Category: News

Meet the MetroConnect VII companies!

By World Trade Center San Diego,

Add these to your ‘companies to watch’ list

Together with Mayor Todd Gloria and underwriters Booz Allen Hamilton, Deloitte and JPMorgan Chase & Co., World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD) unveiled the seventh cohort of companies selected to participate in MetroConnect, the region’s comprehensive export assistance program helping local companies accelerate their international growth.

Since the program’s debut in 2015, 95 MetroConnect alumni have collectively added 302 new jobs to the region, signed more than 522 new contracts, and set up 22 new overseas facilities. On average, cohort companies grow their exports by an average 63 percent and revenues by 40 percent as part of the program. Alumni include Novo Brazil Brewing Co., Access Trax, White Labs, Dr. Bronner’s, Bitchin’ Sauce, Scientist.com, Aira (acquired by Blue Diego Investment Group), Cypher Genomics (acquired by Human Longevity Inc.), and many more.

Now, WTCSD is pleased to welcome the newest set of MetroConnect companies representing the diversity of San Diego’s innovation economy.

Meet the MetroConnect VII companies

  1. Aquacycl
  2. Epitope Diagnostics
  3. Fieldsheer
  4. GALT Aerospace
  5. Harland Brewing Company
  6. Health Innovation Products
  7. Lotus Sustainables
  8. Promo Drone
  9. Selk’bag
  10. Sunday Golf
  11. Surf Loch
  12. VECKTA
  13. VeV Scientific
  14. Visaic
  15. Wearable Sensing

Learn about the companies

The MetroConnect program is highly competitive, with just 15 companies selected based on a variety of criteria, including interest in new foreign markets, assessed impact of funds, current international traction and more. Applicants were assessed by a panel of senior level representatives from Biocom, Connect, CMTC, WTCSD and the U.S. Commercial Service.

“Since its launch, the City of San Diego has been a proud supporter of MetroConnect and the nearly 100 businesses it has helped grow internationally,” said San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria. “As Mayor, I’m committed to supporting the small businesses that power San Diego’s economy, and international connectivity is an important tool in building economic resilience.”

Why go global?

Amid economic uncertainty, it is more important than ever to help local SMEs build resilience by facilitating increased sales in global markets.

In 2022 alone, San Diego exported more than $32 billion in goods overseas, as well as billions more in services like software, cybersecurity, engineering and research. SMEs produce 92 percent of those goods—driving home the importance of programs like MetroConnect.

“Booz Allen is proud to support international business connectivity in San Diego through MetroConnect,” said Jennie Brooks, EVP at MetroConnect underwriter Booz Allen Hamilton, and EDC board chair. “The metrics don’t lie—it’s clear global companies are more competitive, efficient and successful. We’re committed to continuing this important work in San Diego’s business community.”

Next up for MetroConnect VII

The cohort will gain access to a suite of resources to support expansion into international markets, including executive workshops, flight discounts, language translation, and up to $30,000 in grant funding.

“2024 is filled with great opportunity for those who are prepared to navigate an uncertain and dynamic environment,” said Nikia Clarke, executive director of WTCSD. “Now with new tracks focused on technology, health and consumer goods, the MetroConnect program will ensure San Diego’s rapidly growing firms are equipped to access global markets, share our region’s life-changing innovation with the world, and create high quality jobs here at home.”

Interested in growing your business internationally?

World Trade Center San Diego works directly with companies – free of charge – to help them expand internationally and grow in San Diego. Whether your small company is interested in learning about exporting and international growth, or your SME is ready to export and grow internationally, WTCSD is here to help.

Ready to get involved? Click here to receive our monthly Global Brief Newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox.

San Diego flood-related resources

By Mark Cafferty,

EDC board members, investors, and partners:

I hope this message finds you all well. As the rain continues across our region, I wanted to drop you a line with the latest on resources related to the recent flooding in San Diego.

If you know of any businesses in flooded areas that are still in need of assistance, please have them contact:

  • San Diego and Imperial Small Business Development Center (SBDC): sdivsbdc.org
  • San Diego Central Black Chamber of Commerce (which operates the Diamond Business Improvement District): sdblackchamber.org

If you know workers who have been displaced due to flooding, please have them contact:

And if you are looking to make donations in support of the continued clean-up efforts and to help those still unable to return to their homes, please contact:

Additional information on resources can also be found on the following sites:

Please be sure to always work through known and reputable partners in the community in times of crisis. Thank you for your time and attention on this matter and let’s continue to take care of each other.

Sincerely,

Mark Cafferty
Mark Cafferty

President & CEO

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – February 2, 2024

By Bree Burris,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of February 2, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

Last call: MetroConnect VII Kickoff

Join World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD) and Mayor Todd Gloria on February 8 as we announce the 15 San Diego companies selected to join our seventh and newest cohort of MetroConnect, WTCSD’s flagship export assistance program.

Register Here

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Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

Looking into the 2024 crystal ball

By Eduardo Velasquez,

Sticking the ‘soft’ landing

Happy new year from your local, recovering economist!

After another year filled with uncertainty and the seemingly ever long tail of pandemic-related disruptions, we enter 2024 with a whole host of questions—some new, some recurring.

The past year was dominated by the prognostications of a looming recession. Goldman Sachs famously gave it a 100 percent probability and even the Federal Reserve was bracing for an economic downturn as recently as the summer.

However, it is worth stating the obvious here that the United States did not go into a recession. Throughout 2023, measures of economic growth consistently beat expectations. In the fourth quarter of the year, the economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.3 percent fueled by consumer spending as well as business investment. We saw record corporate profitability, a strong labor market that added nearly three million jobs, and even inflation slow significantly and come close to the Fed’s comfort level of two percent.

Locally, we ended the year with 23,400 more jobs. Investment also came into the San Diego region from both public and private sources. Startups raised another $4 billion in venture capital funding and San Diego received $950 million in federal funding for cleantech development.

There are more jobs in San Diego than ever before, however there are fewer people available to do them. Over the last 12 months, the labor force declined and it is expected that our prime-working age population will shrink in the coming years. Part of this is due to accelerated retirements brought about by the pandemic; part is due to the ever-increasing cost of living. The median-priced home is now more than $1 million with a monthly mortgage payment of more than $5,300.

So, 2024…

Looking to the year ahead, we are approaching a unique moment to accelerate large scale transformation around the future of work and the built environment.

Employers are offering remote and flexible work arrangements at higher rates than during the height of the pandemic. The rapid adoption of generative AI tools is changing how work is done and re-defining what skill development means, favoring agility over ability. There are 32,000 employers nationwide competing for workers with AI skills. In San Diego, there have been more than 5,200 unique job postings seeking AI skills since the launch of ChatGPT just over a year ago.

The permanence of remote work offerings has led to a re-imagining of the office with a flight toward quality. Many employers remain unsure of when and who should return to the office (we can help). These decisions will have profound implications for the future use of office space across our region, of which there is more than 10 million square feet currently vacant, with several million more planned, under construction, or with leases coming due in the next year.

While affordability remains abysmally low, housing production has ramped up with permitting activity expected to match levels not seen since 2017. This is still not enough new housing to meet demand, but still very welcome development (pun intended!). Additionally, rent growth seems to have plateaued and returned to pre-pandemic rates giving renters a much-needed pause in increases.

And yet, nothing that our region will face in 2024 is inevitable. What lies ahead is both a familiar challenge and a new opportunity for inclusive growth. A challenge to meet the talent needs of our employers, and an opportunity to remove barriers to entry into the workforce. A challenge to promote quality job growth in small businesses, and an opportunity to shift spending toward local, diverse suppliers. A challenge to address affordability, and an opportunity to re-imagine our urban core to retain high-paying jobs and provide housing for working families.

It’s a tall order, but our region is hungry. Let’s get to work!

Eduardo Velasquez
Eduardo Velasquez

Sr. Director, Research & Economic Development

 

Read 2023’s edition: Looking into the crystal ball…

More FROM EDC’s research bureau

More on inclusive growth

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – January 26, 2024

By Bree Burris,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of January 26, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

Save the date: EDC Annual Dinner

EDC’s Annual Dinner is back at the most beautiful ballpark in baseball. On June 18, we are excited to again gather at Petco Park to celebrate our region and the people who call this place home. Sponsorship opportunities available now; contact Jennifer Storm for more information.

Details and Registration to Come

Business information and resources page

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Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – January 19, 2024

By Bree Burris,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of January 19, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

Apply by Jan. 22: California Competes Tax Credit

Is your California business looking to grow over the next five years or considering leaving the state? You may be eligible for up to $164 million in tax credits from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. EDC’s expert team is available at no cost to San Diego companies seeking guidance on the Cal Competes applications closing January 22.

Apply Here

Business information and resources page

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Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – January 12, 2024

By Bree Burris,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of January 12, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

EDC’s Employee Retention & Return to Office Study

EDC is scoping a unique study of the local workforce across 2024 to identify evolving local trends in how work is done, workers’ needs, workforce trends, and workplace requirements to inform company return to office plans as well as office tenant attraction strategies. To participate in the study or sponsor, contact our team.

Learn More

Business information and resources page

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Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

A note on the new year

By Jennie Brooks,

Dear EDC partners and investors,

Reflecting on our past year at San Diego Regional EDC, I turn to the conversations and moments I’ve been privileged to share with many of you across the San Diego community.

Each month, on a Wednesday morning overlooking the greens at Torrey Pines (or via Zoom screen), more than 60 board members from across San Diego’s industries—life sciences to defense, breweries to sports—have created space to connect, collaborate, partner, and assess our progress toward the region’s Inclusive Growth goals: 20K post-secondary completions annually, 75K newly thriving households, and 50K new quality jobs in small businesses by 2030. We know this is a marathon, not a sprint, and we’re in it for the long haul.

Our Board represents businesses born and grown here, new market entrants, large businesses with global reach, small, family-owned firms, nonprofits, academia, and anchor institutions in between. All of us have one thing in common: a commitment to the future of San Diego.

If we have learned anything about economic development over the years, it’s that we can neither stay the status quo nor stick to our swim lanes. We must work together, in our different ways, to ensure a resilient and competitive San Diego for employers and residents alike. In 2024, here’s how you can lean into this work with us:

  • While every company grapples with its post-pandemic approach to employee retention and return to office, participate in EDC’s study to understand your workforce’s needs
  • Support talent pipeline development and host summer interns in computing, engineering, or business—paid for through grant funding and sourced from San Diego’s Verified Programs
  • Support small businesses through procurement by joining the Anchor Institution Collaborative
  • Endorse the Inclusive Growth goals and adopt strategies to create more quality jobs, skilled talent, and thriving households in San Diego
  • Stay tuned for World Trade Center San Diego’s trade mission to draw regional investment and elevate San Diego’s global identity
  • Join 150 local companies and institutions in investing in EDC’s programs, research, and goals

The steps we take on this journey will be underpinned by EDC’s Research Bureau, market strategy, talent initiatives—and reliant on your investment—to help grow San Diego’s economy.

Join us in this work in 2024.

In gratitude,

Ms. Jennie Brooks
Ms. Jennie Brooks

EDC Board Chair

Executive Vice President

 

Read EDC’s Monthly Report

San Diego’s Good News of the Week – January 5, 2024

By Bree Burris,

Every week, ‘Good News of the Week’ features a curation of positive headlines from San Diego, delivered straight to your inbox. A blend of aggregated stories from San Diego’s most trusted news sources and original EDC-created content, GNOTW provides a comprehensive recap of the region’s best stories from the past week. GNOTW is sponsored by Manpower San Diego.

Get Good News of the Week in your inbox every Friday. → Sign up

For the week of January 5, 2024, here’s what we’re reading:

…and here are some events and opportunities:

MetroConnect VII Kickoff

Join us on February 8 as we announce the 15 San Diego companies selected to join our seventh and newest cohort of MetroConnect, World Trade Center San Diego’s flagship export assistance program. Hear remarks from San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, celebrate emerging global companies, and meet international service providers like Booz Allen Hamilton, Deloitte, and JPMorgan Chase.

Register Here

Business information and resources page

Be in the know – sign up below to receive future editions of GNOTW.

Want to submit your event or news update to our weekly newsletter? Contact us for more information.

sign up for gnotw

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

San Diego’s Good News of the Year 2023

By San Diego Regional EDC,

In business and in life, our ability to plan is only as effective as our understanding of the circumstances we are working through.

Despite ongoing uncertainties, EDC remains both optimistic for the future and continuously amazed by what San Diego business, academic, community, and civic leaders are building, sustaining, and improving all around us. Looking back at the highlights and headlines of the year that was, our vantage point remains an amazing one.

See what San Diego accomplished in Good News of the Year:

Growing and planting roots in San Diego

This year, several companies moved into and expanded within the region, creating jobs for San Diegans across life sciences, manufacturing, and other industries. Some highlights include:

Major acquisitions and IPOs

Local companies continue to prove that San Diego competes on a global stage. Here are some of our region’s standout acquisitions and IPOs throughout the year:

Startups nab big venture investments

Despite the slowdown in VC investment, San Diego startups continued to secure millions of dollars in funding across sectors including life sciences, AI, agtech, and other innovation industries. More than $3.7 billion flowed into the region this year, including these notable investments:

  • Unicorn Shield AI with $2.7B valuation raises additional $200M to build AI ‘pilots’ for military aircraft
  • Boundless Bio snags $100M to continue oncogene-amplified cancers clinical trials
  • Measurabl lands $93M to expand real estate ESG tool to new geographies
  • Lenz Therapeutics raises $83.5M to replace eye-glasses with eye drops
  • Fabric8Labs secures $50M to triple staff
  • Kneron raises $49M to scale up AI chip R&D
  • Cultivated seafood startup BlueNalu lands $33.5M to scale up San Diego facility

Higher ed institutions double down on research and innovation

Home to the best and brightest—as noted in Clarivate’s highly-influential scientists list—San Diego education institutions continue to foster life-changing innovation. This year we celebrate:

  • Forbes names UC San Diego #3 and San Diego State University #16 on top public colleges in the U.S.
  • Wexford, UC San Diego partner on a 23-acre Science Research Park
  • SDSU, LPC West partner on 1.6M sq. ft. Mission Valley Innovation District
  • USD to launch AI-ML boot camp to address labor demand
  • CSUSM professor secures $2.5M grant to expand Quantum Information Science and Technology education
  • MiraCosta College secures more than $1.6M in NSF grants
  • Miramar College awarded $1.4M grant for math, engineering, science program
  • National University receives $400K National Science Foundation grant to integrate visual and fine arts with STEM education
  • City of Chula Vista breaks ground on UniverCity with 6M sq. ft. academic, innovation space

Defense contracts abound

A cornerstone of our regional economy, the military represents almost one-quarter of all jobs in the county and a quarter of the local economy with more than $36 billion in direct defense spending in 2023. Home to global defense innovation powerhouses, new contracts include:

San Diego to the world

San Diego expanded connections to Tijuana, and to the European and Asian markets. Increased access to these markets facilitates the exchange of talent and expands opportunities to strengthen economic ties. In 2023, global wins include:

Making strides in cleantech

San Diego continues to respond to California’s bold commitments to a clean energy future where battery and other sustainable technology will play a major role. It’s no wonder Wallet Hub ranked San Diego #1 on its “Greenest Cities in America” list. Here are some of the locals leading the charge:

Premier travel, sports destination

San Diego remains a top spot to live, work, and play…sports! A few of the many wins we’re proud of in 2023:

EDC’s own good news

Top 10 in 2023
San Diego’s good news is EDC’s good news. With and through our investors, our year in review includes support to 117 local companies, more than $3.1 million in export growth through WTCSD programs, 30 new Verified Programs of Talent, and much more.

See OUR YEAR in review