A brief dispatch from the nation’s capital. With Covid culture finally defeated in all but the most agoraphobic, mentally ill corners of the internet, the geography of tech has undeniably begun to change. Ground floor, while coastal alternatives like Austin are holding steady, the secluded mountain retreats and tropical beach towns of 2021’s remote work alternate dimension have rapidly emptied (Tulum in shambles, poolside Google “product managers” hit hardest). So where is everyone going? 

Well, at least in terms of the story we’re all telling ourselves, New York City is the clear winner. Everyone has some sloppy “the energy here hits different” tale from America’s center of the universe (myself included (get me drunk and we can talk)). Anecdotally, I know founders are moving there, and building. But the data is a little more ambiguous: while New York rents have absolutely reached insane new heights on account of demand, which implies growth, we’re still blind when it comes to the real population; most of the numbers we’re looking at are from 2022, and they all track a population decline. More recently, cell phone data indicated foot traffic was up in Manhattan, but only to something like 70 percent of what it was in 2019. Bad? I mean it’s not great, but by comparison it’s looking like a golden age. Back on West Coast Best Coast Standard Time, foot traffic in San Francisco’s previously packed downtown hovers at around 30 percent of its pre-pandemic bustle. 

Which brings us to the fascinating question of the city’s alleged “RETVRN.”