?????????????? This week in Bay Area business: a health check for Oakland, an API megaround and Sam Altman going to City Hall?
San Francisco Business Times
The San Francisco region's source for local business news & events. Part of the American City Business Journals network.
A wet and windy week in the Bay Area. An atmospheric river brought lashings of rain while market watchers had plenty to digest. Time for a health check, perhaps??
Kaiser Permanente delivered a big one of those, with the news that it plans to slash space at its Oakland headquarters.?
We went big on Oakland real estate this week, shining a light on the city's office and condo markets, and the future of the Coliseum. Is it all still doom and gloom?
Elsewhere, there was a bumper API funding round, some rare coins, a Starbucks closing and Sam Altman heading to City Hall.?
All this and more in another week in Bay Area business.
‘Imminent default.’ Kaiser expected to shrink HQ by Hannah Kanik
We broke the news about Kaiser Permanente’s plans to significantly reduce its footprint at its national headquarters in Oakland, putting the financial future of the building in doubt. It’s the latest in a series of blows to hit the city.?
Oakland Structures
We examined all things real estate this week ahead of our annual Oakland Structures event on December 5.?
Tickets to our annual event are still available, get yours here.
Value of Charles Schwab's former S.F. headquarters takes a 50% hit by Sarah Klearman
Appraisers slashed the value of 211 Main St. by roughly half at the end of October, suggesting the building is worth less today than the debt Blackstone Inc. used to acquire it almost eight years ago. Quite a trim. Read the story.
The week in real estate
Salesforce at last signs contract to keep Dreamforce in San Francisco until 2027 by Alex Barreira
Salesforce is officially under contract to bring Dreamforce back to San Francisco and Moscone Center through 2027 in a deal that grants favorable hotel terms to the city's largest annual conference host.
"It's still great business, and it's still profitable business," one hotel executive told us. "If it means we make less of a profit to keep the business, we're willing to do that."
Tiger Global, A16z back API startup Kong in new megaround by Sara Bloomberg
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Kong Inc. is helping its customers build 'the software assembly line for the AI era.' It’s a proposition that's proving very popular with investors. Backers including Tiger Global Management , Balderton Capital and Andreessen Horowitz joined a funding round that took Kong’s valuation past $2 billion.
S.F. Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie appoints Sam Altman to transition team by William Hicks
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is joining mayor-elect Daniel Lurie's transition team. Altman will co-chair the team, along with six others including former police chief Paul Yep and former fire chief Joanne Hayes-White.
There's nothing old about how this rare coin shop makes money by Simon Campbell
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Witter Coin has been selling rare coins in San Francisco for decades. Now it's doing millions of sales on livestream auction app Whatnot .
Supersize me: Flynn Group acquires dozens of Wendy's restaurants in Indianapolis by Alex Barreira
San Francisco-based Flynn Group , the world's largest operator of franchise restaurants, is wrapping a blistering year of growth with one more deal in the fast food space. The biggest is getting bigger.
Has San Francisco's downtown condo market bounced back? What real estate agents say by Ted Andersen
San Francisco's median condo sales prices are up 5.5% year-over-year but prices still well below their 2022 peaks. Here's what real estate agents are saying about the state of the market.
ICYMI here’s what else you need to know
Who are the game changers in Bay Area business?
40 Under 40 nominations are open!
Nominations for our 40 Under 40 awards are open. For these awards, the name says it all: 40 innovative, awesome and inspiring people, under the age of 40.
Nominations are open and we want your help in selecting the Bay Area’s best of the best.
Get your tickets
What next for Oakland real estate?
Our annual Oakland Structures event will shine a light on the people, projects and trends that are shaping the city.
What key projects will redefine the city? What sectors are growing?? How can Oakland ensure that it provides enough housing, and in an era of remote work, what does the future of office development look like?
When: Thursday, December 5, 2024, 8:00am –10:30am
Tickets are on sale now, get yours here.
Moonshots and Doom Loops ?????????
This weekly Bay Area business? round-up is written by Simon Campbell, special projects editor at the San Francisco Business Times.
Reach out with news tips, questions or comments: [email protected].
And one more thing . . .
Nominate and celebrate ????
Nominations are open for our awards and events including 40 Under 40, Fastest Growing Companies, Best Places to Work, Real Estate Deals of the Year, Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business, and many more.
Stay safe and have a good week.