News

On October 12–14, the Consulate General of Lithuania in Los Angeles organized a visit to the San Francisco Bay Area by Lithuanian Ambassador to the United States Gediminas Varvuolis. During the visit, Ambassador Varvuolis and Consul General in Los Angeles Sandra Brikaitė met with representatives of the region’s academic community, technology and investment sectors, the City and County of San Francisco, and the European Union Office. Lithuania’s Honorary Consul in San Francisco, Dennis Garrison, also participated in meetings with business and technology organizations. Discussions focused on opportunities to deepen cooperation between Lithuania and the San Francisco Bay Area, expand academic ties, advance defense and high-tech innovation, and explore opportunities for Lithuanian companies in the U.S. market.

The visit placed particular emphasis on strengthening connections between Lithuania’s and California’s technology and innovation ecosystems. The Lithuanian delegation visited Saildrone, a company specializing in autonomous maritime systems and defense technology, where they met with Robbie Dean, Vice President of Program Execution, and Jenn Virskus, Head of Marketing and Communications, to discuss developments in defense technology and potential areas for cooperation. Opportunities to strengthen ties between Lithuanian businesses and the U.S. technology and investment community were also discussed at a meeting with Eugene Malobrodsky, Managing Partner of venture capital firm One Way Ventures.

During their visit to Silicon Valley, Ambassador Varvuolis and Consul General Brikaitė met with Domas Mituzas, an infrastructure engineer at Meta, and visited Nordic Innovation House, which supports Nordic startups and growth-stage companies in expanding into international markets. Special attention was given to Lithuania’s laser industry. The delegation visited the U.S. laser applications research laboratory of Light Conversion, a Lithuanian company that manufactures ultrashort-pulse laser systems, and met with Eric Juban, the company’s Director of Laser Applications. The company’s technologies are used by research and industrial institutions worldwide, including leading U.S. universities.

On October 13, the Ambassador and Consul General visited Stanford University, where they met with university researchers, faculty members, students, and representatives of the Baltic Studies Program. Discussions with international relations and security experts, including Steven Pifer, James Fearon, Norman Naimark, Katherine Jolluck, Indrek Sarap, Michael McFaul, Bertrand Patenaude, and Gabrielius Landsbergis, focused on transatlantic relations, security in the Baltic region, and broader challenges in international affairs.

A discussion with Stanford students, moderated by Dr. Rimvydas Baltaduonis, a lecturer in the university’s Department of Economics, addressed regional security and foreign policy. Students who had visited the Baltic states shared their experiences and reflections. The delegation also met with Liisi Esse and Parker Watt, coordinators of the Baltic Studies Program at Stanford University Libraries, to discuss the program’s activities and opportunities for further development, and learned about the university’s collections of publications from the Baltic states. At a meeting with Stanford Professor Joseph DeSimone, Lithuanian representatives discussed the U.S. Department of State’s Foundry School initiative, which aims to strengthen and modernize U.S. manufacturing, as well as potential avenues for Lithuania’s involvement in both the Foundry School and Pax Silica initiatives.

On October 14, concluding their visit to the San Francisco Bay Area, Ambassador Gediminas Varvuolis and Consul General Sandra Brikaitė met with Penny Coulter, Director of Protocol for the City and County of San Francisco, and Mark Chandler, Director of San Francisco Mayor’s Office of International Trade and Commerce. Discussions covered opportunities for cooperation between Lithuania and San Francisco, transatlantic relations, and priorities related to Lithuania’s upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union. An invitation for San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie to visit Lithuania was also conveyed.

At a meeting with Gerard de Graaf, Head of the European Union Office in San Francisco and Senior Envoy for Digital Affairs in the United States, and Isabel Hahn, AI Policy Officer at the EU Delegation to the United States, the participants discussed EU–U.S. cooperation in digital policy, innovation, and technology, as well as Lithuania’s upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

During the visit, the Ambassador and Consul General also met with members of the Lithuanian community in San Francisco to discuss community activities and its role in maintaining Lithuania’s connections with the region. Community members also expressed strong support for basketball player Justė Jocytė, who joined the gathering as she pursues her first WNBA championship title with the San Francisco Valkyries.

The visit was organized by the Consulate General of Lithuania in Los Angeles to strengthen Lithuania’s ties with one of the United States’ leading centers for technology, innovation, and investment.