50 people in NYC’s tech scene that you need to know

There is no shortage of Best ofs, Top 100s, and Power Lists out there on the Internet. Tech is an industry that loves to celebrate itself.

We wanted to do something a little bit different this time around. We took a look beyond just founders and at the builders, the designers and the characters in our community that make New York City such a great place to live and work in technology and innovation.

These 50 people are charismatic, passionate, and purpose-driven; they’re fearless, fun, smart, creative, and charming; they’re on a mission. They are also people we love spending time with; people who inspire us. They are exactly who you need to know to get the big picture of NYC tech.

While our list is not exhaustive or comprehensive nor perfectly balanced, it’s a great start to navigating the biggest (and best) city in America with some of our favorite people.

If you made it to this list, we look forward meeting you at our inaugural The Next Web Conference USA in New York! Ping TNW Co-founder patrick@thenextweb.com to schedule a face to face meeting at the event.

1) Laurel Touby of Mediabistro (@LaurelTouby)

From spunky twenty-something throwing parties to multi-millionaire media empress, Touby founded and sold Mediabistro for $20 million after 14 years of labor. Maintaining a quirky personality and purple-feathered fashion choices, she is now an investor and advisor to several NYC startups.

2) Matthew Brimer of General Assembly (@Brimer)

Out of the four founders of General Assembly, a company that set the bar for coworking spaces and entrepreneurial education, Brimer is the one everyone knows best. The man about town is wildly intelligent and always well-dressed. His spontaneous dance parties are unmatched, as is his glowing personality.

3-4) Rameet Chawla (@rameet) and Ryan Matzner (@rdm) of Fueled

Donning bowties and one piece short suits, never has there been a pair quite like these two. Two of the brightest business minds in the technology industry, Chawla and Matzner are the Founder and Director of Strategy at Fueled(respectively), an award-winning mobile design and development company that hosts the Fueled Collective, a co-working space comprised of over 25 startups in downtown Manhattan.