Tag: investor spotlight

Investor Spotlight: ArkusNexus

By Enya Castañeda,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by the investment of more than 150 public agencies, private organizations, and service providers like ArkusNexus.

With the investment, EDC provides direct support, aligned with regional Inclusive Growth goals, to companies of all sizes to drive economic prosperity and global competitiveness across the binational mega-region.

One of San Diego’s unique value propositions is our proximity to and relationship with Mexico; it is weaved into the fabric of our economy and communities. To learn more, EDC sat down with Younes Aatif, CEO of ArkusNexus, who shared more on the region’s cross-border advantage and the benefits for the software development company.

Read more about ArkusNexus’s success and support of EDC below.

Tell us about ArkusNexus and its mission.

ArkusNexus is a cross-border software development company based in San Diego, with clients across the U.S. and resources throughout Latin America. We celebrate our 21st anniversary this summer, with a team of more than 550 developers and engineers dedicated to driving innovation and helping businesses thrive in the digital age. Our mission is to transform businesses through affordable and high-quality software solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of our clients–from startups to established enterprises.

With more than two decades of experience, we have honed our expertise in managing the complexities of software development, perfecting our engagement model and operational execution, to deliver best-in-class results.

Why San Diego?

San Diego is a strategic location for ArkusNexus due to its proximity to major markets in the U.S. where there is a growing demand for value-driven software development. It serves as a gateway to the LATAM market and an entry point to the U.S. market, offering ArkusNexus unique opportunities for cross-border collaboration. San Diego’s evolving tech scene is rapidly becoming a hub for digital innovation, driven by dynamic companies, academia, and a relentless pursuit of cutting-edge technologies. The region embodies the traits of a modern knowledge economy: diverse economic activities, excellent educational institutions, a unique entrepreneurial spirit, and a deep commitment from all stakeholders to the region’s success. San Diego also provides access to a diverse talent pool and a robust innovation ecosystem, making it the ideal environment for ArkusNexus to grow and innovate.

Finally, San Diego is ArkusNexus’s home. We’re personally invested in its success—it’s not just business; it’s personal.

Describe ArkusNexus’s collaboration and partnership with EDC.

EDC embodies the binational character of the San Diego-Baja region, articulating the opportunities and challenges local companies face. EDC works tirelessly to raise awareness of key issues, foster conversations to find solutions, and encourage local collaboration. It plays a critical role in connecting local efforts to the global stage, and we are thrilled to be part of this conversation.

Through our collaboration with EDC, ArkusNexus actively promotes the San Diego’s unique advantage as a fully integrated binational region. We participate in various EDC initiatives, including events, roundtables discussions, economic updates, and site visits, helping us understand what it takes to serve the region effectively while contributing to regional growth and competitiveness. By aligning with EDC’s vision, ArkusNexus is able to turn insights into actionable strategies that benefit the local ecosystem and build global connections. For us, what’s good for San Diego is good for all businesses operating in its vicinity.

How has San Diego positioned you for cross-border success?

As a binational economic gateway, San Diego has been instrumental in our growth. As the first company to implement the nearshore model, we remain committed to our mission as strongly as we did on day one. Our offices, just 30 minutes from downtown San Diego, provide a significant advantage for clients who want to interact with our team in person, fostering real-time collaboration essential in software development.

Cultural alignment also plays a crucial role. Our team members, who have grown up exposed to Southern California culture, seamlessly connect with clients’ needs. For example, ArkusNexus takes pride as we integrated the engineering operations of a unicorn startup, helping it scale quickly and cost-effectively. The startup has now exceeded a $2 billion valuation. Throughout the last 20 years, ArkusNexus has helped many clients achieve successful exit events, with a total valuation of $14 billion. This value creation reflects a commitment to supporting both sides of the border and celebrating shared success across the region. We thrive because of this unique cross-border dynamic, leveraging San Diego’s strategic location to drive innovation for local and global businesses alike.

What is on the horizon for ArkusNexus?

Business professionals often spend 20-30 percent of their workweek searching for information, sifting through multiple documents for a single answer. ArkusNexus is changing that by making information accessible at their fingertips. Leveraging AI, we provide users with immediate, secure access to their corporate data, without compromising security or data integrity.

We are soon launching our new Chipotle platform, which allows businesses to securely leverage large language models (LLMs) to mine their private data, combining AI’s power with robust security. This will enable businesses to benefit from AI advancements while maintaining strong security standards.

We’re also committed to the AI revolution by supporting open-source AI projects and developing safe, responsible solutions for individuals and businesses. Recognizing the skills gap in AI, our platform ensures safe interactions with LLMs for handling secure corporate data, regardless of its form or location.

Meanwhile, we’re adapting to the changes AI brings to the workplace, transforming how we work and communicate. By embracing these shifts, ArkusNexus remains agile and innovative, and continues to support San Diego’s growth as a hub for technology and business excellence.

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series and join ArkusNexus and 150 investors committed to supporting the region’s inclusive economic development by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Enya Castañeda
Enya Castañeda

Coordinator, Investor Relations & Marketing Communications

Investor Spotlight: General Atomics

By Liz Muthoni,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 150 private organizations, companies, and public agencies like General Atomics. With this support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego by leading initiatives to enhance the region’s growth and prosperity.

General Atomics has long been an EDC investor and global leader in energy and defense research and development. In early 2023, Mayor Todd Gloria visited the DIII-D National Fusion Facility at GA’s Torrey Pines campus as part of a series of tours of the region’s leading defense innovators.

Hear about General Atomics’ leadership in the world’s clean energy future and how the company is investing in San Diego.

Tell us about General Atomics and its mission.

Headquartered in San Diego, General Atomics (GA) specializes in diversified research and development for energy, defense, and aircraft. As the world’s largest private participant in fusion energy research, GA aims to provide sustainable, reliable carbon-free energy for future generations through commercialized fusion power plants. Cracking the code on fusion would mean no harmful emissions, no radioactive spent nuclear fuel waste, and no mining for fuel because fusion fuel is derived from seawater.

GA operates the DIII-D National Fusion Facility in San Diego on behalf of the Department of Energy (DOE) and has been the sole-source supplier of targets and target support services for the DOE National Nuclear Security Administration’s inertial confinement fusion program since 1991.

Why San Diego?

Founded in San Diego in 1955, GA has proudly called the region home for nearly 70 years. GA’s Torrey Pines campus was originally made possible by the City of San Diego, which arranged a public vote to approve the sale of what was then an empty cow pasture overlooking the Pacific Ocean. While the company now operates on five continents with more than 12,500 employees and more than 8.3 million square feet of engineering, laboratory, and manufacturing facilities worldwide, the majority of GA operations remain in San Diego County.

Over the years, GA has benefited enormously from San Diego’s quality of life, competitive innovation workforce, and partnerships with world-leading universities like UC San Diego and San Diego State University (SDSU). GA has hosted countless students for internships and postdoctoral fellowships, and generations of UC San Diego and SDSU researchers working alongside its scientists and engineers on a wide range of projects. Many of these students have gone on to become leading scientists in their field, some of whom now work full-time in San Diego at GA.

GA is also known for its support of San Diego’s small businesses, which make up 98 percent of the region’s firms. Now a cornerstone of San Diego’s innovation ecosystem, GA as a long-time federal contractor is committed to supporting San Diego’s small, women-, veteran-, and minority-owned businesses through its comprehensive DOE-recognized Small Business Program.

Please share more about GA’s collaboration and partnership with San Diego Regional EDC.

GA has been an EDC investor for more than 30 years. Vice Chairman Linden Blue has served as a director and in EDC leadership roles over the years. As GA facilities have  expanded, EDC has provided permitting support as well as helping elected leaders understand the company’s economic impact on the region. In recent months, GA has worked the team to arrange behind-the-scenes tours for Mayor Todd Gloria and local business leaders sharing our exciting fission and fusion facilities with community partners.

Looking ahead, what is on the horizon for GA?

Among other initiatives, GA is drawing from its decades of experience in fusion to develop a new concept for a Fusion Pilot Plant that will deliver clean, safe, and economically viable fusion-powered electricity. The facility will utilize GA’s proprietary Fusion Synthesis Engine to enable engineers, physicists, and operators to optimize the plant for maximum efficiency, and has developed a concept for tritium, a fusion fuel, to make the fuel cycle self-sufficient. As part of this project, GA is joining with leading institutions around the world, including France-based ITER Organization, to pursue the most rapid, economically practical path to fusion energy.

The great thing about clean energy is that anyone with a passion for it can find their calling in the space. In addition to the scientists and engineers who create clean technology, San Diego’s GA team needs the same talented business, operations, and marketing professionals that any other company needs to operate successfully. For GA, a clean energy future means access to high quality jobs for all San Diegans.

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series and join GA and 150+ investors committed to supporting the region’s inclusive economic development by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

Six ways to return to the office by Cultura

By Liz Muthoni,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego by leading initiatives to enhance the region’s growth and prosperity.

On the heels of the pandemic, many employers have transitioned back to in-office or hybrid operations. And one thing is clear—there is no one definitive way to bring people ‘back to work.’

This week, we sat down with Anne Benge and Annie Cook, senior executives at EDC investor and design and furnishing company Cultura to understand how employers can promote their workforce’s successful transition back to the office. Check out Cultura’s six essential criteria for your Return to Office strategy.

Tell us about Cultura and its commitment to #lovewhereyouwork

Cultura’s mission is to create places where people love to work. We cultivate discussions around a client’s culture then design and furnish their space to reflect it. After three years of working with more than 300 companies, we have observed companies with successful Return to Office strategies do the following six things. Company size is irrelevant as these steps apply to companies from three to 140,000 employees. Failure to do each of these will result in a subpar return to the office.

Six required steps to ensure a successful return to office:

  1. Lead by Example
    Leadership, at all levels, must be present in the office to lead by example. This means everyone, not just the top executives. By demonstrating a shared commitment to the return, leaders at all levels can help to establish a culture of accountability, motivate employees, and drive success for the company.
  1. Listen
    Taking the time to listen to everyone is essential since returning to the office can be perceived as a loss of a benefit, similar to eliminating health insurance, and affects people differently in ways.
  1. Embrace the Start + Stop
    It is normal to begin a transition back to the office only to have it stop. There can be outbreaks, office relocations, and resignations; some may only return to work with masks while others may refuse to come back if masks are required. It’s a challenging and unpredictable journey that requires perseverance and resilience.
  1. Coaching + Management
    The philosophy of “I trust you until I don’t” can change abruptly, and not everyone is equipped to handle conflict and resolution when trust is breached. Managing remote work, bringing people back to the office that are against it, and questioning work ethic all come into play. You have to address what the new rules are and how are you managing them.
  1. Hidden Influencers
    In every organization, there are change agents who are not in leadership or management roles and may not necessarily lead people, yet are perceived as if they know “what’s going on” and are sought out for “real” answers. Engaging this group in your return is crucial, as they hold great influence and will bring more than 50 percent of the individuals with them.
  1. Space Matters
    Your office performance is a hugely important tool you should use to support a positive internal culture. Temperature, ergonomics, snacks, amenities, and social merriment all matter. Pizza and beer will not bring them back alone—you have to have it all.

If your return has stalled, look to these six things to identify where the breakdown may be. They are your keys to unlocking success.

Previous investor spotlight: Cultura: Women’s History Month

Learn more: wearecultura.com

Instagram: @wearecultura

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Cultura by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Liz Muthoni
Liz Muthoni

Coordinator, Economic Development

Investor Spotlight: Founders First Capital Partners

By Candela Delucchi,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego, and leads initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with Kim Folsom, founder, chairperson, and CEO of Founders First Capital Partners to discuss the company’s mission to provide access to the capital businesses need to unlock their economic potential. Check out the Investor Spotlight below!

 

Tell us about Founders First Capital Partners and its mission.

Founders First Capital Partners is building a comprehensive ecosystem through its proprietary platform to empower underrepresented founders to become leading, premium-wage job creators within their communities. The firm provides revenue-based financing, term loans, and business acceleration support to service-based small businesses outside of major capital markets.

In addition, Founders First Capital Partners focuses on supporting businesses led by women, people of color, military veterans, LGBTQIA+, businesses located in low-to-moderate income areas, and companies dedicated to inclusive hiring practices.

Why San Diego?

I came to San Diego as a young girl after my dad was stationed here. Growing up here, I loved the city and stayed to attend college at San Diego State University. I knew it was a great place to live and a growing region to do business. For these reasons and more, I decided to build all seven of my companies here.

What’s on the horizon for Founders First?

In the last seven years, we’ve grown from a company of five to more than 35, most of whom are based in San Diego. We see ourselves as a significant driver of the inclusive economy, so it’s no coincidence that we’re staying in the region.

Beyond our full suite of accelerator programs, grants, growth capital, and asynchronous tools, one of our major initiatives is leveraging our expertise and platform to help corporations and their suppliers drive increased capacity and reach. These are very exciting times for us.

Tell us about Founders First’s collaboration and partnership with San Diego Regional EDC.

EDC is a driving force in economic development and aligns with our mission of being a key driver toward an inclusive economy, which makes our focus complementary. We’re focused on not just talking the talk but walking the walk and making a real economic impact driving diverse-led premium wage jobs, profits, and returns for our investors.

Learn more: foundersfirstcapitalpartners.com

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Founders First Capital Partners by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

Investor Spotlight: Commute with Enterprise

By Candela Delucchi,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego, and leads initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with Neil Semcheski, sales manager at Commute with Enterprise, to discuss the company’s mission to combat traffic congestion and carbon emissions with affordable commuting solutions. Check out its Investor Spotlight below!

Tell us about Commute with Enterprise and its mission.

Commute with Enterprise‘s vanpool solutions are one of the largest and most cost-effective available today. As the largest U.S. vanpool operator, our company addresses both local and global needs by reducing traffic congestion, commute times, travel costs, parking land usage, and carbon emissions, all while providing commuters with a smarter and more efficient way to get to work.

Each year, our commuting solutions eliminate more than one billion commuter miles, clearing more than 45,000 individual vehicles from the road, and reducing carbon emissions by 812 pounds annually. Additionally, businesses that offer our programs not only build their sustainability profiles, but gain a competitive edge in the battle for talent.

In the wake of the pandemic and with the rise of hybrid working arrangements, we know commuters are looking for affordable and convenient alternatives for getting to and from work. For little to no cost to the employer, Commute offers customizable programs that benefit workers and their employers—an investment in employee well-being, attraction, and retention. Our vanpools have alleviated traffic congestion and reduced commuting costs by more than 80 percent.

A few EDC investors currently using Commute with Enterprise include Illumina, Thermo Fisher Scientific, and Scripps Health, among other San Diego giants hailing from a variety of industries.

Why San Diego?

Commute with Enterprise established its first vanpool in San Diego 25 years ago, which still operates today. Commute with Enterprise has since served numerous employers in the region across industries including healthcare providers, manufacturing firms, tech and biotech startups, universities, DoD affiliates, and other military and federal entities.

One of the most significant partnerships Commute with Enterprise offers is with the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), which provides financial incentives for vanpool offerings—a valuable complement to other forms of public transit offered in the region, especially for the 20-30 percent of the population who commute more than 60 miles each day.

Looking ahead, what’s on the horizon for your organization?

Commute with Enterprise is dedicated to continuing to grow our services in the San Diego region. With essential workforces still on site and as employees continue to return to the office, there’s a great opportunity for businesses to offer vanpool services as a valuable addition to their employee benefits package.

Tell us about Commute’s collaboration and partnership with San Diego Regional EDC.

Commute with Enterprise is excited to be a new San Diego Regional EDC investor and for the opportunity to add value to the organization. We are proud to support EDC investors’ goals of leading San Diego’s economic prosperity and global competitiveness, while investing in the workforces that power our great binational region.

Learn more: commutewithenterprise.com

LinkedIn: Commute with Enterprise

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Commute with Enterprise by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

Investor Spotlight: The Lufthansa Group

By World Trade Center San Diego,

As a non-profit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego and, through its affiliate World Trade Center San Diego (WTCSD), leads global initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with Lufthansa Group, WTCSD’s preferred European airline, to discuss its partnership with and support of key efforts to connect San Diego’s business community to Europe. Check out the investor spotlight below!

Tell us about Lufthansa Group and its commitment to global connectivity.

The Lufthansa Group is one of the world’s leading aviation groups, as well as the market leader in Europe’s airline sector. The airlines of the Lufthansa Group—Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, Lufthansa, SWISS, and Eurowings Discover—fly business and leisure passengers to more than 300 destinations around the world via hubs in Brussels, Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna, and Zurich. Passengers enjoy a premium product and a comprehensive route network, combined with the highest level of travel flexibility. In its 2022 summer schedule, the Lufthansa Group carriers will offer flights from 30 North American gateways to the various home market hubs, Europe-at-large, and the world.

From San Diego to Germany, and beyond 

A long-time partner, Lufthansa continues to work collaboratively with WTCSD and San Diego Regional Airport Authority (SAN) to offer a trusted gateway from our region into Western Europe.

In March 2022, Lufthansa launched its nonstop service to Munich, opening an opportunity for San Diego companies to partner with German and other EU innovators.

WTCSD’s 2021 Annual Report and the Go Global 2025 Report showed the San Diego business community is eager to return to international travel and expand global connectivity—and Lufthansa’s direct Munich flights have enjoyed positive feedback and frequent use since its launch.

Thriving Cities: A trade mission to the Netherlands

In September 2022, WTCSD will take a delegation of San Diego business leaders to the Netherlands via Lufthansa’s new direct flight to Munich. Over the course of a week, trade mission delegates will broaden international connectivity between San Diego and Western Europe with topics ranging from mobility, sustainability, to life sciences and tech.

In collaboration with Lufthansa and the Consulate of the Netherlands, WTCSD aims to drive increased investment between the two regions.

Are you a senior leader at a San Diego innovation company interested in joining the delegation? Contact Caroline Murray, listed below, for details.

From San Diego to the world

WTCSD looks forward to continuing its partnership with Lufthansa and collaborating on opportunities to help San Diego companies access new international markets through programs like:

  • MetroConnect
  • Future Trade missions
  • Reliable connectivity to Germany and beyond

Stay in touch

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Lufthansa Group and become a member of EDC.

Contact our team:

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

Investor Spotlight: ITJ

By Kaylee Hudson,

As a non-profit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego, and leads initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with Maritza Diaz, CEO at ITJ, to discuss the company’s work to create technology centers of excellence in Mexico. Check out the investor spotlight below!

 

Tell us about ITJ and its mission.

ITJ is a binational U.S.-Mexican company founded in 2019 with the mission to enable U.S. companies to create technology centers of excellence in Mexico. ITJ serves fast-growing and high-value market sectors, particularly in Life Sciences, Biotechnology, and Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), working with innovative medical device companies to improve people’s lives.

With a unique BOT (build, operate, and transfer) model that sources only the best digital talent available, ITJ empowers its partners to accelerate their digital innovation.

Why San Diego?

San Diego is recognized as one of the leading high-tech hubs in the U.S. Uniquely located in the Cali Baja region and home to more than 1,225 life sciences companies and 80 independent and university-affiliated research institutes, the symbiosis between San Diego and Tijuana has been crucial to building a prominent mega-region in the Life Sciences industry.

Tell us about ITJ’s collaboration and partnership with San Diego Regional EDC.

We are honored to partner with San Diego Regional EDC which has been doing a remarkable job linking members, government, policymakers, and other advocates to strengthen our community’s economic growth and support fast growing sectors like software development.

During our partnership, we have witnessed EDC’s extensive expertise and network—becoming a key player in our strategic goals for imperative growth.

Looking ahead, what is on the horizon for ITJ?

In June we celebrated the company’s third anniversary, and we have good reason to celebrate. Since 2019, ITJ has created more than 700 tech jobs serving U.S.-based companies and has grown our client base five-fold. In addition, with significant inroads in the Life Sciences, Healthcare, and Medical Device industries, ITJ has doubled its revenue in the past two years.

Furthermore, we are excited to announce that ITJ is opening its new offices in a state-of-the-art business building in Tijuana this month.

Learn more: itjuana.com

Twitter: @ITJuana_

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join ITJ and become a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

Red Door Interactive unveils new HQ in Sherman Heights

By San Diego Regional EDC and Red Door Interactive,

EDC, local leaders cut the ribbon on Red Door’s innovative office space

Today, EDC member Red Door Interactive, a national, award-winning marketing agency, unveiled its new San Diego headquarters alongside EDC and staff from Councilmember Vivian Moreno’s office at a ribbon cutting ceremony. Reflective of Red Door’s company culture and vision for the future of the modern workplace, the company’s three-building campus features panoramic views of Downtown San Diego, a variety of collaboration hubs, seven outdoor patio spaces, an urban garden, and state-of-the-art technology for interactive video conferencing throughout the campus, among other amenities for its 90-person staff to enjoy.

For Red Door, the project has been years in the making; the company originally purchased the land in Sherman Heights, a designated Opportunity Zone, for its new headquarters in 2020. Despite a variety of pandemic-fueled hurdles, construction for the project was crafted entirely by local vendors including AVRP, Swinerton, Cultura, and many more.

“We’re excited to bring our diverse team of talented, creative minds to this neighborhood,” Reid Carr, CEO and co-founder of Red Door Interactive, said. “This is not only a place of work for us, but a home for the work we do as a collective. We built this campus with an eye toward the future of work, along with the ability to reflect some of the best San Diego has to offer—outdoor spaces, accessibility, and the spirit of its unique neighborhoods.”

With 20 years in offices in Downtown San Diego, including an award-winning, ground floor space in the DiamondView Tower at Petco Park, this new headquarters marks a bold move to a nearby neighborhood. It also represents Red Door’s commitment to physically coming together as a team, while also continuing to openly support hybrid and remote work—a philosophy the company embraced long before the pandemic.

Red Door hopes its new campus is a step toward bringing more awareness and investment to Sherman Heights. The neighborhood has long been regarded as a vibrant, historic place, rich in culture with fantastic views of downtown, Coronado, and the Bay—but it’s also centrally located around some of San Diego’s greatest assets. Sherman Heights provides easy access to Interstates 5 and 15, and state Routes 163 and 94. It’s also a few minutes from the San Diego International Airport and walkable to Balboa Park, and the unique neighborhoods of East Village, Golden Hill, and Barrio Logan.

EDC’s Mark Cafferty shares, “Reid and the team at Red Door Interactive have always been stewards of our region—investing in organizations like EDC and charting paths for other local companies in San Diego’s urban core. Twenty years ago, the company began a movement in East Village that proved to be monumental for the growth of Downtown. We know Red Door will bring that same vision, passion, and creativity to the historic and vibrant Sherman Heights community.”

Investor Spotlight: Bristol Myers Squibb

By Candela Delucchi,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego, and leads initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with Neil Bence, vice president of oncology discovery and San Diego site head at Bristol Myers Squibb, to discuss the company’s mission to combat serious diseases with life-changing medicines. Check out its Investor Spotlight below!

Tell us about Bristol Myers Squibb and its mission.

Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases.

Protein degradation is a core strength for BMS R&D, and we are building on our legacy and scientific expertise to discover and develop therapeutic approaches in blood cancers, solid tumors, and other important therapeutic areas. Protein degradation is the process by which proteins are destroyed in a cell; with targeted protein degradation, our researchers are harnessing the cell’s own machinery to degrade several whole new classes of proteins that were previously considered “undruggable.”

Why San Diego?

San Diego is an important hub for innovation and we are committed to our presence and leadership in the vibrant life sciences ecosystem. Our location in San Diego allows our scientists to leverage state-of-the-art technologies to profile diseases and activate biopharma and academic partnerships earlier in discovery and development.

Recently, BMS announced the execution of a long-term lease for the development of a new R&D facility—an iconic 427,000 square foot world-class building at Alexandria Point. Bringing our four sites together into a single building will accelerate collaboration across all research groups and drive BMS’ commitment to bringing critical medicines to patients living with serious illnesses.

We wanted to pursue a San Diego site footprint that encourages collaboration and cultural integration, enables organic growth, and promotes agility to pursue new scientific opportunities. Our extensive San Diego R&D campus houses several distinct industry capabilities, including our Oncogenesis Thematic Research Center, Discovery Biotherapeutics, Medicinal Chemistry, and Nonclinical Research and Development teams.

In San Diego, BMS scientists are focused on the exploration of novel biology and target concepts such as protein degradation and complex biologics. This research is to better understand the complexities of cancer, autoimmune, and neurodegenerative diseases in order to advance the next generation of therapies to help treat these diseases which currently have high unmet needs.

How is BMS improving access to quality care of medically under-resourced patients in San Diego?

BMS is united by a critical mission: Transforming patients’ lives through science. As an inclusive, patient-centered, global biopharmaceutical company, we are committed to doing our part to help advance health equity and deliver innovative medicines that improve the health outcomes of medically underserved and increasingly diverse patient populations. We have been on a health equity journey for many years—continuously building on and expanding our tools to meaningfully tackle health inequities in the U.S. and worldwide.

In August 2020, we announced our $150 million investment over five years to address health disparities, increase clinical trial diversity, expand supplier diversity, increase workforce representation, and enhance employee giving in support of social justice organizations. We remain deeply committed to doing our part to help transform patients’ lives around the world.

BMS recently announced nearly $8 million in new health equity grants to 24 U.S. nonprofits focused on improving access to quality care for medically underserved communities, including the American Lung Association and Dia De La Mujer Latina which have a presence in San Diego, that work with community health workers and patient navigators to increase access among medically underserved patients and communities. The grants are intended to bolster community outreach and engagement, increase care coordination services and to ensure an ethnically diverse, culturally competent community health worker and patient navigator workforce. Grant recipients span across BMS’ therapeutic areas of focus—oncology, cardiology, immunology, and hematology—as well as health equity programs that serve a range of medically underserved patient populations, including Black and African American, Latino and Hispanic, AAPI, LGBTQIA+, and rural communities.

Tell us about BMS’ collaboration and partnership with San Diego Regional EDC.

Bristol Myers Squibb shares San Diego Regional EDC’s mission to invest in local life sciences organizations for the economic prosperity of the region. BMS appreciates the support and partnership of EDC to keep the organization and talent apprised of key economic developments in the region that allow BMS to remain an employer of choice. The team at EDC is collaborative and responsive to our evolving needs.

Looking ahead, what is on the horizon for BMS?

We’re looking forward to bringing together our four current San Diego sites into a single, newly constructed facility. Our vision is to continue to be a major research hub with incredible opportunities for scientific discovery throughout and following this transition.

Overall, it is an exciting time to be at BMS. In the year ahead, we are excited about the growth opportunities in our in-line brands and new product portfolio as well as our powerful innovation engine driving a broad early-stage pipeline. With more than 50 assets in our early-stage pipeline and the opportunity for more than 20 proof of concept decisions over the next three years, BMS is advancing one of the most exciting pipelines in the industry, amplified by our strong external partnerships.

Learn more: bms.com

Twitter: @bmsnews

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Bristol Myers Squibb by becoming a member of EDC.

Interested in publishing an investor spotlight? Contact our team:

Contact SDREDC
To learn more, please contact us.

Investor Spotlight: Curebound

By Kaylee Hudson,

As a nonprofit, San Diego Regional EDC is supported by investment from nearly 200 private organizations, companies, and public agencies. With their support, EDC provides direct services to help companies grow and thrive in San Diego, and leads initiatives to enhance the region’s recovery and resilience.

We sat down with EDC investor Anne Marbarger, CEO of Curebound, to discuss its mission to accelerate cures for cancer in our lifetime and realize a world without cancer from San Diego. Check it out!

Tell us about Curebound and its mission.

Launched in 2021, Curebound is an evolution and expansion of two highly respected cancer organizations, Padres Pedal the Cause and the Immunotherapy Foundation, which have come together to help create a robust, sustainable source of funding for cancer research and to broaden awareness, education, and outreach across San Diego. To date, we have donated $20 million to fund 78 innovative research projects, including six clinical trials.

Our mission is to mobilize San Diego to accelerate cures for cancer in our lifetime. To help realize our vision of a world without cancer, Curebound is committed to investing $100 million into collaborative cancer research over the next decade and making San Diego a global center of cancer research and cures.

Why San Diego?

Curebound is headquartered in San Diego amidst a unique combination of three National Cancer Institute cancer centers, clinical care hospitals, biotech companies, venture capital investors, philanthropic networks, and, most importantly, a regional culture that embraces the spirit of collaboration. This ecosystem positions San Diego and Curebound at the forefront of discovery—bringing genomic medicine, new technologies, and clinical trials to market and presents an unprecedented opportunity for research collaboration.

Curebound is a catalyst that brings these resources together to accelerate cures. We are proud to partner with the top cancer research institutions in San Diego, including Moores Cancer Center at UC San Diego Health, Rady Children’s Hospital, Salk Institute, Sanford Burnham Prebys, La Jolla Institute for Immunology, and Scripps Research. We see that San Diego has enormous potential to become a “cancer-curing city” and that the next decade will be critical in the development of sophisticated, personalized approaches in the way we prevent, treat, and ultimately find cures for cancer.

How can San Diegans get involved?

Padres Pedal the Cause is Curebound’s signature community event on April 9 at Petco Park. After two and a half years of virtual events due to the pandemic, we are excited to be back in person and look forward to celebrating with our cancer-fighting community of survivors, friends, families, doctors, scientists, and volunteers. One hundred percent of every dollar raised funds life-saving cancer research in San Diego.

The event features cycling courses for all abilities that ride out over the beautiful Coronado Bridge and finish at Petco Park, the option to run or walk a new and improved 5K through downtown San Diego, and a rooftop spin class atop the historic Western Metal Supply Co. building with fun, inspirational rides from some of San Diego’s most popular instructors.

This year, we are encouraging our local businesses to take part in our Corporate Challenge. The Corporate Challenge is an opportunity to come together as a company in support of family members and friends whose lives have been changed by cancer. It’s a great way to bring your workforce together with a positive focus on health and wellness, community engagement, and strong internal team building.

Tell us about your involvement with San Diego Regional EDC and its team.

Curebound is proud to invest in the fantastic work being done by EDC. We all feel very fortunate and appreciate the opportunity to partner with CEO Mark Cafferty and the EDC team, along with so many exceptional business leaders across San Diego.

EDC has done so much to advance and empower San Diego for many years and we believe Curebound aligns with EDC’s vision in many ways. For example, Advancing San Diego‘s collaborative effort to align economic development and workforce development around a common set of goals is truly impressive and speaks to the heart of our own core values of community, collaboration, and cures. Thank you all!

Looking ahead, what is on the horizon for your organization?

Our mission, vision, hope, and dream is to accelerate cures in our lifetime, so that the next generation doesn’t have to experience a cancer diagnosis in the frightening way that too many of us do now.  We will continue to increase and expand our outreach and opportunities for community engagement as we grow with new events and programs on the horizon. There is much in the works and we’re excited to share more in the coming months.

In the meantime, we hope you’ll join us for Padres Pedal the Cause in April and look for more information coming soon for our next series of events in honor of World Without Cancer Day on June 20.

Learn more: curebound.org

Twitter: @PedalSD

Read more about EDC’s investors in our investor spotlight blog series. Or, join Curebound by becoming a member of EDC.