State of California attracts global investment through coordinated international engagement at the 2026 SelectUSA Investment Summit

Newsom Administration continues to position California as premier destination for foreign investment through coordinated, high-impact engagement with international business leaders and partners

Sacramento, CA – The Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) led California’s participation in a series of foreign investment attraction efforts across the United States, anchored by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s SelectUSA Investment Summit, held May 3-6, 2026, in Washington, D.C. These efforts reinforced California’s position as a global leader in innovation, and as a stable and reliable partner to our allies around the world.

In recent weeks, California’s investment attraction activities have included:

• The SelectLA Investment Summit in Los Angeles on April 28^th, serving as a pre-summit platform to engage international investors and shape perceptions of California’s regional opportunities
• A TeamCalifornia Roadshow in Imperial, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties from April 28-30, demonstrating opportunity for global firms in dynamic regions of the state
• SelectUSA Investment Summit in Washington, D.C. from May 3-6, where GO-Biz led a coordinated statewide delegation of 33 economic development partners from across the state

Through these engagements, GO-Biz and its partners highlighted opportunities for international investors across key sectors including advanced manufacturing, life sciences, aerospace, and emerging technologies. Collectively, these efforts generated hundreds of direct investor interactions and a strong pipeline of follow-up opportunities supporting business expansion across California’s diverse regions.

“Foreign investment is an essential driver of jobs and innovation in California,” said Emily Desai, Chief Deputy Director at GO-Biz. “With nearly 20,000 international companies supporting over 847,000 California jobs, we are proud to be the number one U.S. state for jobs supported by foreign-owned companies.”

The SelectUSA Investment Summit remains the cornerstone of California’s foreign direct investment strategy. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Summit brings together investors, companies, economic development organizations (EDOs), and industry experts from around the world.

At this year’s Summit, GO-Biz led its largest-ever delegation of 33 economic development organizations from across California, representing a unified, statewide approach to investment attraction. The delegation engaged investors from more than 60 international markets through structured meetings, targeted sector outreach, and coordinated booth programming.

As part of the Summit’s programming, GO-Biz hosted a ‘California Spotlight Event’ for businesses to connect with California’s economic developers. The event quickly sold out, with more than 340 international organizations registering, demonstrating clear interest in the California delegation. The Summit also served as a platform for major investment announcements, including Balt’s decision to invest more than $400 million to expand its U.S. presence with a new production site in Irvine, creating 700 new jobs.

California’s collaborative delegation model — which aligns state, regional, and local partners into a unified investment platform, together representing one California and collaborating across regions to bring wins to the state — continues to distinguish itself on the global stage. By streamlining engagement, reinforcing consistent messaging, and coordinating post Summit business development and site selection efforts, this approach strengthens the state’s ability to translate international interest into tangible economic growth and job creation.

Representation at this year’s Summit included:

“SelectUSA remains a valuable platform for advancing San Diego’s global investment strategy and connecting with some of the world’s best and brightest companies, entrepreneurs, and economic leaders,” said Lucas Coleman, Director of World Trade Center San Diego. “As part of the California delegation, World Trade Center San Diego was proud to showcase the region’s innovation economy while building relationships that can lead to future investment and collaboration.”

The Summit also highlighted California’s strength in innovation and cutting-edge industries, where globally recognized research institutions and commercialization partners continue to attract high potential international companies and founders.

“California competes for international healthcare investment on a different basis than most states—not on incentives, but on outcomes,” said Kinshuk Kocher, Investment Director at Cedars Sinai Technology Ventures. “The clinical depth, research density, and investor sophistication concentrated here mean that a startup validated in California is ready for the world. Cedars-Sinai Accelerator+ exists to shorten that path to commercialization for international founders, and SelectUSA gave us a direct line to the companies most likely to benefit.”

California’s participation in SelectUSA was supported by the generous contributions of sponsors – PG&E, the Foundation for California Community Colleges, and the California Employment Training Panel.

You can follow the GO-Biz International Affairs and Trade team’s foreign investment attraction efforts by subscribing to their newsletter, following GO-Biz on LinkedIn and X, and searching for #GOBizInternational across social media platforms.