Minister Peter Burke leads Trade and Investment Mission to United States West Coast, as Irish tech exports to the USA surge to over €1.1bn in 2023 and visual effects sector sees rapid growth

• United States is the largest export market for Enterprise Ireland tech clients, achieving over €1.1bn exports in 2023.
• 290 West Coast IDA Ireland client companies operate in Ireland, employing approx 71,000 people 
• 4 of the top 5 international employers in Ireland headquartered in the US West Coast
• Dublin based W4 Games announce new partnership with Meta and investment from Second Dinner, the game studio behind Marvel.
• Irish Visual Effects (VFX) sector celebrates rapid growth with USA entertainment industry -Ireland’s SSVFX wins Emmy Award for outstanding special visual effects for Shogun.

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke T.D., is embarking on an Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland Trade and Investment Mission to the West Coast of the United States today, as Enterprise Ireland client tech exports to the USA surge to over €1.1bn in 2023 and IDA Ireland strengthens and consolidates key strategic partnerships in the region.

The USA is now the largest export market for Enterprise Ireland tech companies whilst North America remains IDA's most important market for FDI, accounting for over 70% of inward investment employment in Ireland.  In 2023, 156 investments from North American companies were made in Ireland which will result in 13,000 new jobs.

Accompanied by Enterprise Ireland CEO Leo Clancy and IDA Ireland CEO Michael Lohan, the delegation of 16 Enterprise Ireland clients and 15 IDA Ireland clients from the technology sector will participate in the 5-day programme across Los Angeles, San Diego, Silicon Valley, San Francisco and Seattle, engaging with US companies including NVIDIA, Netflix and Amazon.

Second Dinner, the game studio behind Marvel Snap, has invested in Irish gaming start-up W4 Games, signalling their commitment to developing games using the Godot open-source game engine. W4 Games recently announced a new partnership with Meta to enhance the Godot engine's integration with Meta Quest, expanding the open-source game development ecosystem for virtual and mixed reality (XR) experiences.

Enterprise Ireland client companies also taking part in the mission, who are focused on rapid growth in the USA include SSVFX, Element VFX, Taoglas, W4 Games, Tines and Equal1.

Beginning the Trade Mission in Los Angeles, Minister Burke and members of VFX Ireland, the trade association that represents Ireland's VFX studios will meet with Netflix and Amazon Studios to discuss on-going and future collaboration opportunities. Irish VFX studios, such as Windmill Lane, EGG VFX, Piranha Bar and Outer Limits, have worked on major Netflix and US productions including Shogun, Bodkin, The Woman King, The Apprentice (2024) and The Forsyte Saga, showcasing their world-class talent.

The Irish VFX industry continues to thrive, now employing over 300 people and revenues have grown 326% in the last 5 years. Ireland’s strategic location, talent and the Section 481 tax incentive make it a prime hub to serve the U.S entertainment industry. 

Minister Peter Burke commented, “I am delighted to lead the Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland trade mission to the USA’s West Coast. This trade mission will focus on key growth opportunities across the technology sector, supporting both early entrants and established Irish companies to expand key business relationships and secure further growth opportunities.

“Ireland’s continued contribution to FDI to the United States, at almost $240 billion, highlights the depth of the economic ties between both countries. Ireland’s creative and tech industry has an excellent international reputation, demonstrating world-class technical skill and we believe there is significant opportunity for future growth. There are a number of vibrant Irish companies travelling with us on this trade mission and I look forward to supporting them in bringing their highly innovative products and solutions to the US market.

“I am very proud of our reputation as an attractive destination for foreign direct investment largely due to our pro-business environment, our highly-educated workforce and our membership of the European Union. During the visit we will meet with key business people in the US and will outline how our focus on sustainability and digital transformation can support companies as they build competitiveness, expand, and further embed themselves in Ireland, and as a springboard to accessing the EU Single Market and the wider EMEA.”

Leo Clancy, CEO, Enterprise Ireland said: “Enterprise Ireland client companies are scaling rapidly in the USA, which is now the second largest export country for client exports, with €5.9bn exports in 2023. Expanding their footprint in the USA, Enterprise Ireland clients have established 80 new market presences in the United States in the last 18 months, supported by Enterprise Ireland’s six offices across the USA.  The trade mission this week will look to further support Enterprise Ireland clients to scale in the market, particularly in the tech and VFX sectors, which are showing strong growth potential for our client companies.”

Michael Lohan, CEO, IDA Ireland said: “As part of this trade mission, we will be meeting with some of the largest and most dynamic companies in the world of technology and life sciences.  These companies among others continue to seek stable, pro-business locations for their businesses to expand and grow. This week offers us an important opportunity to deepen our relationships with face-to-face meetings at the highest level with new and existing clients.   Competition for foreign investment has never been as intense and trade missions such as these, help to increase awareness of Ireland’s attractiveness as a place to invest and succeed.”

 “Investment from this part of the world continues to perform extremely well. In 2023, a total of 33 investments were secured from West Coast companies across the technology, high growth and life science sectors,” concluded Michael Lohan.

Many top tier global companies from the West Coast such as Intel, Apple, Dexcom, Microsoft, Amazon have established in Ireland and continue to invest heavily in significant projects of scale at their Irish operations.  Today, there are 290 West Coast headquartered companies operating in Ireland, employing in excess of 71,000 people, representing a quarter of total employment by IDA clients.

Minister Burke will also attend the following events across California and Washington State as part of the Trade Mission programme: 

• USA Tech Advisory Panel event in San Francisco featuring Enterprise Ireland client company, Taoglas, who will discuss their international expansion activities. The Tech Advisory panel is a curated group of senior executives and industry thought-leaders providing best-in-class advice and mentorship to help Irish businesses thrive in the US marketplace.
• Bay Area E-commerce Roundtable Event with Enterprise Ireland client company, Everyangle, and a delegation of US retail technology executives. The event will focus on the evolving retail landscape, shifting customer behaviours, and how companies like Everyangle are leveraging AI to shape retail insights. With the global retail technology market projected to grow to $33.7 billion by 2025, there is a significant opportunity for Irish tech companies to lead in this transformation. 
• San Francisco and Bay Area Digital Roundtable and Reception, featuring prominent digital industry leaders, Chief Marketing Officers, and Senior Marketing Specialists from the Bay Area. The event will focus on the ‘Bay-Area – Ireland report’, highlighting the mutually beneficial relationship that exists between Ireland and the Bay Area. Enterprise Ireland clients participating, include THINKHOUSE, i1 Studios; Kooba, Piranha Bar, BuyMedia and Tiny Ark.
• Meeting with Chief Information Security Officers from across the Seattle business community with Enterprise Ireland client company, Tines, to discuss Ireland’s capability as a global hub for cybersecurity solutions. 

Irish business growing success in the USA include: 

• On Sunday, September 8th, Enterprise Ireland client company, SSVFX, won the Emmy nomination for Outstanding Special Visual Effects for their exceptional work on Shogun. With this win, SSVFX have cemented its reputation as a leader in the industry, capable of transforming complex stories into breathtaking visual experiences.
• Enterprise Ireland client company, Phorest Salon Software has established a new partnership with Salon Services Pro, a salon distributor based in Washington state. Additionally, the Phorest team has added two new West coast-based roles. In 2025, Phorest will continue to grow its partnerships, events, and staff on the West coast.
• Otonomee a remote first, customer management outsourcing business, is expanding its partnership with health and wellness company, Oura. Responding to demand, Otonomee has now launched operations in the US market, hiring its first employees in Florida in September 2024. The Irish company now employs 250 Team Members, adding over 120 roles in 2024 alone.
• SoftCo, the fast-growing Accounts Payable (AP) and Procure-to-Pay (P2P) automation SaaS company, continues its expansion in North America. SoftCo recently announced their latest AI-powered platform, SoftCoAI+, which drives market-leading automation for customers such as Snap-on, Alexander Wang, Primark, SunnyD & Patagonia.
• In January 2024, Teamwork.com expanded its footprint further in Denver, Colorado, moving into a larger office space to house its growing Sales, Customer Success, Finance and Marketing teams. In 2024, award-winning independent PR firm, Marathon Strategies, chose Teamwork.com to run its operations in both New York City and Washington, DC.
• Version 1, a leader in digital transformation, has been focusing on the US market in 2024, building on its operations currently centred around capital markets and financial services. Recently, Version 1 was selected by Polk County, Florida, as Oracle Managed Support partner for service delivery driven by ASPIRE, Version 1’s next generation managed service model, which will be customised to meet Polk County’s specific needs.
• Taoglas celebrates its 20th business anniversary. Founded in 2004 in Ireland and Taiwan, Taoglas has grown to be a global leader in the IoT and connectivity ecosystem, with over 20,000 customers in more than 100 countries and eight facilities worldwide. The company is dually headquartered in San Diego and Enniscorthy, Ireland.
• Kooba, a leading digital design agency based in Dublin, announces the launch of ‘AccessPoint,’ a new brand dedicated to advancing digital accessibility. This strategic initiative reflects Kooba’s commitment to inclusivity and will generate 10 new roles across design, development, and support over the next six months as the agency expands its focus on the US and EU markets.