Security Check:
Hi, I’m Ted, and I’m a tech entrepreneur, occasional artist, community catalyst, and lover of curiosity and exploration.
Professionally, I’m the CEO of Tengrade (ratings and reviews). Philanthropically, I’m the Chairman of Create Fixate (arts foundation). Artistically, I’m a Co-Director of DISORIENT (Burning Man camp and art collective).

What’s your historical Los Angeles and New York connection?
I was born and raised in NJ, then made the move into NYC for ten years before heading west to sunny California. Now I live in LA, but move back and forth regularly with 6 or 7 east coast trips every year.

Describe your experience in LA and your experience in NYC
New York is my favorite city in the world. But after ten years there, I began to notice a lot of New Yorkers who never left. They had a bit of tunnel-vision about how the world worked, and I thought that it was pretty off target. For better or worse, things just don’t operate the same way anywhere else as they do in NYC! So I decided to place myself somewhere different and make sure I didn’t become “one of those” New Yorkers. While I still love to visit NYC, I’m much happier living in Los Angeles. I think LA has the perfect mix of sunshine, energy, adventure, and yes, even city life. You just have to be willing to drive around a bit to find it…

What was the biggest challenge of moving from LA to NYC?
I found the dating life to be very different in the two cities, based primarily around public transportation! It’s MUCH easier to be spontaneous and adventurous on a night out in NYC, because it’s so easy to hop around to multiple places. Los Angeles dating requires more planning and coordination. It will be interesting to see how things change in LA with the rise of cheaper taxis (e.g., Uber) and more cross-town public trains (the Expo line).

How can NYC and LA best engage with each other?
The two cities are so different, it’s absurd for them to “compete” with each other. They should recognize how amazingly complementary they are and fully embrace that.

Favorite LA secret spot
The Syrup Loft (downtown art and performance space).

Favorite NYC secret spot
The Famous Cozy Soup And Burger (my favorite diner and hamburger spot).

If you were not building what you build now, what would you be doing?
Starting another new company!

Inflight Entertainment: tell us what song/album, TV show, podcast, or web videos you’ve been watching lately.

I’ve always been a big Phish fan, but just recently caught up on some of their more recent material. My current favorite song is “Light.”

From the 2462 Miles newsletter: connecting NEW YORK CITY + LOS ANGELES