Daily Business Report: Monday, Nov. 21, 2022
San Diego tech firms continue to drive real estate market
The region’s unique innovation ecosystem
should shield the county’s technology sector
While Fortune 100 tech companies form beachheads within the San Diego innovation hub, recent growth by start-ups has been boosted by record levels of venture capital funding, according to JLL’s latest Technology Insight report.
Since the onset of the pandemic, local tech companies have raised a total of $6 billion, equating to about $24 million per round, with the bulk of VC funds directed towards tech firms specializing in software.
In addition, ArtificialIntelligence has surfaced strongly in San Diego, securing $1.2 billion in VC since 2020 and ranking ninth nationwide for total AI funding. In their “State of AI Report,” Deloitte finds that 72 percent of tech firms recognize that focusing on AI over any other industry is crucial to staying competitive over the next three to five years.
Startups in Downtown received the largest share of new VC funding, with 57 rounds averaging $34 million per deal. Although VC funding has decreased from 2021’s banner year, 2022 is still on pace for the second highest year on record.
Jobs and talent
San Diego is rich with talent, which is the catalyst for tech companies entering the market. UC San Diego generates the third-greatest number of STEM degrees in the country, totaling 4,920 per year. Over the last 10 years, high-tech jobs have increased employment by 16,816 jobs, now totaling 67,880 jobs in 2022. Since 2020, San Diego ranks third in the nation for tech job growth at 9.1 percent. Portland sits in second place at 10 percent and Austin in first with 11.6 percent.
MiraCosta College to receive grant
from Strada Education Network
Strada Education Network selected MiraCosta College’s Biomanufacturing program to receive a grant through Strada’s Employer and Community College Partnership Challenge. Strada awarded this $400,000 grant as part of an effort to support innovative collaborations across the country between community colleges and employers in their region. Within the grant, MiraCosta College will collaborate with Sterogene Bioseparations and Open Biopharma Research and Training Institute Overview.
Sterogene Bioseparations is privately held company headquartered in Carlsbad. The company develops and manufactures stable, NaOH affinity chromatography resins that are used in the purification of human blood products and biopharmaceuticals. Open Biopharma Research and Training Institute is a nonprofit whose mission is to reduce the price of biopharmaceuticals, and thus reduce drug prices.
San Diego County Credit Union collecting
donations for its ‘Presents for Paws’ drive
San Diego County Credit Union is collecting monetary donations for “Presents for Paws,” a special holiday fundraising campaign benefiting animal shelters and rescues in San Diego, Orange and Riverside counties. This will be SDCCU’s eleventh consecutive holiday season supporting the “Presents for Paws” campaign.
SDCCU hopes to raise $10,000 throughout the holiday season. In San Diego County, collections will benefit San Diego Humane Society; in Riverside County, collections will benefit Animal Friends of the Valleys; and in Orange County, collections will benefit the Home Free Animal Rescue and Sanctuary. Monetary donations will be accepted in-branch or online this year at sdccu.com/paws. Last holiday season, SDCCU’s “Presents for Paws” combined donation efforts collected $10,000 for shelter animals in need.
San Diego and Tijuana host
international ‘Designers for Peace’ poster
exhibition in response to Ukraine invasion
Poster art from international designers from more than 30 countries showcasing their strong opposition to the ongoing war in Ukraine are being exhibited through Dec. 31 at the UCSD Park & Market building at 1100 Market St. in Downtown San Diego. Admission is free.
Initiated and funded by Graphis, an international publisher of awards and books honoring excellence in the visual communications industry, and in partnership locally with the American Institute of Graphic Arts San Diego Tijuana chapter, the exhibition is an extravagant presentation featuring 60 print posters and a video display of the more than 350 submitted pieces of art.
Members of the public are invited to visit between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday-Friday. The Tijuana, Mexico exhibition will be hosted at Casa de la Cultura de Tijuana beginning on Nov. 18 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday.
The posters on display have been created since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. A collection catalog along with select exhibition posters and signed limited editions will be available for sale. Proceeds support Ukraine’s humanitarian aid through José Andres’ World Central Kitchen and International Relief Teams.
Cajun seafood restaurant opens in Midway
There’s a new crustacean in town in the Midway District: King Crab. The new seafood eatery recently opened in the mall at 3960 W. Point Loma Blvd. in the remodeled space previously housing Soup Plantation, which closed during the pandemic. Its Louisiana-style menu features a plethora of seafood and other delights including: Blue, Stone, King, Snow and Dungeness crab, lobster tail, scallops, calamari, oysters, shrimp, crawfish, catfish, green and black mussels, clams, clam chowder and shrimp cocktail. Read more…
Changing of the guard at Newport Avenue mall
There has been a changing of the guard at the Newport Avenue mall in Ocean Beach, with mostly newer tenants banding together to collectively promote and market themselves. The popular indoor mall at 4967 Newport Ave. is now home to The Philosopher’s Stone, Brew Wave Coffee, Seth’s Chop Shop, OB Mindful Goods, San Diego Holistic Healing/Reiki by Rylee and Ocean Beach Business Center on the ground floor, along with Anamaya Vintage Store upstairs. Read more…
ResMed opens advanced manufacturing plant in Singapore
Expanding its reach further around the globe, San Diego-based ResMed has opened a four-story, 270,000-square-food advanced manufacturing plant in Singapore. The new facility will produce the medtech company’s sleep apnea devices — expected to reach more than 250 million people who suffer from the condition each year by 2025.
NTC Foundation and Cygnet Theatre to open
$39 million performing arts center at Liberty Station
The NTC Foundation and Cygnet Theatre have partnered to bring a $39 million performing arts center to Liberty Station in Point Loma. Slated to open its doors in fall 2024, the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Performing Arts Center will become a permanent home for resident art groups. Read more…
Lilly’s new diabetes management platform
to integrate Dexcom’s CGM
Eli Lilly plans to introduce a personalized diabetes management platform that integrates with technologies including San Diego-based Dexcom’s continuous glucose monitoring systems. The platform, branded Tempo, features a reusable medical device that attaches to Lilly’s prefilled, disposable insulin pens and sends dose-related data to the compatible app.
Chula Vista launches first-time homebuyer program
The City of Chula Vista has relaunched a program that helps low-income families buy their first homes. Eligible families with incomes at or below 80 percent of San Diego County’s Area Median Income, which is currently $104,100 for a family of four, may apply for a 3 percent interest, deferred payment loan. The loan covers up to 22 percent of the purchase price or a maximum loan of $120,000 to purchase a single-family home, townhome or condominium in the City of Chula Vista.
Novo Brazil Brewery expanding to Imperial Beach
Novo Brazil Brewing is expanding its footprint in San Diego — but sticking close to home.
The Chula Vista brewery announced it plans to open a new location in Imperial Beach. Novo’s founder Tiago Carniero said that they are very excited to join the neighborhood.
“We were one of the first breweries to really believe in the South Bay,” Carniero told The San Diego Union-Tribune. Read more…
