Daily Business Report: March 5, 2024
Collaborative $9 million San Diego award
aimed at sparking fusion energy breakthrough
By Debra Bass | UC San Diego
In a pioneering initiative, universities, industry leaders, and national laboratories are banding together to accelerate the development of fusion energy. Funded by the Department of Energy (DOE) and powered by a $9 million budget over four years, the project named SMARTS (Surrogate Models for Accurate and Rapid Transport Solutions) aims to pave the way for more efficient and reliable fusion reactor performance prediction.
Funded as part of the DOE’s $112 million in awards to the Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing program, SMARTS brings together a consortium of institutions including University of California San Diego, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), General Atomics, Sapientai, Kalling Software, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Sandia National Laboratory.
At the helm of this ambitious endeavor is principal investigator Chris Holland of UC San Diego’s Center for Energy Research, spearheading a team that employs cutting-edge techniques from data science and machine learning domains.
The team aims to develop surrogate models to effectively enhance the accuracy and speed of predicting fusion reactor performance.
Top photo: SMARTS research principal investigator Chris Holland discusses details of a plasma turbulence simulation with UC San Diego graduate student Blake Carter.
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California hits 100,000 public EV chargers
California has surpassed 100,000 public and shared private electric vehicle chargers installed statewide — weeks after funding was approved to build a bigger, better network of charging and refueling infrastucture for zero-emission cars, trucks and buses. This is in addition to the more than 500,000 at-home chargers that Californians have installed for personal use.
One in every four new cars sold last year in California were zero-emission. Last year, the state also surpassed its goal of selling 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles and its goal to install 10,000 fast chargers for electric vehicles — bost ahead of schedule.
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Mark Arabo appointed to State Racetrack Leasing Commission
Mark Arabo, of San Diego, president and CEO of Refined Management since 2015, has been appointed to the State Racetrack Leasing Commission by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Arabo held
several roles at the Neighborhood Market Association from 2006 to 2015, including president, CEO and vice president of marketing. He was a member of the Marketing and Sales Team for Anheuser-Busch from 2004 to 2006. Arabo served on the California Workforce Development Board from 2019 to 2023. He is a member of the 22nd District Agricultural Association, San Diego County Fair. Arabo earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration/Integrated Marketing Communications from California State University, San Diego. The position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Arabo is a Democrat.
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Phil Blair appointed to San Diego County Fair Board of Directors
Phil Blair of Del Mar, has been appointed to the 22nd District Agricultural Association, San Diego County Fair Board of Directors by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Blair has been executive officer and co-owner of Manpower San Diego since 1977. He is a member of the San Diego USO Board, San Diego Chamber of Commerce Board, Economic Development Corporation Board and the San Diego Workforce Partnership Board. Blair was Chair of LEAD San Diego from 1998 to 2001 and 2008 to 2010, Chair of the San Diego USO Board from 2021 to 2023, Chair of the Economic Development Corporation from 2016 to 2023 and Chair of the San Diego Convention Center Board and Chat from 2016 to 2020. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration from Oklahoma State University. Th position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Blair is registered without party preference.
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XIFIN achieves HITRUST risk-based, 2-year certification
San Diego-based XIFIN, a health care information technology company that leverages diagnostic information to improve the quality and economics of health care, has launched the latest version of its revenue cycle management platform, which has earned certified status for information security by HITRUST.
With the latest RCM investments, XIFIN aims to address four key market challenges: enhanced risk mitigation, payor accountability for price transparency; enhanced automation to offset staffing shortages and diagnostic specific industry benchmarks.
“Security is a priority for XIFIN and a pillar of our RCM platform. As an organization we seek to be ahead of market disruptions and demands.” said Marty Barrack, chief legal and compliance officer. “This significant investment and achievement of HITRUST Risk-based, 2-year Certification demonstrates that XIFIN RPM has met key regulations and industry-defined requirements for information security.”
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California election workers are returning
after COVID and conspiracy theories
CalMatters
Between COVID-19 and election fraud conspiracy theories since 2020, it has been a tumultuous time for California’s election workers.
The state lost 15 percent of its election officials between the November 2020 election and July 2021, according to the California Voter Foundation, which documented incidents of threats, harassment and stress. While not all left due to safety concerns, more than half of California counties have a new registrar of voters since 2020, compared to 17 percent turnover between 2016 and 2020.
But ahead of today’s end of primary voting, elections officials in more than a dozen California counties say they’re in good shape for staffing permanent and temporary poll workers.
Qualcomm, Intuit Ventures invest in AI startup Anthropic
Tech giants Qualcomm and Intuit Ventures join Amazon and Google as investors in AI startup Anthropic currently valued at $15 billion. Funding raised in the $750 million round led by Menlo Ventures will be used to advance training of Anthropic’s AI systems. The announcement follows Qualcomm’s financing of AI startups Humane, Hugging Face, and San Diego-based Williot, and Intuit Ventures’ investment in local unicorn Drata, part of San Diego’s growing AI-ML ecosystem.
Online property tax auction set for March 22-27.
San Diego County Treasurer-Tax Collector Dan McAllister announced bidder registration is now open for the 2024 online property tax auction. The auction site opened with a total of 468 properties for sale. Anyone around the world can bid during the online property tax auction from March 22-27. To participate, bidders must register before March 14 at the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s tax auction website, sdttc.mytaxsale.com. They must also submit a refundable $1,000 deposit and a non-refundable $35 processing fee.
Palomar Health board approves deal with Mesa Rock Healthcare Management
The Palomar Health Board of Directors approved a management services agreement with Mesa Rock Healthcare Management to guide and strengthen Palomar Health’s ability to continue providing essential health care services in San Diego County. In a 5-2 vote, the Palomar Health Board took the first step toward creating partnerships with other health systems and service providers. With Mesa Rock as a partner, Palomar Health will improve its ability to compete against private and for-profit hospital systems.
Disaster Recovery Centers open in San Diego County
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has opened a Disaster Recovery Center at the Mountain View Community Center, located at 241 S. Boundary St., so that City of San Diego residents affected by the Jan. 22 storm can receive in-person support in applying for federal disaster assistance. A second Disaster Recovery Center also opened at the Spring Valley Library, serving residents from both the City and throughout San Diego County.
Kenai Therapeutics launches with $82 million Series A financing
San Diego-based biotech Kenai Therapeutics, with develops therapies for Parkinson’s disease, emerged from stealth with $82 million in Series A financing. Funding will support the completion of Phase 1 trials for its cell therapy intended to treat idiopathic and inherited forms of Parkinson’s. Kenai is also pursuing a pipeline of cell therapy assets targeting other neurological disorders.
Promo Drone among GovTech innovation finalists
MetroConnect company Promo Drone was named among GovTech innovation finalists for the Space and Defense Innovation Showcase and Ignite Competition. The Ignite Competition, is designed to surface new technologies that could help advance and protect our nation and/or make lives better for service members. The Ignite Awards recognizes the innovation happening in the space and defense industry and celebrates those who are making an impact.
TriLink BioTechnologies granted patents in China and Canada
TriLink BioTechnologies, a Maravai LifeSciences company and global provider of life science reagents and services, has been granted patents by the China National Intellectual Property Administration and the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. Patent numbers ZL 2023 1 0734863.0 and CA 2999274 are related to TriLink’s CleanCap technology for the co-transcriptional capping of mRNAs – a critical component of the production of synthetic mRNA.
Rady Children’s Hospital joins Jersey Mike’s Subs for fundraising
Rady Children’s Hospital – San Diego is joining forces with 63 Jersey Mike’s Subs locations in San Diego for the 14th Annual March “Month of Giving” campaign to support local charities. During March, customers will have the option to round up their purchase to the nearest dollar or donate $1, $3, or $5 when placing their order. The campaign will culminate with Jersey Mike’s “Day of Giving” on March 27, when Jersey Mike’s restaurants will give 100 percent of the day’s sales – not just profit – to Rady Children’s Hospital – San Diego.
Bob Kamensky named CEO of Feeding San Diego
Feeding San Diego, the county’s leading hunger-relief and food rescue organization, has named Bob Kamensky as its new chief executive officer. A longtime San Diegan and U.S. Navy veteran with over 35 years of service, Kamensky transitioned to the not-for-profit sector in 2021 when he accepted the role of chief strategy officer at Feeding San Diego. He stepped into the role of interim CEO last fall upon the retirement of Dan Shea.
City of San Diego offers Budget Crash Course
The City of San Diego’s Office of the Independent Budget Analyst is offering a Budget Crash Course to the public on March 21 from 5-6 p.m. via Zoom to learn about the city’s budget process and how community members can get involved. The course will also cover key components of the city’s operating and capital improvement budgets and budget equity considerations. If you have any questions, call 619-236-6555 or email sdiba@sandiego.gov.
