The recession took a measurable toll on California’s economy. Once the fifth largest economy in the world, California now has slipped to ninth largest world economy. Not all is bad news–the Golden State’s shimmer is glowing, once again, adding jobs faster than any other state in the nation. Since 2010, more than half a million new jobs were created.
California has long been the leader in sparking innovation—it’s a key economic driver. Innovations have been and will continue to help the state’s recovery.
The Governor’s office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) was created as the “go to” place for economic development and job creation for the state.
In 2010, under GO-Biz, the iHub initiative was created to bring together local governments, community colleges and industries with venture capitalists, economic development organizations and research institutions.
Currently there are 12 up and down the state, but GO-Biz recently announced plans for three more this year.
Livermore’s iGATE iHub was one of the first ones launched nearly three years ago. Each California iHub has a different focus. The iGATE focuses on the growth of new technology and the creation of jobs in clean energy, green transportation, and high-performance computing.
The private-public partnership made of 11 local governments, two national laboratories, universities around the state and more has worked hard to help launch startups and help small businesses be successful.
California Forward’s Cheryl Getuiza explains.
Images and lab footage from Lawrence Livermore Labs and Sandia National Laboratories.
