San Diego
San Diego has long been an attractive space for startups. The city, famed for its beauty and weather, is a magnet for talent, luring thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators to its shores each year. Those forward-thinkers have put their skills to work, particularly in the tech and life sciences areas.
As early as 2006, Gunderson Dettmer sensed “America’s Finest City” would have a profound impact on technology and we opened our San Diego office that year with three lawyers. In the more than 20 years since, our team has grown to two dozen attorneys representing more than 250 private and public companies and venture capital funds focused on a wide range of industries including life sciences, media, technology, and software.
Our clients trust us to advance their visions and help make them a reality. That’s where our years of experience come into play — we’ve seen the business lifecycle play out time and again. We’re excellent advisors because we can anticipate the next shift and guide our clients in the right direction.
That ability to steer the ship of innovation is reflected in the successes of our clients. The San Diego team doesn’t just take on companies, we also represent more than 30 funds in their portfolio investments.
San Diego has served as a hub for biotech, pharmaceutical research, and innovation. Our life sciences portfolio is particularly deep; we represent 300 of these companies, which raised more than $6 billion in capital since 2022. Our deep industry knowledge offers our life sciences clients world-class guidance to negotiate and implement win-win strategic transactions, collaborations and licensing arrangements with other companies, frequently the largest pharma, biotech, and medical device companies in the world.
Office Leaders
