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New digital democracy tools for AI — MCPs for the Charter/Laws, Council, the City Record, and Checkbook
New Amsterdam’s Open Government History The argument about who controls what the public knows about its government is not a recent one in New York. It goes back to 1649. That year, Adriaen van der Donck — a Dutch lawyer and president of the Nine Men, the colonists’ advisory body to Director-General Stuyvesant — went…
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NYC Open Data Week 2026 in Review
NYC Open Data Week 2026 marked a decade of celebrating public data in New York City! Over 6,000 participants joined our biggest festival yet. Read the recap!
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Dear Mayor-Elect Mamdani, here are 8 gov tech ideas for your first 100 days.
On Dec 19, the NYC Public Interest Tech Pop-up hosted BetaNYC and a selected group of community leaders on their visions for the next administration. Tune into the conversation via YouTube. Congratulations Mayor-Elect Mamdani, We’re here to help you build digital services with your neighbors, empower OTI, grow NYC Digital Service, modernize 311 and data…
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Update on NYC’s Internet Master Plan, City Council Edition
“Just as past generations built systems for clean water and electricity, this Internet Master Plan makes connectivity a public good—fast, fair, and universal,” said Noel Hidalgo, Executive Director of BetaNYC. “It’s the foundation for an equitable, connected future.” Yesterday, the New York City Council passed an updated Internet Master Plan law. If signed by the…
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Welcoming BetaNYC’s Fall 2025 Civic Innovation Fellows
Meet BetaNYC’s Fall 2025 Civic Innovation Fellows!
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STATEMENT ON NYPD SURVEILLANCE EXPANSION IN NYCHA THROUGH PUBLIC BROADBAND
“Big Apple Connect should close the digital divide, not open the door to unchecked NYPD surveillance. Linking NYCHA camera feeds to the Domain Awareness System without POST Act transparency or resident input erodes trust and threatens civil liberties. Public housing residents deserve safety and privacy — not a trade-off between the two.”– Noel Hidalgo, Executive…
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Scaling Impact: What’s Next for the Civic Innovation Fellowship and Mapping for Equity
What’s Going on with the Civic Innovation Fellowship? We’ve been awarded funding from the Siegel Family Endowment and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to explore how to deepen and scale the Civic Innovation Fellowship. This planning year will focus on understanding how we can grow the program into a workforce development pipeline that better supports…
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NYC Open Data Week 2025 in Review
The ninth annual NYC Open Data Week festival was one for the books!
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Testimony to NYC Council’s Hearing on the Internet Master Plan
To: NYC Council – Committee on TechnologyFrom: Noel Hidalgo, Executive Director of BetaNYCRe: Internet Master Plan Hearing Tuesday, 29 April 2025 Dear Chair Gutiérrez, fellow Council Members, and Staff, First, digital literacy must be viewed as critical infrastructure. Introduction BetaNYC is a public interest technology non-profit dedicated to helping New Yorkers access information and use technology. …
