Branding Tech in New York: Key Findings
- New York’s tech sector employs over 355,000 people and has added 44,000+ jobs since 2019, but lacked a cohesive brand identity.
- The campaign balanced creativity, emotion, and evidence to resonate with founders, investors, corporates, and academia alike.
- Obviously NYC launched during Tech Week with digital tools and events designed to make the initiative feel community-owned.
More cities are acting like brands, and it’s certainly paying off.
The entertainment industry is on track to hit $3.5 trillion by 2029, according to PwC’s latest Global Entertainment & Media Outlook.
That kind of growth is reshaping not just what we watch or read, but where companies choose to build.
New York’s tech sector is already worth $649 billion, yet until recently, it didn’t have a brand that captured its full scale or creative force.
That changed when Tech:NYC, the nonprofit bringing together founders, investors, and policymakers to grow the city’s tech economy, teamed up with branding agency Red Antler to launch Obviously NYC.
Together, they created a campaign that gives New York’s tech sector a unified identity. It’s built around what truly sets the city apart: its energy, diversity, and unmatched network.
In an exclusive interview with DesignRush, Julie Samuels, president and CEO of Tech:NYC, shared how the organization partnered with branding agency Red Antler.
The goal? To turn the initiative into both a proof point and a rallying cry for New York’s tech community.
Who is Julie Samuels?
Julie Samuels is the President and CEO of Tech:NYC, where she leads the city’s tech community and advocates for its growth. She’s also a Partner at Hangar, building companies that tackle public sector challenges. Her path has taken her from journalism to law to tech policy. She ran Engine, a nonprofit for startups, worked at the Electronic Frontier Foundation fighting patent abuse, and has even testified before Congress on technology issues.
Recognized as one of Crain’s 40 Under 40 and one of New York’s 50 Most Powerful Women, Samuels continues to shape how innovation and policy intersect in the city she calls home.
Why NYC Needed a Tech Brand
New York’s tech sector is massive, employing over 355,000 people and adding 44,000 jobs since 2019, according to Samuels.
But until recently, it lacked a brand that tied all of that growth together.
For Tech:NYC, the organization representing the city’s innovation economy, the absence was clear: the sector had scale, but it didn’t yet have a story.
“With the Obviously NYC initiative, we wanted to celebrate the phenomenal impact of the tech sector in New York. For us, that meant highlighting its unparalleled advantages,” Samuels says.
“The reality is NYC’s tech community is founded on collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and shared success, and we wanted the campaign to reflect that.”
At its core, the effort was about creating one unified voice for the city’s tech community, with the goal of both recognizing achievements and fueling what comes next.
How Red Antler Turned Strategy Into Story
From the very beginning, the work with Red Antler started with strategy at the center.
Weekly sessions mapped out the key themes and messages that would resonate with founders, investors, talent, and New Yorkers alike.
The goal was to give New York’s tech community a unifying story that could inspire pride at home and signal credibility to the world.
“One of the earliest choices was to position what became Obviously NYC as both a rallying cry and a proof point,” Samuels explains.
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In practice, that required finding the right mix of creativity, emotion, and proof.
A turning point was agreeing on the name.
“We explored quite a few names, and this captured the city’s momentum and grit. Once that decision was made, everything else began to fall into place,” Samuels says.
How the Campaign Came to Life
Obviously NYC launched during New York Tech Week, when the city’s tech community was most visible and connected.
The campaign integrated across seven events, bringing together nearly 1,000 attendees and positioning the brand as a unifying presence.
The timing and tools weren’t chosen at random. They were designed to make the campaign feel like something the tech community could own: a brand that wasn’t talking at New Yorkers, but built with them.
“To make the initiative both inspiring and actionable, we built in clear entry points for engagement,” Samuels says.
One of those tools was a digital badge that startups, investors, and organizations could request to show their pride in building in New York. Within weeks, almost 200 had been requested.
“From the very beginning, we wanted founders and teams to see themselves reflected in it. It wasn’t about a generic promise. It was about showing what already makes this ecosystem different,” Samuels adds.
Speaking to Founders, Investors, and Corporates
Obviously NYC had to resonate with multiple audiences at once: founders, investors, corporates, and academia.
Each group had its own priorities: proof of innovation, evidence of growth, or alignment with New York’s creative and cultural influence.
That complexity could have been a challenge, but it became the strength of the campaign.
Positioning the tech sector as both a driver of growth and a mirror of the city’s diversity allowed the campaign to connect broadly without sacrificing authenticity.
“Obviously New York is an initiative we hope will be adopted by the entire tech sector,” Samuels says. “Each audience required its own strategic appeal… But that complexity is what made the initiative so ‘obvious.’”
The Bigger Picture
Obviously NYC is a reminder that New York’s tech story is as much about people as it is about numbers.
Through a mix of strategy, creativity, and authenticity, Tech:NYC and Red Antler turned New York’s energy and ambition into a momentum the world can see.
The goal behind the campaign was pride.
And now, with a unifying voice behind it, New York’s tech sector is positioned to keep growing, keep attracting talent, and keep proving why the city remains one of the world’s most powerful hubs for innovation.
Obviously NYC FAQs
What is Obviously NYC?
Obviously NYC is a branding initiative launched by Tech:NYC in partnership with Red Antler. It gives New York’s tech sector a unified identity to showcase its impact, attract new investment, and rally the community.
Why was the campaign needed?
Despite being one of the largest tech sectors in the world, New York lacked a cohesive story. Obviously NYC was designed to fill that gap, highlighting both the city’s economic strength and its collaborative, diverse community.
Who led the campaign?
The initiative was spearheaded by Tech:NYC under the leadership of Julie Samuels, with creative and strategic execution by branding agency Red Antler.
When did it launch?
The campaign launched during New York Tech Week, integrating across seven major events and engaging nearly 1,000 attendees.
How can startups and companies get involved?
Tech:NYC introduced digital tools like a shareable badge that startups, investors, and organizations can use to show their pride in building in New York.
