This week, some of the brightest stars of the Northern tech scene have been on a trade mission to California, after hopping on board Manchester’s inaugural flight to San Francisco.
More than 30 delegates set off on Tuesday morning following a ministerial dinner hosted by Deloitte, attended by Trade and Investment minister Greg Hands.
This is the first ever direct service from the North to San Francisco and the only route outside of London in the UK.
It is hoped Virgin Atlantic’s new route will deliver a major boost to the industry across the North, giving them access to funding and know-how from the home of tech giants like Facebook, Uber, Eventbrite and Apple.
Attendees have visited the likes of LinkedIn, Rocket Space, GCA Global and Stanford University.