Photo: New York Daily News

NYC Hackathon Goes Sandy Themed Since the NYC tech community basically lost their minds during the week without power that was Hurricane Sandy, the theme of this year's Disruptor Cup Hackathon, which kicked off yesterday, will be emergency preparedness, response, and long-term recovery. Started by Craig Hatkoff, cofounder of the Tribeca Film Festival, the Disruptor Cup will run until April 15, when a panel of judges will announce the winner to an audience of angel investors, media, and other tech personalities. Our idea: an app that helps users find the nearest wine store with power during an emergency.

Ashton Kutcher Raking In The Bitcoins Because credit cards, Paypal and checks weren't enough payment options for you, BitPay, one of the largest bitcoin payment processors, has now integrated its bitcoin payment system with Amazon.com so that Amazon can accept the online payment method. Bitcoins are great for users who want to pay for products in a different monetary system such as the Euro, and it is also maintains a smaller online profile. This announcement comes shortly after Ashton Kutcher's A-Grade Investments joined with Ben Davenport and Trace Mayer in another round of seed founding for BitPay.

I'm On A (Rental) Boat So you just saw Life of Pi and now you're inspired to travel across the oceans. There's one problem though; you can't afford a boat. Well new website GetMyBoat.com, which just released its first "post-Alpha version", could be your solution. Think of it as the Airbnb for boats; users can find a range of user-posted boats, from sailboats to yachts, and can rent them directly from the owner for customized rates and hours. Soon you'll be out on your Ang Lee-inspired adventure (tiger not included). Just make sure to return your boat on time, you don't want to get into a Michael Arrington situation.

NetApp Hosts Head Shaving Event For Cancer Computer storage and data management website NetApp will partner with the St. Baldrick's Foundation tomorrow to raise money for child cancer research by having volunteering employees and family members shave their heads. New York Giants player Justin Tuck will also participate this year, the seventh time the company has partnered with St. Baldrick's. Last year NetApp raised $310,000 for the St. Balkdrick's Foundation, and their initial goal for this year is $200,000. How can they top last year's total? One suggestion: shave the neckbeards too.

Birchbox Makes Getting In Shape Less Labor Intensive Birchbox, the website which sends out monthly packages of sample lifestyle and beauty products to its customers, announced a partnership with Women's Health Magazine on Monday to send out a "Tiny Tweaks, Big Results”-themed box, which is being curated by Women’s Health editors. The ourth partnership for Birchbox, the Women's Health box aims, "to deliver smart, simple solutions and actionable advice for women to look and feel their best."

Brooklyn Public Library Saves Us From Librarians Brooklyn Public Library released their new "MY BPL" app on Monday, giving you one more reason not to have to talk to that creepy librarian ever again. The app, available on iOS and Android devices, allows users to search library catalogs, manage their library account, search for local branches, and scan ISBN numbers to search for available copies in the system. The app release is part of BPL's push to increase laptop and eReader availability to Brooklynites, especially in low income neighborhoods.

Senior Tech Center Opens, Saves Us From Our Parents' Tech Problems Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) will launch the nation's first "senior focused technology center", The Senior Planet Exploration Center, tomorrow night alongside a panel discussion on "Closing the Technology Gap for Older Americans." The center, located at 127 West 25th Street, will provide classes and information on how to use computers and other technologies as well as provide more advanced instruction for New York seniors. Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer will be on hand to participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony. Thousands of New York children can now breath a sigh of relief knowing they won't have to help Grandma find her email ever again.

Fab Releases Andy Warhol Brillo Box Pouf In their third high-profile collaboration, art design website Fab announced they will release a newly-designed Andy Warhol Brillo Box, which "pays tribute to the Brillo Box originally designed by Warhol in 1964." The foam stools are now available for pre-sale, and will be officially unveiled April 9 at MOST in Milan.

What about a V-day date at the MakerBot store? Nerd love at its finest.

Your heart-shaped Birchbox. Tired of cellophane-wrapped boxes full of chocolate-flavored fat? On February 7, Birchbox is launching a limited edition V-day box—the "We Heart" Collection. For $36 you can have goodies like nail polish, bobby pins and some mascara product advertised as “triple action,” in case you’re not getting any this year.

Newsreels Tonight at 6 p.m. marks the premier of "MAKERS: Women Who Make America," at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall. This video and broadcast initiative is a collaborative effort between AOL and PBS that aims to communicate stories of revolutionary women who help shape today’s world.

How do you hail? Former Starbucks exec Tom Barr is now on board for the expansion of Hailo, a mobile app that obviates the need to stick your bare leg into the street by hailing a cab for you, into New York City. He'll be serving as President and COO USA. “We now have the senior team, resources, and the investment and corporate partners to deliver our vision of bringing Hailo to New York City, Tokyo, and every street corner in every major city in the world. We have shifted into overdrive,” said Hailo CEO Jay Bregman.

Take your friends/kids/wives to MakerBot MakerBot is launching a series of workshops, classes and lectures for anyone eager to learn the nuances of 3D printing. The company's retail location at 298 Mulberry Street will feature lessons like “Setting Up and Maintaining Your New MakerBot” on Friday nights from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., when your OKCupid inbox looks like this. At $35 per class (this varies depending on which one you attend) space is limited, so register in advance.

America’s Got Hackers As if computer science majors weren’t already the only grads grabbing real jobs with real salaries and real benefits, Readyforce is making it even easier for them. The career network for college students has acquired Umeqo, a platform created and run by MIT students that connects said students with prospective employers. Student groups nationwide can now use Umeqo (for free) to organize career fairs, create events, track RSVPs and share resumes with companies that would generally prefer to only hire from a pool of top-tier tech school graduates.

Your couch as front row at Fashion Week. For everyone still mourning the absence of presidential debate drinking games, there is now a classier cause for belligerence. From February 7 to 14, IMG Fashion and Rightster will be delivering live streams of all Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week shows at Lincoln Center at this site and via Facebook. Title sponsor Mercedes-Benz is joined in sponsorship by companies like Maybelline New York, TRESemmé, Style Network New York Times, Women's Wear Daily and Getty Images, but the real winners here are the alcohol distributors. The official schedule can be found here.

Tapiture adds tastemakers Tapiture is growing big and strong as it leads male-oriented social discovery by helping people buy and share content from all over the web. And by strong, we mean the company is freshly flush with $825,000 in cash. New social media plans, including a mobile app, are currently in the works as part of the site’s expansion. Leo Resig, CEO of Resignation Media and Tapiture Board member said he stands “committed to supporting their effort in becoming the web’s leading male-centric social discovery and sharing site.”

Here's a novel idea for flexing your consumerist impulses on Cyber Monday: organize your shopping by a company's cap table. For Cyber Monday, First Round Capital, which specializes in ecommerce, has set a site that shows off exclusive deals from portfolio companies like Birchbox, Chloe & Isabel, Refinery 29, Hotel Tonight, UrbanSitter, TaskRabbit, DogVacay, One Kings Lane, and more.

Honestly, we're surprised New York techies haven't already set up a buy local site that encourages only shopping at startups for Christmas.

"The real power of [the site]," First Round partner Phineas Barnes told Betabeat, "Is the ability to reach out to the tech community for people who care about the First Round brand." Many of Birchbox's subscribers "are probably not in the tech community, but plenty of people in the tech community would enjoy Birchbox or giving it as a gift," he added by phone during a car trip back into the city.

In a blog post introducing the holiday site, First Round managing director Josh Kopelman noted portfolio companies' experimentation with the ecommerce business model like subscription (Birchbox), curation (Fab), and vertical integration (Warby Parker). "These companies," he wrote, "have now go on to to raise over $350,000,000 in follow-on capital and will be shipping hundreds of thousands of products this holiday season to customers all over the world."

Mr. Kopelman was also careful to note the gifting site "isn't meant to replace our annual holiday video." Considering First Round went the Rebecca Black route last year, does that mean we can expect a "Gangnam Style" parody for 2012? "Maaaaaybe," said Mr. Barnes.

I spy sea salt.

We're barreling toward the holidays, and the city's ecommerce companies are putting on the Ritz accordingly. Yesterday, Etsy announced a Soho store for the holidays; today, Birchbox announced the launch of digital popup Birchbox Home. Discovery commerce: Why should you face have all the fun?

Birchbox Home kicks off with a $58 special edition box, packed with kitchen paraphernalia and fancy food samples. Think cocktail napkins and truffle sea salt. Participating brands include Jonathan Adler, Dean and DeLuca and Paperless Post (another Silicon Alley notable). The home box heralds the arrival of a home store, stocked with stuff from C. Wonder and Stonewall Kitchen.

It's a new playing field for Birchbox, which has stuck with cosmetics thus far. What's not entirely clear is how long this new venture will stick around. It's tagged as a popup on the Birchbox site and we're told it's limited edition, but the announcement is framed so one can imagine it becoming a permanent addition:

“We’re dedicated to helping people discover new products and brands, and the debut of Birchbox Home lets us introduce customers to an entirely new group of designers, brand and products,” said Katia Beauchamp, Co-founder of Birchbox.

Not to mention that selling home decor doesn't require battling against the same level of brand loyalty. (Just try talking your grandmother out of her Elizabeth Arden. Not happening.) Maybe higher conversion rates are on Birchbox’s Christmas list!

It does look tasty.

We don't tend to associate Walmart with either buzzy startup business models or high-end snacks. And yet GigaOm reports the ultimate superstore has launched Goodies, its very own subscription service, devoted to gourmet food samples. Think chocolate souffle and--seriously--kale chips. 

It's the brainchild of in-house innovators WalmartLabs, who previously cooked up a Facebook gift-giving app. Now the company is giving discovery commerce a try--with the added benefit that it's a good way for Walmart to test out the mass appeal of new products. WalmartLabs VP of product Ravi Raj told GigaOm:

“We want to introduce you to new types of food that you haven’t heard of before, not things you’d find at most mainstream stores.”

That sounds downright adventurous. People of Walmart stereotypes aside, could it be it's time to reexamine our priors? Maybe Walmart is more than the cost-cutting, mom-and-pop-plaguing big-box store it's generally considered to be. The company has even made forays into experiments with organic and locally sourced food (though those efforts didn't really seem to catch on with shoppers).

Oh, wait:

Raj said Walmart aims to differentiate itself (and avoid the deadpool) by undercutting rivals with a cheaper price (most other products are about twice as expensive), offering a unique selection of items curated by in-house foodies and rewarding subscribers with a social loyalty program.

Undercutting startups with a cheaper price? Sounds like Walmart, all right.

(Photo: Birchbox)

After acquiring its French competitor JolieBox last month, Birchbox announced a new partnership today with Gwyneth Paltrow's lifestyle site, Goop. The limited edition box, which will be sent out to subscribers this October, will be curated by the team at Goop. Since the box comes with sample-size products, Birchbox will also be offering a special edition online store where users can buy the full size item.

In a press release, Birchbox cofounder Katia Beachamp said:

goop.com is one of our favorite destinations for the best insider tips and finds from around the world. At Birchbox, we are constantly sharing the latest and greatest beauty and lifestyle products, trends and tricks with our customers. Partnering with a brand known for its timeless elegance, savvy recommendations, and knockout style is sure to delight our customers.

Someone has a girl crush on Gwyneth Paltrow.

We get why Birchbox would want to partner with Goop; Ms. Paltrow's name alone is enough to lend legitimacy to the growing startup. But what's in it for Goop? Perhaps reaching out to a younger set of beauty-obsessed women? A spokesperson for Birchbox declined to discuss the details of the partnership.

Cliche? Yes. Do we care? No. (Photo: flickr.com/terrazzo

Birchbox now has a beachhead in the city of lights. The locally based subscription service--which, last time we checked, claims something like 100,000 members--has acquired a Paris-based lookalike by the name of JolieBox. Anchors away--the ladies of Birchbox are bound abroad.
Said cofounder Katia Beauchamp in the announcement:

"The delight of discovery extends across any border and to any culture.... JolieBox, with their like-minded team and brand ethos, is the absolute perfect partner to build relationships with new customers and brand partners internationally while simultaneously improving distribution as we scale."

What's the French term for "unboxing"? How about, "more eyeshadow samples, please"?

So many eye shadows!

After two years of building a community of makeup nuts around cosmetic content, startup Beautylish is ready to monetize. Today the company launches an ecommerce offering, so fans of their YouTube tutorials need no longer rustle up their new favorite eyeshadow colors via their own Google searches.

Founder Nils Johnson may be best known for his work as an angel investor, putting early cash into companies like Warby Parker and Everlane, but Beautylish is his very own bouncing baby. 24 months in, the site receives more than a million monthly uniques and has almost as many Twitter followers as beauty beast Sephora. Makeup artists active on the site include Billy B., who works with Lady Gaga.

Funding to date stands at just over $2 million, from investors like Ron Conway, Max Levchin, Steve Chen, and Jeremy Stoppelman.

Mr. Johnson said he had to wait to launch the money-making piece of the puzzle until he had built a community to drum up demand. "We recognized that there was a lot of groundwork we needed to lay before just launching a shop," he explained to Betabeat.

"We decided to start around content and education as the first half of the business, to make that discovery piece a lot easier when you get down to the nitty gritty of product," Mr. Johnson explained, elaborating, "Even if you find something in Sephora, you may not realize the ways that you can apply that--does it work as a blush, does it work on the lip, can you use it on eye. What products does it work best with? Is it right for me?"

"It's really giving people a better understanding of that piece before we just move into like the product side of the business. That's why we felt content was so important to build a successful company in this category."

Beauty magazines have long been important arbiters of the discovery process. But, as anyone who's ever spent a fruitless 30 minutes combing the shelves of Duane Reade for that one nail color can attest, actually purchasing the products featured is a different matter entirely.

"Think about where the magazines leave off," he said. "You find something awesome, and now you have to go to page 254 and in fine print they're saying, okay, go to Opening Ceremony on Howard Street to find it. And then you go to Opening Ceremony, and they're like, no we don't have that, because they shot the magazine three months ago and the item's already gone."

"It's not a great experience," he said. To say the least, sir.

There was a moment where the Beautylish team felt they could pursue either high-end advertising or ecommerce as a monetization model. But, explained Mr. Johnson, "it quickly became apparent to us that the products people love don't necessarily have the money to spend on the ads."

"We felt that it was best to be able to provide a great experience end-to-end from the content all the way to receiving the box," he said.

"I think that there's very few successful community sites today," he said. There are social media sites putting up professional content, and community sites focusing on user-generated content, but "I don't think there's an example that's really brought that together in a powerful way, and that's really what we're trying to do."

It's a different model from the one that's so in vogue right now--subscription services. While Birchbox, for example, tackles discovery through samples, Beautylish uses content. And that's no accident. "To charge money for something that is free everywhere else, I question the ability to scale," he said. The other problem, he added, is that beauty buyers tend to be loyal to particular brands. "If people don't have the things that you want, you're not interested."

"Just putting 20 random things in your hand and saying, hey, try all these things--if you have no context for the use of those or why you'd be looking for them in the first place, I don't think it's a very effective way to sell," he said.

"Although they have garnered a lot of attention, you can look at our numbers, we're probably significantly larger in terms of traffic and social following," he claimed.

(Photo: ThielFellowship.org)

App engineers are just like the original sheet music creators...or something. [Wall Street Journal]

San Francisco-based flirting app Skout shut down its forum for 13-17 year olds following a spate of child rapes linked to the app. Question: How did anyone think a location-based flirting app for 13 year olds was a good idea in the first place? [The New York Times]

Patent trolls had an app removed from the iTunes store. Seems like a pretty typical move--except that the app was a speech-to-text tool used by a mute little girl to communicate with her parents. Good going, assholes. [Hacker News]

But here's an app you won't miss: RIP Ping. [AllThingsD]

Meet your 2012 Thiel Fellows. These kids are probably too smart for their own good. [VentureBeat]

Hey Birchbox subscribers, don't feel bad if you get some men's products in your package this month. It's just a teaser for Birchbox Man and is in no way shape or form a cruel reminder that you're single. [TechCrunch]

And who cares if you're single anyway? Etsy is making a major effort to hire more female engineers. Perhaps Hacker School is more your style? [AllThingsD]

Mr. Lewis (twitter.com/mlewislogic)

One of the most salient pieces of advice offered at yesterday's lady CEO panel at Internet Week is to find a mentor you trust who can help guide you through the turbulent ecosystem of Startupland. NYC Tech Mobilizer, a lightweight summer program for developers, wants to help you find that mentor. The program, which is in its second year, links up prospective mentees with talented mentors from some of New York’s hottest startups, including Foursquare, Gilt Groupe, Birchbox and Meetup.

NYC Tech Mobilizer is the brainchild of Fondu CTO Mike Lewis, who moved to New York a little over two years ago with a masters in computer engineering, ready to dive into the startup sector.

"I got here with absolutely no network, no connections," Mr. Lewis told Betabeat by phone. The premise for the program, he said, is that it's "the program that I wished I'd had when I first moved here with no connections and wanted to break into startups."

NYC Tech Mobilizer extremely lightweight. Mentees are expected to meet with their mentors at least once a month for June, July and August, as well as attend networking happy hours. It's designed for the professional developer, or, as Mr. Lewis put it, "Developers that are just out of school and have been working doing dev for a few years and they’re really interested in startups. Either they’re looking to join a startup as a developer or they’re working to found their own company. People who are just smart, highly driven and who are in love with the rapid growth of startups."

"It's win win for everybody," Mr. Lewis said of the program. "It’s a chance for all the mentors to get to know each other and a way for them to get to know up and coming developers. For developers, it’s a way for them to get themselves tapped into the current ecosystem."

The program is free, and open only to professional developers. Mr. Lewis said he felt there were many programs for entrepreneurs, but a dearth of those focused on devs. "I feel like there’s a real lack of stuff out there for taking developers and helping them develop their leadership skills," he admitted.

NYC Tech Mobilizer is only admitting 15 applicants, so if you're considering applying, you better do so before the May 25th deadline.