts.ivGoldmanSachsanticipates

thatglobalproductivitywillbeboosted

byanestimatedsevenpercentannuallyovera10-yearperiod.vChapter3outlines

historic

investments

that

NYCEDC,the

CityofNewYork,andtheStateofNewYorkhavemadetoadvancethe

technologysector,manyofwhichnowsupporttheemergenceofAI.TheseincludeprogramsliketheDataScienceInstituteatColumbiaUniversity,CornellTechonRooseveltIsland,theNYCMediaLab,andtheCenterforResponsibleAI,bothatNYU;andkey

infrastructureinvestmentslikeEmpireAI,NYCreates,andtheGreen

CHIPSprograms.Chapter4delvesintothechallenges,concerns,andimportanceofresponsibleAIwhileemphasizing

theneedforclearregulations,

safeguards,andsustainablepractices

tofosterinnovationwhile

mitigatingrisksandensuringequitablesocietalbenefits.Critical

issueshighlightedincludeethics,accountability,privacy,bias,discrimination,andenergyconsumptionassociatedwithAI

developmentanddeployment.Chapter5outlinesadetailedsetofprogramsandobjectivesforNYCEDCandtheCitytosupportNYC’ssmall-andmedium-sizedbusinesses,entrepreneurs,andworkforceinthiscriticalmomentof

transition.TheseprogramsaresetoutinfulldetailinChapter5but

aresummarizedonpage11.With

thestrategicprioritiesoutlinedinNewYorkCity’s

AI

Advantage,

NYCEDCwillworktocultivateaninnovativeandcollaborativeAIecosystem,attractinvestment,prepareNYC’sworkforceforthe

jobs

oftomorrow,andadvanceNYC’sstandingasthepremierglobalhub

forApplied

AI.6

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

7MachineLearningNeural

NetworksLargeLanguageModelsDeepLearningNaturalLanguageProcessingAppliedAIThecreationandadoptionofartificialintelligence(AI)solutions

toaddressreal-worldproblemsandimprovebusinessoutcomes.Somereal-worldexamplesofAppliedAIinclude:customersupportchatbots,weatherpredictionfordisasterpreparedness,legalresearchandcontractanalysis

toidentifyrisksandcompliance,andmarket-trendanalysis

toidentifyconsumerpurchasingbehaviors.ArtificialIntelligence(AI)Amachine-basedsystem

thatcan,foragivensetofhuman-definedobjectives,makepredictions,recommendations,ordecisionsinfluencingrealorvirtualenvironments.Artificialintelligencesystemsusemachine-andhuman-basedinputs

toperceiverealandvirtualenvironments;abstractsuchperceptionsintomodels

throughanalysisinanautomatedmanner;andusemodelinference

toformulateoptionsforinformationoraction.viMachineLearning(ML)Thestudyofcomputeralgorithmsthatimproveautomatically

throughdata,asubcategoryofartificialintelligence.

Thesealgorithmsdifferfromrules-basedprogrammingastheybuildamodelbasedon

trainingdata

tocompletea

taskwithminimalhumanintervention.viiGenerativeAI(GenAI)AnyAIsystemwhoseprimaryfunctionis

togeneratecontent,whichcan

take

theformofcode,text,images,andmore.viiArtificialIntelligence

Definitions

8

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

9ArtificialIntelligenceSource:GoldmanSachsAIPrioritiesfor

NYCEDCand

the

City1.PromoteNYCasaleadinghubforAIinnovation2.CreateandlaunchanAIAdvisoryCouncil3.AdvanceAIadoptionacrosshealthandlifesciences4.Globallymarketincentivesandprogramstoattractandretainavibrant

AIecosystem5.Leveragechallenge-basedprocurementforAIadoptionbyCityagencies6.DevelopprogramstosupporttheadoptionofAIacrossNYCindustries7.SupportunderrepresentedtechfoundersleveragingAIwithresources

theyneedtogrow8.AttractAIeventstoNYCandforgestrategicpartnerships9.Deploythe$40millionNYCCatalystFundtoincludeAI10.Positionthe$50millionGreenlightInnovationFundtosupport

AIinfrastructureneeds11.Supportearly-stageclimatetechcompaniesleveragingnewtechnologies

throughpilotingprogramslikePilotsatBAT12.EmbraceAIopportunitiesthroughNYCEDCprogrammaticinitiatives13.ConnectCUNYstudentswithinternshipopportunitiesatAIstartups14.PilotAIliteracyprogramsacrossNYC’spubliclibraries15.ScaleprogramssupportingfoundationalawarenessofGenAI16.LeverageCivicHallfornewAIliteracyprograms17.SupportwomenlookingtotransitionintotechandAIwithmentorshipanddigitalofficehourswithindustryexperts18.LaunchanAIPolicyLabtosupportAIlearningacrossNYCPublicSchoolsNYCEDC

will

partner

with

Tech:NYC

to

launch

acampaign

thatestablishesNYCas

theglobalhubforAppliedAIbyhighlightingitsrobusttechecosystem,innovativestartups,andgroundbreakingAI

applications.

Throughhigh-profileevents,conferences,

strategicpartnerships,andspeakingengagements,thecampaignwillshowcaseNYC’sleadershipinAI,attracting

top

talent,businesses,andinvestments.Byamplifyinglocalsuccessstoriesandfosteringglobalconnections,theinitiativewilldriveeconomicgrowth,stimulate

jobcreation,andpositionNYCasthe

premierdestinationforAIinnovationandcollaboration,

cementingitsreputationas

theAppliedAIcapitalofthe

world.Marquee2025Initiative:CreateandlaunchanAIAdvisoryCouncilIn

partnership

with

Tech:NYC,NYCEDC

will

create

an

AIAdvisoryCouncilfocusedonprivatesectorgrowth,

innovation,andapplicationsofAI.

Theseambassadors

forNYC’sAIcommunitywilladvisetheCityoninitiativestoensureAIinNYCsupportsthegrowth

ofoureconomyacrossallsectorsandbusinesses

bothlargeandsmall.Goal

1:AdvanceNYC’s

positionasglobal

AppliedAIleaderGoal2:FosternewbusinessformationandpartnershipstobuildadynamicecosystemGoal3:Developadiverse,AI-readyworkforcetopowerthefutureoftheeconomyBasedonresearchandindustryfeedback,

NYCEDC’s

three

AI

priorities

are:

AdvanceNewYorkCity’spositionasthe

globalleaderinAppliedAI

Fosternewbusinesscreationand

partnerships

tobuildadynamicand

prosperousAIecosystem

DevelopadiverseAI-readyworkforceto

powerthefutureof

theeconomyGoal

1:AdvanceNewYorkCity’spositionastheglobalhubofAppliedAIFosterAIinnovationinavibrantentrepreneurial

ecosystemandemphasizeAIasacornerstoneof

NYC’seconomiclandscape

thatfuelssustainable

economicgrowth.Marquee2025Initiative:PromoteNYCasaleadinghubforAIinnovationto

attractcompanyformation,talent,andinvestment,

creating

jobsthatsupportthecity’seconomyArtificialIntelligenceCommitments

forEconomic

Impact10

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

11Goal2:Buildadynamicandprosperoustechecosystemthatsupportssmall-and-medium-sizedbusinessesandentrepreneursNewYorkCitythrivesonsmallbusinessentrepreneurship.OneineightbusinessesinNew

York

City

was

formed

in

the

last

year—about23,400companies.Bybuildingearlyconnections

betweensmall-andmedium-scalebusinessesand

AIinnovators,wecancultivateandproliferateAI

applicationsforlesswell-resourcedsegmentsof

NYC’seconomy.Marquee2025Initiative:DevelopprogramstosupporttheadoptionofAItechnologicaltransformationsacrossNYCindustriesNYCEDCwillreleasearequestforproposals(RFP)to

establish

the“NYC

AI

Nexus.”

The

AI

Nexus

willfacilitatecollaborationsbetweenNYC-basedstartups

andfounderswithNYC’sbusinessestoidentify,build,

andultimatelyadoptAppliedAIsolutionstoensurethe

continuedcompetitivenessofNYC’skeyindustries.Marquee2025Initiative:SupportunderrepresentedNYCtechfounders

leveragingAIwithresourcestheyneedtogrowContinuetofundcohortsoftheFounderFellowship,

withafocusonAIstartupsand

theiruniqueneeds

andprovidethesediverseNYC-basedtech-enabled

founderswithaccesstoresourcesandnetworksto

help

themgrow

theircompanies.Marquee2025Initiative:AttractAIeventstoNYCandforgestrategic

partnershipswitheventorganizersElevateNYC’svisibilityasthepremierhubforApplied

AI,attract

top

talentandinvestments,andsolidify

the

city’sreputationasaleaderinshaping

thefutureofAI

byattractingleadingAIconferencestoNewYorkCity.

Additionally,byforgingstrategicpartnershipswithhomegrowneventorganizersandconferences,wewill

showcaseNYC’sgreatestAIstrengthsand

talents.Goal3:DevelopadiverseAI-readyworkforcetopowerthefutureoftheeconomyPrioritizeworkforcepartnershipsthatofferdiverseNewYorkersthe

necessarytoolsandknowledgetothriveinanAI-driveneconomy.Marquee2025Initiative:ConnectCUNYstudentswithinternshipopportunitiesatAI-firststartupsExpandtheNYCStartupInternshipProgramwithatargetedfocuson

connectingCUNYstudentstodynamicrolesatAI-firststartupswith

placementscommencinginsummer2025.

Thisprogramwillprovide

approximately750CUNYstudentsoverfouryearswithhands-onexperienceandstrengthenthetalentpipelineforNYC’sburgeoningAI

sector.Theprogramwillprovidecurriculumforstudentparticipants

toimproveAIliteracywithagoalof25percentofplacementsintoAI/

ML-enabledstartups.Marquee2025Initiative:PilotAIliteracyprogramsacrossNYCpubliclibrariesPartnerwithNewYork,Brooklyn,andQueensPublicLibrariestopilotnewAIliteracyprograms.NYClibrariesarethetrustedresource

fordigitalliteracy.Throughthisprogram,librarianswillgainadeep

understandingofAI

technologies,equipping

them

to

teachandempoweryouthandotherlibrarypatronstoconfidentlyexploreand

engagewith

thesecutting-edge

tools.12

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

13FounderFellowshipgatheringatNYCEDCWith

over2,000NYC-based

AI

startups

and

over

1,200activeventurecapitalfirms,manyinvesting

inAIcompanies,NYCisalreadyaleaderinAIstartupcreationandventureinvestments.ix

Of

the

approximately300globalAIunicorns—venture-

backedstartupsvaluedatonebilliondollarsormore—35are

in

the

NYC

metro

region.Fifteen

of

theseunicornsreceivedfinancingin2024.NYC

AI

companies

received$21.4billion

in

VCfunding

from2018-2022,up5x

from$3.8billion

inthepreviousfive-yearperiod.NYCAIfirmsbetween2018-2024raised

themostcapitalin

theirSeedandSeriesCrounds,whichspeaks

to

strengthsinNYC’sfundingecosystemforboth

early-stagestartups(Seedrounds)andaccess

tocapitalforcompaniesready

toscale(Series

C).AlleyCorpmadetheirlargestpre-seedcheck

everintoNYC-basedRadicalAIwhoisworking

tochange

thewaymaterialsaredesigned,developed,anddiscovered

throughAIand

appliedresearch.OftheventurecapitaldollarsinvestedinNYC,

someof

thelargestinvestmentswere

toAIstartupsincludingRunway,aleading

AIvideo-

generationplatform,whichraised$141million

SeriesC;Pinecone,avectordatabasestartup,

whichraised$100millionSeriesB;andHugging

Face,apioneeringplatformfor

thesharing,collaboration,andmanagementofmachine

learningmodels,datasets,andapplications

whichraised$235millionSeriesD.AdditionaltopVCdealsforNYCAI/MLcompanies

in2024include

Cyera($300

million),AlphaSense($650million),Altana

Technologies($221million),Cognition($185million),Ramp($150

million),andEvolutionaryScale($142million).1NewYorkCity’sStrategicPositioninAI14

NYC’s

Artificial

Intelligence

Advantage:Driving

Economic

Growth&Technological

Transformation

15NYCAIStartupandVentureEcosystemNYCAIVCFundingandShareofNationwideAIVCFunding,2013-2023$12,00014%$10,00012%$8,00010%$6,0006%$4,0004%$2,0002%$02013

2014

NYC%of

USANYC-MetroAIUnicornIndustrySectorSegmentationInformationTechnology$9.8BBusinessProductsandServices