Build San Diego's Silicon Outpost

Be a Founding Member!   Help San Diego companies get access to capital and customers.

Update Jan 6th, 2017

We're building a San Diego Business Hub in Silicon Valley for SoCal Startups!

Why do this?

San Diego has incredible talent.  We have great companies. Plus, our top-tier universities and 10 world class research institutes.  But..  we're light on capital.


The most prolific technology ecosystem in the world, is just a 90 minute flight away.


Silicon Valley isn’t some concept to mimic.  It’s a gigantic opportunity to seize – utilizing our proximity as an advantage.  It’s there for us – let’s leverage it!

There are over 100 VC firms there open to investing in San Diego.

We have already started a sophisticated database of names and relationships; with well over 100 VC contacts.  The database will continue to grow exponentially with each quality introduction, helping San Diego companies get access to capital and customers.

And It’s More Than Just Capital.

There are over 200 public companies and thousands of venture-backed startups — potential customers and channel partners for our companies, with many more than just Apple, Google, Facebook, Cisco, Intel, etc.



Our companies are better if they have access to Silicon Valley.

This is a strategic approach to building a community that extends from SD throughout Silicon Valley. Our collective reach will deepen and broaden with each company, each mentor, and each VC introduction. 

A ton of prep work is already done.  Mayor Faulconer and the City of San Diego committed $20k.  Many accelerators are on board.  Our local angel investors want this.  Our local venture-backed CEOs are in as well.  We have support from ex-pats in Silicon Valley.  It’s a community effort, and many key players are all in.

Leading the effort is Mike Krenn.  Mike was a founder of Tech Coast Angels, CommNexus and VenturePipeline.com.  He lived in Silicon Valley and loves San Diego.  Mike has been supporting San Diego tech companies for 20 years, and has helped more than 50 companies raise in excess of $100M.  He is in this for San Diego’s future.

This is a Best Practice Approach.

Countries around the world have outposts in Silicon Valley, including: France, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Czech Republic, China and Iceland. 


Not one US city is localized within the tech hub.    Until Now. 


Where Is This Office?
In the heart of SF’s tech community.  It has to be.  After deep discussions with 3 different co-working spaces, we selected WeWork for numerous reasons.  This is an opportunity for them too – to import San Diego’s best.


WeWork Labs: The San Diego Corner

We’re 5 desks to start, with room to grow, and growing the community every month.

The WeWork global network consists of offices in 10 US Cities and 5 offices in SF, as well as offices in 4 countries.


How does a company get access?

Companies apply.  When they are ready, we will match them with a mentor before they go up.   Together, we will identify targets — both companies and investors — and organize a schedule of meetings in advance of travel. 

Companies can stay in the space for a week, or a month.  They now have a Silicon Valley address.  They have contacts there.  They have a game plan.  They have a network to leverage upon landing.

Fast Forward

Think 1-2 years out.  We are going to know what VCs are sincere about doing deals in San Diego.  Equally important – we’ll also know what VCs aren’t.  We’ll know what each VC’s particular interests are, and be able to connect our companies efficiently. 

We’re going to build relationships with the Corp Dev people at the various public companies – and have that rolodex to leverage too.

How great would be if our San Diego companies had a landing pad in the Valley, that could help get them networked – even before they took off from Lindbergh or Carlsbad? 

The big question really is:  Why have we not done this already?   Just think where we might be if we had started this two years ago. 
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Help us help San Diego!

We are seeking contributions and founding partners for the new San Diego office in Silicon Valley.


Ways You Can Help

Spread the word.  Entrepreneurs, Investors, Supporters of San Diego’s Tech Ecosystem.  This is for all of us!

Join the community.  Do you have an employee or valuable contact in Silicon Valley?  Would they like to join the SoCal in NoCal community?  Let us know!

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FAQ’s

Q: I want to support this effort.  How do I learn more?

A: Reach out to Mike Krenn at San Diego Venture Group

Q: Will VC’s just recruit our companies to relocate there?

A: The simple answer is “no.” 

If these companies wanted to be in SF, they would already be there.  These aren’t companies at the idea stage.  These companies have employees that have roots in San Diego, that want to be in San Diego.  That’s why they’re coming through our channel.

In our conversations with VCs — valuations in Silicon Valley are too high and engineers are too transitional.  They have come to the conclusion — it makes sense to build teams outside of the Valley. 

Even if it were to happen (and it will be rare), the pros of doing this FAR outweigh the cons.