The New York City tech boom that has been sustained by developers, educators, and state government continues with Collective Media acquiring 58,000-square-feet at 229 West 43rd Street.
The former New York Times building will house the online advertising network that plans to pay rents in the mid $60s per square foot over a ten year period for the entire eighth floor, in what seems to be another addition to the blooming tech field.
The tech industry in New York City has seen a strong start with 127 new startups founded last year alone. In comparison, its notorious counterparts in Paolo Alto and San Francisco are at 131 new startups which showcases only a small disparity in tech companies choosing to open in New York as opposed to California.
New York City, although relatively new to the tech arena, is not trying to replace Silicon Valley, but rather become a strong confident alternative to the Valley with last year affording over 100 deals in the city profiting at $8.32 billion, coming in second only to the Valley.
“New York is booming—here to stay as a big tech center,” Eric Hippeau, a partner at Lerer Venture, told CNBC. “It’s very different than the Valley. I don’t think the people in New York are trying to replicate what’s going on in the Valley. New York is doing what New York is good at—commerce, media, publishing, enterprise, marketplaces.”
New York City’s success so far in the tech arena is predicted to be fueled by the increasing number of public high schools specializing in technology training that have created or revamped their curriculum to benefit students by working in conjunction with top technology companies. Pathways in Early Technology high school or P-TECH for short, is the current leading example of a 
benchmark that schools are trying to model themselves after.
The school has been visited by and subsequently receiving of praises by President Obama for their efforts in securing young New York City students with technology careers after college, something that is quite desirous in what is still a slightly shaky job market.
Although still in its infancy with only 3-years under its belt, P-TECH offers its students training that is equivalent to college level training and will actually be accepted as just that. Upon completion of the four year Crown Heights school that is partnered with IBM, students would have earned their Associates degree and will undoubtedly be scouted by top tech companies that around New York City, potentially even before completing their Bachelors. The cutting edge concept that will afford eager students the chance at locking in on what is the City’s up and coming field through training, internships, and even mentoring from the IT community, is encouraging several more schools to follow suit.
Governor Cuomo has already ordered 10 more schools be created to resemble the same standards and curriculum as P-TECH to students ranging from six grade through high school. He told the Daily News last spring, “If we are going to meet all the challenges of the 21st century, we must transform not just physical classrooms, but also how we deliver education as a whole.” And added, “This model successfully links the skills we teach in the classroom with the needs of our employers so that economic opportunity is available to all New Yorkers.”
After being encouraged by the government through such educational institutions, the amount of technology companies flocking to New York will likely not show any signs of letting up anytime soon. Going strong for about five-years now, New York State funding for startups came in at almost $3 billion in 2013 with $2.8 billion going into New York City tech companies, according to a report by venture capital database CB Insight via The Daily news reported.