European Union Office in San Francisco

To mark Europe Day 2026, the European Union Office in San Francisco and representatives of EU Member States across the Bay Area came together for a series of events celebrating European unity, shared democratic values, and the enduring transatlantic partnership.

The celebrations began with a flag-raising ceremony at San Francisco City Hall, where the European Union flag was raised alongside the participation of city representatives, EU Member States, and members of the diplomatic community. The EU Office also hosted a Europe Day reception at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Bowes Center for Performing Arts under the theme “The EU and the U.S. Building Bridges.”

Together, these events brought together government representatives, diplomats, business leaders, researchers, cultural institutions, and members of the European community in the Bay Area to reaffirm the strength of EU-U.S. cooperation across innovation, research, technology, business, culture, and people-to-people ties. Learn more.

President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola visited San Francisco 26-28 May 2026, engaging with leading technology companies, investors, researchers, and members of the European innovation ecosystem in Silicon Valley. Her programme included meetings with SF Mayor, senior executives from major U.S. technology companies, visits to leading innovation campuses, and an exchange with students at Stanford University focused on the future of EU-U.S. cooperation in technology, trade, security, and innovation.

As part of her visit, the EU Office in San Francisco hosted President Metsola for a high-level private roundtable with senior European business leaders, followed by a Brussels to the Bay town hall event bringing together c.a. 100 European founders, entrepreneurs, investors, and professionals working across the U.S. technology ecosystem.

President Metsola engaged directly with participants, listening to their experiences and perspectives on building companies and advancing innovation across both sides of the Atlantic Many participants highlighted access to finance and market fragmentation as the main challenges to building and scaling companies in Europe. President Metsola was encouraged to see that people in Silicon Valley were not only aware of key European initiatives to streamline rules and strengthen growth opportunities, such as the 28th Regime and EU.Inc, but also remained genuinely interested in the European market. Many founders and investors expressed a desire to scale internationally while maintaining strong ties to Europe, whether by returning in the future or continuing to build and operate businesses across the continent. Learn more.

On April 15, the EU Office in San Francisco hosted EU Commissioner for democracy, justice, the rule of law and consumer protection, Michael McGrath, at our flagship Brussels to the Bay event during his official visit to the West. 

In a conversation with James Dempsey, Commissioner McGrath outlined how Europe is recalibrating its digital strategy to make rules more harmonised, usable, and scalable. What is often described in the U.S. as a patchwork of state-level rules mirrors the EU’s own challenge of fragmentation across 27 Member States, pointing to a same objective of enabling companies to scale with minimal friction while maintaining high standards. Across his portfolio, the direction is clear: simplify rules to boost innovation and competitiveness while preserving trust, notably through initiatives such as the “EU Inc.” framework for startups, targeted GDPR clarifications for AI, the protection of transatlantic data flows, and new measures on digital fairness and democratic resilience. Learn more.

• Engage with policymakers, academia, civil society, and industry that are active in the digital and green sectors on the West Coast  
• Report to EU institutions in Brussels about technological trends and policy insights developed and discussed in the United States, namely on the West Coast
• Organize and participate in outreach initiatives to clearly explain the EU's work to boost and regulate the digital economy (e.g. its "Brussels to the Bay" event series)
• Provide in-depth updates about the policymaking process of European tech regulation, as well as the vision, embedded-values, and problem statement behind them
• Facilitate the connection between EU and Bay Area stakeholders, especially regarding visits

The purpose of the San Francisco office:

• Explain EU policies and promote EU-U.S. understanding around technological concerns, policies, and actions
• Support transatlantic alignment and governance based on shared democratic values
• Collect inputs from local stakeholders to feed EU policymaking

The opening of the San Francisco office is a result of the 2021 EU-U.S. Summit's commitment to strengthening transatlantic technological cooperation. It is also a core part of the Conclusions on Digital Diplomacy, adopted by the EU Foreign Affairs Council in July 2021.

The San Francisco office seeks to promote EU standards and technologies, digital policies and regulations, and governance models. It also aims to strengthen cooperation with U.S. stakeholders, including advancing the work of the EU-U.S. Trade and Technology Council. Read more about the office opening here.