California and Denmark sign new partnership on climate, technology efforts

• In March, Governor Newsom welcomed a delegation from the Mexican state of Sonora and signed a partnership advancing the development of clean energy, supply chain resilience, and expanding regional access to renewables.

• In February, California and a consortium of 21 Brazilian states partnered together to combat pollution and foster sustainable economic growth. 

• Last year, Governor Newsom signed an MOU with Emilia-Romagna during a visit to Italy for the Vatican’s Climate Summit, and another MOU in May with Gyeonggi Province, South Korea – the center of the country’s economy and high-tech industry. Governor Newsom also welcomed delegations from Sweden and Norway and renewed climate partnerships with the two governments.

• In 2023, Governor Newsom led a California delegation to China, where California signed five MOUs – with China’s National Development and Reform Commission, the provinces of Guangdong and Jiangsu, and the municipalities of Beijing, and Shanghai. The trip also resulted in a first-of-its-kind declaration by China and California to cooperate on climate action like aggressively cutting greenhouse gas emissions, transitioning away from fossil fuels, and developing clean energy. California also launched the Mediterranean Climate Action Partnership (MCAP) at COP 28, working to support members in quickly adapting to climate impacts and emergencies. 

• Also in 2023, California signed a MOU with the Chinese province of Hainan, as well as with Australia.

• In 2022 alone, California signed Memorandums of Cooperation with Canada, New Zealand and Japan, as well as Memorandums of Understanding with China and the Netherlands, to tackle the climate crisis. The Governor also joined with Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia to recommit the region to climate action.

California’s climate leadership

Pollution is down and the economy is up. Greenhouse gas emissions in California are down 20% since 2000 – even as the state’s GDP increased 78% in that same time period. 

The state also continues to set clean energy records. California was powered by two-thirds clean energy in 2023, the latest year for which data is available – the largest economy in the world to achieve this level of clean energy. The state has run on 100% clean electricity for some part of the day almost every day this year.

Since the beginning of the Newsom Administration, battery storage is up to over 15,000 megawatts – a 1,900%+ increase, and over 25,000 megawatts of new resources have been added to the electric grid. 

Leading in technology 

AI is already changing the world, and California will play a pivotal role in defining that future. As the fourth-largest economy in the world and the birthplace of the tech industry, California continues to dominate this sector as the leader in AI. The state is home to 32 of the 50 top AI companies worldwide. In addition to championing responsible use of this emerging industry, California is harnessing its potential to increase efficiency and support state operations.   

California has launched efforts to help the state take advantage of this emerging technology, while also creating responsible policy guardrails to protect Californians. In 2023, Governor Newsom signed an executive order laying out California’s measured approach to state GenAI procurement. That EO has shaped the future of ethical, transparent, and trustworthy GenAI deployment, all while California remains the world’s GenAI leader. Within state government, projects are already underway to utilize GenAI to reduce highway congestion, improve roadway safety, and enhance customer service in a state call center, among other new initiatives. And this year, a group of world-leading AI academics and experts, convened at the request of Governor Newsom,  finalized a new empirical, science-based analysis of the capabilities and attendant risks of frontier models  — which will help pave the way for the use of AI for the benefit of all Californians, and the world. 

Last year, Governor Newsom also signed a series of bills to crack down on sexually explicit deepfakes and require AI watermarking, ban AI-generated child pornography, protect consumers by preventing scams from AI-generated robocalls, protect performers’ digital likenesses, and combat deepfake election content.