GO-Biz International participates in annual series of events to attract foreign investment

The GO-Biz International Affairs and Trade Team continues its efforts to market California to international companies, including at the 10th…^th annual SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, DC

Sacramento, California – GO-Biz’s International Affairs and Trade team recently participated in a series of high-level initiatives across the state and country focused on highlighting opportunities for international business expansion in California.

As the world’s fifth-largest economy, California plays a predominant role on the world stage – whether through our shared border with the country’s largest trading partner or our strategic location on the Pacific Ocean. With more than 800,000 jobs, the Golden State continues to lead the country in the number of jobs supported by foreign direct investment. In addition, foreign direct investment supports $84.3 billion in wages for Californians.

This series of events to attract foreign investment highlighted the incredible opportunities California offers for foreign companies and enabled collaboration with key international partners from around the world. These included:

At each event, GO-Biz’s International Affairs and Trade team was able to offer opportunities and available support for international companies interested in establishing operations in California, with the goal of bringing investment, jobs and innovation to the state. Through these events, GO-Biz worked with more than 250 international companies and organizations to encourage business expansion in California.

The 10^th The annual SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, DC is the preeminent event for attracting foreign investment to the United States, hosted by the Department of Commerce and was the flagship event in the series. The Summit was the largest ever, with more than 5,000 people attending from 96 international markets. California brought a delegation of 28 local business organizations from across the state. Representatives included:

• Stephanie Hsieh, BioscienceLA
• Claudia Diaz, California Association of Realtors
• Jaclyn Chiyo Funasaki, East Bay EDA
• Connie Stopher, Coalition for Economic Development
• Swan Asbury, City of Eureka
• Will Oliver and Lauren Nikkel, Fresno EDC
• Alicia Ramirez, City of Fresno
• Soua Vang and Jenny de la Mora, City of Glendale
• Terri Batch, GlobalLA
• Troels Adrian and Hayden Kandul, Greater Sacramento Economic Council
• Scott Adair, Humboldt County
• Patrick Ellis, Impact SW Riverside
• Tim Kelley and Sean Willcock, Imperial Valley EDC
• Bo Martinez, City of Long Beach
• Leah Goold Haws, Long Beach Economic Partnership
• Alex Andrade and Michael Thomas, City of Milpitas
• Scott Agajanian, Murrieta Innovation Center
• Alan Wapner and Jennifer McLain Hiramoto, City of Ontario
• Michael Foote, REACH Central Coast
• Kimberly Wright, Riverside County
• Tony Yung, Sac China Commercial Office
• Ryan Niesen and Derek Armstrong, San Bernardino County
• Jey Wagner and Ondre Seltzer, Santa Clarita Valley EDC
• Hala Madanat and Natasha Bliss, San Diego State University
• Robin Reimold, TeamCA
• Frank Rexach, UC Riverside
• William Powles and Olivia Zhang, World Trade Center Los Angeles
• Felipe Cusnir, World Trade Center Long Beach
• Lucas Coleman and Emily Irion, World Trade Center San Diego

GO-Biz hosted a Get to know the Californian breakfast at the summit, which included an opening keynote from Jasjit Singh, Executive Director of SelectUSA, and a fireside chat between Emily Desai, Senior Deputy Director of GO-Biz, and Lane Dilg, Head of Strategic Partnerships on OpenAI’s Global Affairs team. More than 150 international companies have registered to network with the California delegation and learn how California’s unique business climate drives innovation.

“The SelectUSA Investment Summit and related events are a priority for our team because they deliver results to California communities. We are proud to partner with economic developers from across California to expand the unmatched resources they have for growing businesses,” noted Emily Desai, Senior Deputy Director of GO-Biz.

“Greater Sacramento is a market that is growing in global importance. We have seen major investments in recent years from SK hynix and Samsung of Korea and Bosch of Germany, and nearly 40% of the companies we work with are international. Accordingly, the SelectUSA Summit is a game-changing opportunity for our region. I commend Director Dee Dee Myers and the GO-Biz team for their leadership in promoting California globally and look forward to working together to capitalize on the many opportunities we secured at this year’s conference,” said Barry Broome, President and CEO of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council.

“The opportunities to connect with global investors at the SelectUSA Summit grow exponentially each year. The Murrieta Innovation Center has built some amazing relationships that are beginning to flourish in our community,” said Patrick Ellis, CEO of Impact Southwest Riverside.

You can follow the efforts of the GO-Biz International Affairs and Trade team to attract foreign investment by subscribing to the newsletter. @CAGoBiz on X and search for #GoBizInternational on all social media platforms.