Local Innovation Communities

SoCal has a powerful network of distinct local hubs of innovation

Southern California has innovation ingrained within its culture and an abundance of compelling assets throughout the region that help founders build great companies. We know that the key to building a vibrant startup ecosystem is surrounding founders with a supportive community and timely access to vital resources (talent, funding, mentors).

We are actively engaging with local leaders throughout the region to partner with existing innovation community organizations or, when needed, to establish new ones. The communities listed below represent where the most innovation currently resides in a concentrated geography, as determined through an analysis conducted in partnership with BCG (more info on our methodology below).

We are empowering local innovation communities as well as SoCal-based vertical industry groups (e.g. life sciences, aerospace, etc.) to develop their own websites to showcase the communities’ unique assets and narratives about what their community can build and produce for the world.

DTLA	San Diego	Thousand Oaks /Ventura County
Pasadena	West LA / Culver City	Irvine / Orange County
West Hollywood	Santa Barbara	Burbank & Glendale
South Bay	Claremont	Riverside
North County SD	Silicon Beach	Space Ventures Coalition

Get Involved

Alliance programs support the ecosystem by connecting communities with the resources they need. Our approach starts with identifying influential and impactful leaders in local communities and then providing these leaders with the tools and the resources that make it easier for founders to grow their business.

Our strategic partner BCG developed an Activation Playbook containing 28 tested strategies tailored to the specific needs of different node cohort types. So whether your community is a mature or emerging innovation node, we have strategies that can help your community better support startups. We provide a tailored playbook to each of these local community leadership teams to accelerate the growth of their startup ecosystem.

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The SoCal Innovation Community Heat Map

In partnership with BCG, the Alliance analyzed the density of key startup building blocks across SoCal. What emerged were 14 distinct innovation nodes or communities with unique assets and levels of maturity. The maps below show startup, investor, talent, and corporate density separately as well as a map and table that aggregates an overall innovation index score for each geographic community. Click into each map to zoom into the region to get a closer look at the data.

This is how we explain what is going on there and what resources are available. For questions about the methodology employed to define the nodes and the indexed rankings, or how you can get involved, please contact us.