Visionaries NYC Alumni Launch Event

​Ask any founder who's built here and they'll tell you the same thing: New York is a lot. From the cost to the pace to the competition, it can be a city that pushes you to the limit. However, though it is one of the hardest cities in the world to build a startup, it is also one of the most rewarding.

​Join us for an evening of real conversation. We're bringing together the builders, backers, and ecosystem leaders who know what building here actually looks like. The limits, the breakthroughs, and the magic that makes it worth it.

​Visionaries NYC Alumni Network is a budding ecosystem for founders building in New York City and have graduated from an NYCEDC-affiliated entrepreneurial program. This is the official launch event that will convene dozens of founders, ecosystem leaders, and investors to spark real connections, surface real challenges, and celebrate the founders doing the work in one of the world's most demanding startup ecosystems.

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​Program Overview

​The Visionaries NYC Alumni Network is a post-program alumni community for early stage entrepreneurs who have completed a Visible Hands or NYCEDC program. The launch event on June 30th is the public debut of the network which will, for the first time, formally gather the entrepreneurs along with community members to celebrate the curation of this platform. The idea behind the network is that a founder’s growth does not end when a program ends and we, in collaboration with NYCEDC and Main Street Assembly, are dedicated to supporting the continued growth of NYC-based entrepreneurs and small businesses.

​Event Description  

​Ask any founder who's built here and they'll tell you the same thing: New York is a lot. From the cost to the pace to the competition, it can be a city that pushes you to the limit. However, though it is one of the hardest cities in the world to build a startup, it is also one of the most rewarding.

​Join us for an evening of real conversation. We're bringing together the builders, backers, and ecosystem leaders who know what building here actually looks like. The limits, the breakthroughs, and the magic that makes it worth it.

​The event will be featuring:

​Lisa Lewin, Partner & CEO-in-Residence at Primary Venture Partners, with over 25 years as a strategist and operating executive. She was most recently CEO of General Assembly, which has built accessible tech career pathways for over one million people and diverse talent pipelines for hundreds of leading employers. Prior to that, she spent a decade driving digital transformation at Pearson and McGraw-Hill, and has co-founded several companies including Ethical Ventures. She also co-founded the Factor Fellowship, partnering with MLT to run a 16-week program covering startup operations, mindset, and entrepreneurship for NYC talent.

​Dylan Itzikowitz, Partner at South Park Commons based in New York City, formerly an early-stage investing Principal at Expa in NYC, where he cultivated the startup community through meetups, dinners, and events reaching thousands of people. Prior to that, he spent several years in the UK as an investor at Founders Factory, a pre-seed fund and venture studio in London. He co-founded The Forward Movement, a social innovation initiative that earned a national leadership award for improving accessibility.

​Moderator: Jaime-Jin Lewis is the Founder and CEO of Wiggle Room, a technology platform built to modernize and sustain New York City's family childcare ecosystem. Wiggle Room brings the city's family childcare providers onto a central marketplace, streamlines their business operations, and connects them with parents and employers. Jaime-Jin has been recognized by Forbes on their Next 1000 list, named an Echoing Green Fellow, and selected as a Camelback Ventures Fellow for her work at the intersection of tech and care infrastructure. She is also a David Prize winner and has been named among the Care100 Most Influential People in Care. Jaime-Jin is a connector and voice in the NYC startup ecosystem, and brings both the founder and investor lens to her work as moderator.

​Visionaries NYC Alumni Network is launched in collaboration with NYCEDC, Visible Hands, and Main Street Assembly.