Googler: NYC Needs Stanford and Stanford Needs NYC
Serge Kassardjian (picture above in NYC) works at Google as a Strategic Partner Development in Mobile Commerce.
New York City is in a unique situation right now. It’s changing.
Several industries are core to New York: media, financial services, advertising, fashion, sports and social driven business (i.e. restaurants, nightlife), to name a few. Technology is influencing all these industries and altering the way we think about and interact with them.
I moved to New York two and a half years ago when the technology industry here was still relatively small, but I could see the entrepreneurial spirit inherent to building high growth technology companies starting to gain momentum. NYC industries were ripe for disruption and improvement through technology.
Fast forward to 2011. Some of the most promising technology companies in fashion (Gilt groupe), financial services (Kickstarter), social (foursquare) and advertising (Buddy Media) are coming out of New York. Google bought a 2.9M square foot building in the old Port Authority building, which also happens to house several prominent start-ups and venture capital firms. Mayor Bloomberg has taken it upon his office to incentivize technology innovation in the city through multiple programs. The technology community in New York is growing quickly and I’m thankful and proud to be a part of it.
When I heard that Stanford is submitting a proposal for a new engineering and sciences campus on Roosevelt Island, I was thrilled. Stanford embodies the entrepreneurial energy that is responsible for creating Silicon Valley and its biggest companies. New York needs this energy and the potential of these incredible technology resources.
On the other hand, it’s important for Stanford to be a part of the innovation that is happening here in New York. Yesterday’s semiconductor, enterprise software and hardware businesses are tomorrow’s software businesses that will transform industries like media, finance and advertising. These companies cannot exist anywhere but New York. They need technology to realize their full potential.
It’s an important and mutually beneficial relationship that needs to happen now as the technology market evolves in fundamental ways that will impact the next ten to twenty years and beyond. The United States’ ability to influence these industries through technology innovation is even more critical in this era of globalization.
New York needs Stanford and Stanford needs New York. I implore all Stanford alums, students and friends who have any association with NYC to spread the word.
Ever since I was 18, I’ve been a proud member of the Stanford community. Its influence has profoundly affected me for two reasons: 1) exposure to amazing friends and mentors and their energy to think differently while trying to change the world 2) a vibrant startup community full of people passionate about business and engineering, two disciplines that are increasingly becoming blurred.
If Stanford is successful in its bid to establish roots in NYC, the Big Apple will experience both of these for itself, making the best city in the world that much better and well positioned for the opportunity that lies ahead.
-Serge Kassardjian, BS 2002, MS 2003, President Class of 2002, Stanford Alumni Association Board of Director Emeritus
Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Co-founders of Google, discuss Stanford’s tradition of innovation.
“I don’t think I’ve seen the same kind of scale in research and commercialization pretty much anywhere outside of Stanford…and I think this is a really great opportunity for both the city as well as Stanford University to broaden its horizons.” - Sergey Brin, Co-founder Google
