Alliance for SoCal Innovation Welcomes Capital Group, Deloitte, and Sunstone Management as New Corporate Sponsors; Board Renews Leadership for 2026
The Alliance for SoCal Innovation is thrilled to announce that Capital Group, Deloitte, and Sunstone Management have joined the organization as its newest corporate sponsors, further strengthening the Alliance’s growing network of industry leaders committed to advancing Southern California’s innovation ecosystem.
The addition of these globally recognized firms reflects increasing momentum behind the Alliance’s mission to connect startups, investors, corporations, universities, and research institutions across the region. Their partnership brings expanded expertise across financial services, venture investment, consulting, and strategic growth, providing key ingredients in supporting the next generation of breakthrough companies emerging from Southern California.
“We are honored to welcome Deloitte, Capital Group and Sunstone Management to the Alliance,” said Dave de Csepel, CEO/Executive Director of the Alliance. “Each of these organizations brings extraordinary insight, reach and commitment to innovation. Their partnership will help accelerate the work we’re doing to strengthen Southern California’s position as one of the world’s most dynamic innovation economies.”
The announcement follows the Alliance’s Annual Board Meeting held February 26, where the organization’s full roster of Directors unanimously renewed their commitment to serve for the 2026 term. The meeting also marked the addition of two new Directors: Kyle Forrest, Future of HR Leader, Principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP, and Matt Bresnahan, Partner at Wilson Sonsini. Mikko Ollila, Vice President of Product Management at Capital Group joined the board at the end of 2025.
Bresnahan joins the Board to replace Larry Sonsini, senior partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, steps down after serving with the Alliance since its inception. Sonsini nominated Bresnahan to represent the firm moving forward, ensuring Wilson Sonsini’s continued leadership and engagement with the organization. The firm will also maintain its long-standing role as a valued corporate partner of the Alliance.
“Larry has been an extraordinary champion of the Alliance since the beginning,” said Alliance COO Steve Gilison. “His guidance, vision and support helped shape the organization during its formative years. We are deeply grateful for his leadership and are delighted that Wilson Sonsini will continue its involvement through Matt Bresnahan who we have known for many years due to his longstanding engagement in our First Look SoCal and SoCal Venture Pipeline programs.”
The Alliance has also seen strong engagement from the broader business community in recent months. Since the latter part of 2025, a flurry of organizations have stepped forward as event and program sponsors, including Countsy, Citizens Private Bank, e360, Stifel Bank, Reitler, and Escalon, supporting the Alliance’s events and programs that connect founders, investors, corporate leaders, and academic institutions from across the region.
This growing base of partners reflects the increasing importance of collaboration across sectors to accelerate innovation specifically in med tech, biotech and deep tech.
“As the innovation ecosystem in Southern California continues to mature, partnerships like these are critical,” de Csepel added. “The commitment from our corporate partners, board leadership and sponsors enables us to expand programming, strengthen connections across the ecosystem and support the innovators building the future of this region.”
About the Alliance for SoCal Innovation
The Alliance for Southern California Innovation (the “Alliance”) is a not for profit formed in 2017 that has successfully brought together the heft of Southern California’s top research institutions, local business leaders, and world-class advisors to focus on bridging critical gaps in the SoCal innovation ecosystem. The goal of the Alliance is to engage and unify SoCal’s compelling diversity of talent, ideas, and perspectives in order to optimize the conditions for the region’s innovators to bring breakthroughs to the world.