In the long-running rivalry between Boston and New York, there are realms like finance where New York edges Boston out, and others like sports where dominance teeter-totters between the two cities. But Boston’s innovation economy has always remained one step ahead of its rival’s. So many of the Hub’s boosters winced last week when a new study found that the growth of technology start-up companies in New York is now outpacing Boston’s.

The Start-up Compass study found that while Boston has a “well-established angel and venture capital scene,” the city creates 79 percent fewer start-ups than the leader, Silicon Valley. That was enough for the technology data firm to proclaim that Boston has lost its position as “front-runner on the East Coast” and crown New York as the “true alternative to Silicon Valley.” While the findings are just the opinion of one firm, they should serve as a reminder to city officials, university administrators, and established business people here in Boston and Cambridge that the region’s position as an innovation juggernaut can’t be taken for granted.