California Governor Gavin Newsom held a meeting at the San Francisco headquarters of blockchain company Ripple in early July.
Newsom is working on a new project aimed at improving the efficiency of state government by collaborating with local tech leaders.
The initiative, dubbed the "California Innovative Project," aims to bring innovation in artificial intelligence and blockchain from the private sector to the public sector. In his statement, Newsom highlighted that California, which could position itself as the fourth-largest economy in the world, is the "cradle of modern technology," making it capable of gathering "the best and brightest." Participants present at the prestigious meeting came from sectors such as cryptocurrency, financial technology, logistics, defense technology, etc. Among them were Chris Larsen, Executive Chairman of Ripple; Asheesh Birla, former CEO of Ripple; Jeff Lawson, CEO of Twilio; Ron Conway, founder of the venture capital giant SV Angel; Jason Wheeler, former CFO of Tesla; and other prominent figures.
The photo shows that Larsen was sitting directly across from Newsom during the meeting.
In May 2022, the Governor of California issued an executive order to create a clear regulatory environment for digital asset companies.
In October 2023, he also greenlit a crucial bill for the regulation of cryptocurrencies. This bill, which was originally set to take effect at the beginning of this month, has been postponed until July 2026.
