Goldman Sachs Funds

Goldman Sachs Equity ETFs

INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs Bloomberg Clean Energy Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs Bloomberg Clean Energy Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its underlying index, in depositary receipts representing securities included in its underlying index and in underlying stocks in respect of depositary receipts included in its underlying index.

The Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Global Clean Energy Index (the “Index”) is designed to deliver exposure to companies that are expected to have a significant impact on energy decarbonization through their exposure to clean energy which includes, but is not limited to, clean power infrastructure (generation, transmission and distribution), solar energy, wind energy, energy storage, hydrogen energy, energy digitalization and bioenergy. The Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index designed to identify relevant companies using curated data acquired from a variety of sources by Bloomberg Professional Services (the “Index Provider”). Some of the clean energy companies in which the Fund invests may have operations that involve traditional energy facilities (including oil, gas or other hydrocarbons). The Index Provider constructs the Index in accordance with a rules-based methodology that involves three steps.

Step 1 — In the first step, the Index Provider defines a universe of potential index constituents (the “Universe”) by identifying securities that are constituents of the Bloomberg Global Equity Index and classified to be within clean energy sectors by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (“BNEF”). BNEF is a strategic research provider covering global commodity markets and the disruptive technologies driving the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Step 2 — In the second step, the Index Provider screens the Universe for thematic relevance to clean energy and estimates the proportion of an issuer’s value attributable to clean energy activities. The Index Provider’s estimates are based on quarterly data reviews by sector specialists using reported segment revenues, along with any other available metrics such as segmented earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”), alignment with the European Union’s Taxonomy Regulation, current and planned activities of the issuer, and expected growth of clean energy-relevant business lines relative to other business lines.

Thematic relevance is then divided into four categories based on percentage of a company’s value attributed to clean energy activities: A4 (Minor Driver of Decarbonization) – 10% or Less, A3 (Moderate Driver of Decarbonization) – 10% to 24%, A2 (Considerable Driver of Decarbonization) – 25% to 49% and A1 (Main Driver of Decarbonization) – 50% to 100%. Securities of issuers within category A4 (Minor) or Environmental, Social, and Governance (“ESG”)-controversial securities, and securities with high carbon impact and poor mitigation plans are excluded from the Index.

Step 3 — In the third step, the Index constituents are grouped by thematic relevance categories to maximize relevance and impact. Each thematic category is assigned a weighting to maximize exposure to securities with the greatest impact to de-carbonization as follows:

Within each category, the weight for a single security is capped at a specified level that varies by category. Any excess weight resulted from capping is redistributed proportionally across the remaining uncapped securities in the Index.

The Index is normally rebalanced and reconstituted quarterly in March, June, September, and December.

As of August 31, 2023, the Index consisted of 191 securities with a market capitalization range of between approximately $630.2 million and $819.1 billion. The components of the Index may change over time. The percentage of the portfolio exposed to any country or geographic region will vary from time to time as the weightings of the securities within the Index change, and the Fund may not be invested in each country or geographic region at all times.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

The Index is comprised of equity securities, including American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”) and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”). The Fund seeks to invest in the Index components in approximately the same weighting that such components have within the Index at the applicable time. The Fund may purchase a sample of securities in its Index. There may also be instances in which Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (“GSAM” or the “Investment Adviser”) may choose to underweight or overweight a security in the Fund’s Index, purchase securities not in the Fund’s Index that the Investment Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in such Index or utilize various combinations of other available investment techniques.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors.

The Fund is classified as “diversified” under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). However, the Fund may become “non-diversified” solely as a result of a change in the relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Index. A non-diversified fund may invest a larger percentage of its assets in fewer issuers than diversified funds.

The Fund may concentrate its investments (i.e., hold more than 25% of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Index is concentrated. The degree to which components of the Index represent certain sectors or industries may change over time.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e. the 12 months ended August 31, 2023, we believed that static, clean energy indices developed by index generalists may be missing investment opportunities. To solve for this, the Fund’s underlying index was designed by energy specialists at Goldman Sachs and BNEF to evolve with the low carbon transition. The Fund’s dynamic index leverages BNEF’s more than 200 research analysts to provide exposure to growth-oriented pure-play and “transitioning” clean energy companies.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its underlying index.

The Solactive US Large Cap Equal Weight Index (GTR) (the “Index”) is designed to measure the performance of equity securities of large capitalization U.S. issuers. The Index is an equal-weight version of the Solactive US Large Cap Index, a market capitalization-weighted index that includes equity securities of approximately 500 of the largest U.S. companies. The Index includes the same constituents as the Solactive US Large Cap Index. However, unlike the Solactive US Large Cap Index, in which each security is weighted based on its market value, each security in the Index is given the same weight, approximately 0.2% of the Index, at each rebalance.

As of August 31, 2023, the Index consisted of 494 securities with a market capitalization range of between approximately $9.1 billion and $2,937.2 billion. The Index is reconstituted on a semi-annual basis in May and November to reflect changes in the constituents of the Solactive US Large Cap Index. New securities from initial public offerings are also added on a semi-annual basis in February and August, subject to fulfillment of certain eligibility criteria. The Index is rebalanced on a monthly basis to weight all constituents equally.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e. the 12 months ended August 31, 2023, we believed that while mega-cap stocks may drive performance in market cap-weighted equity indices, many top performers may be found among non-mega-cap stocks. We maintain conviction in our methodology for providing meaningful access to opportunities among non-mega-cap stocks and avoiding concentration in mega-cap stocks by equally weighting the largest U.S. equities and rebalancing on a monthly basis. We believe this approach allows investors to participate in a broad range of market cycles and potentially reduce exposure to isolated market incidents.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its underlying index, in depositary receipts representing securities included in its underlying index and in underlying stocks in respect of depositary receipts included in its underlying index. The Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund VIP Index^TM (the “Index”) is designed to deliver exposure to equity securities whose performance is expected to influence the long portfolios of hedge funds. Such equity securities are defined as those that appear most frequently among the top ten equity holdings of U.S. hedge fund managers that select their investments based upon fundamental analysis. Goldman Sachs Asset Management, L.P. (the “Index Provider”) is the provider of the Index, which is constructed in accordance with a rules-based methodology.

Hedge fund managers report their U.S. equity holdings, which are made public 45 days after the end of each calendar quarter. The Index is normally reconstituted and rebalanced on a quarterly basis once the information has been fully disseminated. The construction of the Index involves accessing the identifiers and share counts of U.S. equity holdings disclosed by hedge fund managers in their quarterly 13F filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The Index is constructed to then apply share prices at the time of data collection to the numbers of shares listed in each 13F disclosure filing to calculate the dollar market value of each reported position. U.S. hedge fund managers that select their investments based upon fundamental analysis are assumed to be U.S. hedge fund managers with no fewer than 10 and no more than 200 distinct U.S. equity positions, as reported in the hedge fund managers’ most recent Form 13F filings. Managers with less than $10 million of disclosed equity assets are excluded.

The equity positions are then ranked within each individual hedge fund manager’s portfolio by descending market value. The approximately 50 stocks that appear most frequently in the top 10 holdings of this universe then become the Index constituents. Constituents are equal dollar-weighted at each rebalance.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors.

The Index does not include hedge funds (i.e., unlisted, privately offered funds) and is not designed to approximate the performance of any hedge fund manager, hedge fund or group of hedge fund managers or hedge funds. The Index should not be considered a hedge fund replication strategy. As of August 31, 2023, the Index consisted of 50 securities with a market capitalization range of between approximately $5.6 billion and $2,937.2 billion. The components of the Index may change over time. The percentage of the portfolio exposed to any asset class will vary from time to time as the weightings of the securities within the Index change, and the Fund may not be invested in each asset class at all times.

THE FUND IS NOT A HEDGE FUND AND DOES NOT INVEST IN HEDGE FUNDS.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e. the 12 months ended August 31, 2023, we continued to believe the most effective way to identify the most important positions of hedge fund managers is to know what equities they are holding. We also maintained conviction in our methodology for extracting these important positions — by obtaining information from quarterly 13F filings of hedge funds and identifying stocks that appear among top holdings the most frequently. Through an efficient implementation, we believe investors are able to access top hedge fund long equity ideas and gain exposure to evolving U.S. market themes.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs Innovate Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs Innovate Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to provide investment results that closely correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the Solactive Innovative Global Equity Index (the “Index”). The Fund seeks to provide investors exposure to the beneficiaries of technological innovation across all sectors, geographies and market capitalizations.

The Index is designed to deliver exposure to companies that may benefit from technological innovation and the resulting changes in the economy across five key themes (the “Key Themes”) that are potential drivers of changes in the economy. Each Key Theme is divided into multiple sub-themes (the “Sub-Themes”). The Key Themes are:

Data-Driven World Theme — Companies that are positioned to potentially benefit from the unprecedented proliferation of data, capitalizing on data storage, security and analysis as well as artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Finance Reimagined Theme — Companies that are positioned to potentially benefit from the evolving financial landscape, from the digitization of traditional financial services to the development of blockchain technology.

Human Evolution Theme — Companies that are positioned to potentially benefit from advances in medical treatment and technology, from robotic surgery and precision medicine to gene therapy and care for an older population.

Manufacturing Revolution Theme — Companies that are positioned to potentially benefit from the technology-driven transformation of the manufacturing industry, including the emergence of new processes, products and energy sources.

New Age Consumer Theme — Companies that are positioned to potentially benefit from structural shifts in the way we consume goods and services due to changes in demographics, technology and consumer preferences.

The Index is comprised entirely of securities that compose the Solactive Data Driven World Index, the Solactive Finance Reimagined Index, the Solactive Human Evolution Index, the Solactive Manufacturing Revolution Index, and the Solactive New Age Consumer Index (the “Solactive Thematic Indexes”), which are designed to provide exposure to the Data Driven World Theme, the Finance Reimagined Theme, the Human Evolution Theme, the Manufacturing Revolution Theme and the New Age Consumer Theme, respectively. The weight of each index constituent within the Index is equal to the average weight of such index constituent across the Solactive Thematic Indexes, subject to specified minimum and maximum weights.

Solactive AG (the “Index Provider”) determines the components of each Solactive Thematic Index in accordance with a rules-based methodology that involves four steps. The following index methodology applies to each Solactive Thematic Index.

Step 1 — In the first step, the Index Provider defines a universe of potential index constituents (the “Universe”). The Universe is comprised of companies that meet all the below criteria:

Step 2 — In the second step, the Index Provider screens publicly available information, such as financial news, business profiles and company publications, using keywords that describe the Key Theme and its proprietary natural language processing algorithm to identify companies within the Universe that have or are expected to have significant exposure to a Sub-Theme. In addition, additional company and/or third-party information is screened in order to verify a company’s relevance to at least one of the Sub-Themes. Securities of issuers whose relevance to at least one of the Sub-Themes cannot be verified is removed from the Universe.

Step 3 — In the third step, each company identified in Step 2 is assigned a thematic relevance score with respect to each Sub-Theme. For each Sub-Theme, the Index Provider identifies 50 companies with the highest thematic relevance scores. The Index Provider then combines the thematic relevance scores for all Sub-Themes of each company identified to calculate such

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

company’s overall score. The top 100 companies with the highest overall scores are included in the Solactive Thematic Index. In addition, certain buffer rules are applied to prevent excessive turnover.

Step 4 — In the fourth step, the Index Provider calculates a thematic beta for each index constituent, which is a quantitative measurement of the exposure of the index constituents to the applicable Key Theme. Index constituents are then weighted according to a function of its market capitalization and thematic beta, subject to specified minimum and maximum weights.

The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its Index, in depositary receipts representing securities included in its Index and in underlying stocks in respect of depositary receipts included in its Index. The Fund may concentrate its investments (i.e., hold more than 25% of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Index is concentrated. The degree to which components of the Index represent certain sectors or industries may change over time.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors. Also, unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not attempt to outperform the Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued.

The Index is normally rebalanced quarterly on the third Friday of each January, April, July and October.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e., the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023, the pace of technological innovation was faster than ever before, creating significant disruption across industries as new entrants and business models emerged and incumbents faced the threat of being dislodged. In our view, the Fund presented an attractive long-term opportunity, as we thought its underlying secular growth Key Themes and Sub-Themes would drive the financial markets during the coming decades. We believed fundamentally sound companies that could benefit from these Key Themes and Sub-Themes may be well-positioned to outperform. Although the Fund’s growth style and its exposure to the emerging markets can lead to short-term volatility, we remained confident overall in the long-term strength of these Key Themes and Sub-Themes at the end of the Reporting Period.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to provide investment results that closely correspond, before fees and expenses, to the performance of the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index (the “Index”).

The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its underlying index, in depositary receipts representing securities included in its underlying index and in underlying stocks in respect of depositary receipts included in its underlying index.

The Index is designed to deliver exposure to equity securities of large capitalization U.S. issuers that engage in “just business behavior” based on rankings produced by JUST Capital Foundation, Inc. (the “Index Provider”). The Index Provider publishes an annual ranking of issuers in the Russell 1000^® Index (the “Reference Index”) based on its quantitative performance assessment of seven issue areas: how they treat their workers, their customers, the communities they interact with, the environment, and their shareholders, their commitment to making quality and beneficial products, and job creation.

The Index Provider seeks to encourage greater accountability in the business community and drive positive change among large publicly-traded U.S. corporations by (a) defining business behaviors that the American public cares most about (through extensive qualitative and quantitative survey research), (b) developing metrics that correspond to these issues in accordance with a robust, transparent methodology, (c) ranking the largest publicly-traded U.S. companies on the basis of these metrics, and (d) developing tools and products that allow investors to direct capital towards more “just” companies.

The Index is a market capitalization-weighted index that consists of the top-ranked 50% of companies in the Reference Index by industry, based on the most recent rankings by the Index Provider. On the annual Index reconstitution date, Index constituent weights are adjusted such that the Index is industry neutral and matches the Reference Index’s industry weights, based on the Industry Classification Benchmark (“ICB”) industry classification.

As of August 31, 2023, the Index consisted of 459 securities with a market capitalization range of between approximately $1.3 billion and $2,937.2 billion. The Index is normally reconstituted annually in December and rebalanced in March, June and September on dates corresponding to the rebalance dates for the Reference Index. The components of the Index may change over time. The Index Provider determines whether an issuer is a U.S. issuer by reference to the index methodology of the Reference Index. FTSE Russell, which constructs the Reference Index, will deem an issuer to be a U.S. issuer if it is incorporated in, has a stated headquarters in, and trades in the U.S.; if any of these do not match, the Reference Index methodology providers for consideration of certain additional factors.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors.

The Fund seeks to invest in the Index components in approximately the same weighting that such components have within the Index at the applicable time. However, under various circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable to purchase all of the securities in the Index in the approximate Index weight. In these circumstances, the Fund may purchase a sample of securities in the Index. There may also be instances in which the Investment Adviser may choose to underweight or overweight a security in the Fund’s Index, purchase securities not in the Fund’s Index that the Investment Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in such Index or utilize various combinations of other available investment techniques.

The Index is calculated by Frank Russell Company (“Russell” or the “Calculation Agent”) in accordance with the methodology and constituent list developed and provided by the Index Provider.

The Fund may concentrate its investments (i.e., hold more than 25% of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Index is concentrated. The degree to which components of the Index represent certain sectors or industries may change over time. The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund’s total assets (including the value of any collateral received).

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

For a complete overview of and more in-depth information about the Index Provider’s processes, please view its Full Ranking Methodology and Survey Research Appendices at https://justcapital.com/methodology/full-ranking-methodology/.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e. the 12 months ended August 31, 2023, we believed a focus on just business behavior via a data-driven approach may provide a suitable core U.S. equity allocation for investors seeking to encourage greater accountability in the business community through their investments. The Fund’s data-driven approach collects and analyzes data from a diverse range of sources, utilizing more than 150,000 data points across 66 unique metrics to score the performance of Russell 1000^® Index companies. These companies are scored across a variety of issues, including worker treatment, customer concerns and environment impacts to provide broad market exposure.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs North American Pipelines & Power Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs North American Pipelines & Power Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its assets (exclusive of collateral held from securities lending) in securities included in its underlying index, in depositary receipts representing securities included in its underlying index and in underlying stocks in respect of depositary receipts included in its underlying index.

The Solactive Energy Infrastructure Enhanced Index (the “Index”) is designed to deliver exposure to equity securities of U.S. and Canadian listed companies, including companies structured as master limited partnerships (“MLPs”), operating in the pipelines and power universe. The universe of pipelines and power companies will include those that are classified by a third party as operating within the “Midstream Energy,” “Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Propane and other Distributors,” or “Oil and Gas Transportation and Infrastructure” subsector or industry groups or derive a specified percentage of revenue from certain “Alternative Wholesale Power” sub-industries (subject to certain exclusions).

Investments in MLP securities taxed as partnerships will not exceed 25% of the Fund’s total assets as measured at the time of investment.

Given the Fund’s investment objective of attempting to track the Index, the Fund does not follow traditional methods of active investment management, which may involve buying and selling securities based upon analysis of economic and market factors.

The Index is owned and calculated by Solactive AG (“Solactive” or the “Index Provider”). Solactive constructs the Index in accordance with a rules-based methodology that involves three steps.

Step 1 — The starting universe (“Universe”) is made up of listed equity securities primarily listed on an exchange in the United States or Canada issued by pipelines and power companies. Under the Index methodology, pipelines and power companies are those assigned by FactSet RBICS to the Midstream Energy, LPG, Propane & Other Distributors, or Oil and Gas Transportation and Infrastructure subsectors or industry groups or deriving a cumulative revenue above 50% from certain Alternative Wholesale Power RBICS sub-industries, in each case subject to certain additional screens and filters.

Step 2 — The Index Provider removes constituents with average daily market capitalizations and trading values below specific thresholds from the Universe. As of August 31, 2023, the Index includes issuers with public stock market capitalizations of at least $395.6 million.

Step 3 — The remaining securities are weighted by float-adjusted market capitalization in the Index. The securities are then measured by two fundamental factors, Growth and Quality. The Index determines Growth and Quality rankings using various sub-factors designed to measure a security’s performance based on these factors (for example, earnings per share growth for Growth and return on investment capital for Quality). The Index Provider ranks each security based on the two fundamental factors, and the index is then reweighted in proportion to scoring on these fundamental factors with higher scores having higher weights in the index. The weights of the constituents are adjusted at each rebalance to ensure compliance by the Fund with the diversification requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as applicable to regulated investment companies (“RICs”).

The Index is rebalanced on a quarterly basis. The components of the Index may change over time. The Fund seeks to invest in the Index components in approximately the same weighting that such components have within the Index at the applicable time. The Fund may purchase a sample of securities in its Index. There may also be instances in which the Investment Adviser may choose to underweight or overweight a security in the Fund’s Index, purchase securities not in the Fund’s Index that the Investment Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in such Index or utilize various combinations of other available investment techniques.

The Fund may concentrate its investments (i.e., hold more than 25% of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that its Index is concentrated. As of the date of this Prospectus, the Index is concentrated in the energy sector. The degree to which components of the Index represent certain sectors or industries may change over time.

The Fund is structured as a RIC under the Code.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

THE FUND IS NON-DIVERSIFIED UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940, AS AMENDED (THE “INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT”), AND MAY INVEST A LARGER PERCENTAGE OF ITS ASSETS IN FEWER ISSUERS THAN DIVERSIFIED FUNDS. PRINCIPAL RISKS OF THE FUND

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e. the 12 months ended August 31, 2023, we believed that the Fund provides exposure to the full opportunity set of energy infrastructure securities, including those structured as both MLPs and common stocks. Further, we believed the Fund is enhanced with smart factors. More specifically, the Index, developed with input from energy specialists at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, applies quality and growth tilts that seek to apply the principles of active management in a rules-based framework. Finally, we believed the Fund provides a tax efficient structure, as its RIC structure avoids taxation at the fund level with an aim to maximize investor tax efficiency.

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INVESTMENT PROCESS

Goldman Sachs Defensive Equity ETF

Principal Investment Strategies

The Goldman Sachs Defensive Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks long-term growth of capital with lower volatility than equity markets. In seeking to achieve this objective, the Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes (measured at the time of purchase) in a diversified portfolio of equity investments in U.S. issuers with public stock market capitalizations within the range of the market capitalization of the S&P 500^® Index at the time of investment and other instruments with similar economic exposures. The Fund’s investments in fixed income securities are limited to cash equivalents (including money market funds) and U.S. Treasury securities.

In an effort to provide lower volatility and enhanced downside protection, the Fund uses an options-based overlay strategy. Specifically, the Fund employs a “put option spread collar” overlay strategy whereby the Fund simultaneously purchases a near-the-money put while selling (writing) an out-of-the-money call and put on the S&P 500^® Index or other national or regional stock market indices (or ETFs that seek to track such indices). The difference between strike prices in the put option spread is designed to provide the Fund with downside protection to the extent of the difference between the strike prices of the near-the-money put option bought and the out-of-the-money put option sold. (A put option is an option contract that gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, to sell a specified amount of an underlying asset at a specified price within a specified time. A call option is an option that gives the holder the right to buy a certain quantity of an underlying security at an agreed-upon price at any time up to an agreed-upon date. “Near-the-money” is a term used to describe an options contract with a strike price that is close to the market price of the underlying asset. “Out-of-the-money” is a term used to describe a put option with a strike price that is lower than the market price of the underlying asset.)

As the seller of S&P 500^® Index call and put options, the Fund will receive cash (the “premium”) from the purchaser. If the purchaser exercises the call option, the Fund pays the purchaser the difference between the price of the index and the exercise price of the option. If the purchaser exercises the put option, the Fund pays the purchaser the difference between the exercise price of the option and the price of the index. The premium, the exercise price and the market price of the index determine the gain or loss realized by the Fund as the seller of call and put options.

During periods in which the U.S. equity markets are generally unchanged or falling, a diversified portfolio with limited downside protection from its put spread collar strategy may outperform the same portfolio without such an options strategy. However, in strong rising markets where the aggregate appreciation of the underlying index exceeds the exercise price of the short call, a portfolio with a put spread collar strategy could significantly underperform the same portfolio without these options.

In addition to the use of the put spread collar overlay strategy described earlier, the Fund may use future contracts, primarily futures on indexes, options on futures, and total return swaps to more effectively gain targeted equity exposure from its cash positions and to hedge the Fund’s portfolio if it is unable to purchase or write the necessary options for its overlay strategy. Derivative positions may be listed or over-the-counter (“OTC”) and may or may not be centrally cleared.

The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”), which is a fund that trades like other publicly traded securities. The Fund is not an index fund and does not seek to replicate the performance of a specified index.

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At the end of the Reporting Period, i.e., the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023, we continued to employ our options-based overlay strategy, which may provide lower volatility and enhanced downside protection for the Fund, as we seek to provide investors with favorable risk-adjusted returns.

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PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs Bloomberg Clean Energy Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning for the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

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PORTFOLIO RESULTS

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FUND BASICS

Bloomberg Clean Energy Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

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GOLDMAN SACHS BLOOMBERG CLEAN ENERGY EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value, as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on February 8, 2022 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s underlying index, a market cap-based index against which the performance of the Fund is measured, Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Global Clean Energy Index (Total Return, Unhedged, USD) is shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sale of Fund shares. In addition to the performance of constituents of the underlying index, other factors may affect Fund performance. These factors include, but are not limited to, Fund operating fees and expenses, portfolio turnover and creation and redemption in-kind transactions. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 Investment, with distributions reinvested, from February 8, 2022 through August 31, 2023.

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PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning for the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

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PORTFOLIO RESULTS

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FUND BASICS

Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

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GOLDMAN SACHS EQUAL WEIGHT U.S. LARGE CAP EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value, as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on September 12, 2017 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s underlying index and a market cap-based index against which the performance of the Fund is measured, the Solactive US Large Cap Equal Weight Index (GTR) and the S&P^® 500 Index (Total Return, Unhedged, USD), respectively, are shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sale of Fund shares. In addition to the performance of constituents of the underlying index, other factors may affect Fund performance. These factors include, but are not limited to, Fund operating fees and expenses, portfolio turnover and creation and redemption in-kind transactions. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 Investment, with distributions reinvested, from September 12, 2017 through August 31, 2023.

19

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs Hedge Industry VIP ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning for the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

20

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

21

FUND BASICS

Hedge Industry VIP ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

22

GOLDMAN SACHS HEDGE INDUSTRY VIP ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value, as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on November 1, 2016 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s underlying index and a market cap- based index against which the performance of the Fund is measured, the Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund VIP Index™ and the S&P 500^® Index (Total Return, USD), respectively, are shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sale of Fund shares. In addition to the performance of constituents of the underlying index, other factors may affect Fund performance. These factors include, but are not limited to, Fund operating fees and expenses, portfolio turnover and creation and redemption in-kind transactions. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 Investment, with distributions reinvested, from November 1, 2016 through August 31, 2023.

23

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs Innovate Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning for the 12-month period ended August 31, 2022 (the “Reporting Period”).

24

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

25

FUND BASICS

Innovate Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

26

GOLDMAN SACHS INNOVATE EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value, as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on November 6, 2020 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s underlying index, the Solactive Innovative Global Equity Index (Net Total Return, USD), a market-cap based index against which the performance of the Fund is measured, is shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sale of Fund shares. In addition to the performance of constituents of the underlying index, other factors may affect Fund performance. These factors include, but are not limited to, Fund operating fees and expenses, portfolio turnover and creation and redemption in-kind transactions. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 Investment, with distributions reinvested, from November 6, 2020 through August 31, 2023.

27

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning for the 12-month period ended August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

28

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

29

FUND BASICS

JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

30

GOLDMAN SACHS JUST U.S. LARGE CAP EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value, as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on June 7, 2018 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s underlying index and a market-cap based index against which the performance of the Fund is measured, the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index and the Russell 1000^® Index (Total Return, USD), respectively, are shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the sale of Fund shares. In addition to the performance of constituents of the underlying index, other factors may affect Fund performance. These factors include, but are not limited to, Fund operating fees and expenses, portfolio turnover and creation and redemption in-kind transactions. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 Investment, with distributions reinvested, from June 7, 2018 through August 31, 2023.

31

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs North America Pipelines & Power Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies Team discusses the Fund’s performance and positioning from its inception on July 11, 2023 through August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

32

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

33

FUND BASICS

North America Pipelines & Power Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

34

GOLDMAN SACHS NORTH AMERICA PIPELINES & POWER EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The returns set forth above represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s NAV and investment return may fluctuate. These fluctuations may cause an investor’s shares to be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted above. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

35

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

Goldman Sachs Defensive Equity ETF

Portfolio Management Discussion and Analysis

Below, the Goldman Sachs Quantitative Investment Strategies (“QIS”) Team discusses performance and positioning for the periods from January 1, 2023 through January 20, 2023 and from the Fund’s inception on January 23, 2023 through August 31, 2023 (the “Reporting Period”).

36

PORTFOLIO RESULTS

37

FUND BASICS

Defensive Equity ETF

as of August 31, 2023

For more information about the Fund, please refer to www.GSAMFUNDS.com/ETFs. There, you can learn more about the Fund’s investment strategies, holdings, and performance.

38

GOLDMAN SACHS DEFENSIVE EQUITY ETF

Performance Summary

August 31, 2023

The following graph shows the value as of August 31, 2023, of a $10,000 investment made on September 30, 2020 (commencement of operations) in Shares at NAV¹. For comparative purposes, the performance of the Fund’s benchmark, the S&P 500^® (TR, Unhedged, USD) is shown. Performance reflects applicable fee waivers and/or expense limitations in effect during the periods shown and in their absence, performance would be reduced. Returns do not reflect the deduction of taxes that a shareholder would pay on Fund distributions or the redemption of Fund shares. The returns set forth below represent past performance. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The Fund’s investment return and principal value will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance may be lower or higher than the performance quoted below. Please visit our web site at www.GSAMFUNDS.com to obtain the most recent month-end returns.

Performance of a $10,000 investment, with distributions reinvested, from September 30, 2020 through August 31, 2023.

39

FUND BASICS

Index Definitions and Industry Terms

Alpha: The excess returns of a fund relative to the return of a benchmark index is the fund’s alpha.

Russell 1000^® Index is an index of approximately 1,000 of the largest companies in the U.S. equity market. The Russell 1000^® is a

subset of the Russell 3000^® Index. It represents the top companies by market capitalization. The Russell 1000^® typically comprises

approximately 90% of the total market capitalization of all listed U.S. stocks. It is considered a bellwether index for large cap investing. It

is not possible to invest directly in an unmanaged index.

S&P 500^® Index is the Standard & Poor’s 500 Composite Index of 500 stocks, an unmanaged index of common stock prices. The Index figures do not reflect any deduction for fees, expenses or taxes. It is not possible to invest directly in an unmanaged index.

Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Global Clean Energy Index is service marks of Bloomberg Finance L.P. and its affiliates, including Bloomberg Index Services Limited (“BISL”), the administrator of the index (collectively, “Bloomberg”) and have been licensed for use for certain purposes by Goldman Sachs. “Goldman Sachs^®” is a trademark of Goldman Sachs and has been licensed by Bloomberg for use in the name of the Index. Bloomberg is not affiliated with Goldman Sachs, and Bloomberg does not approve, endorse, review, or recommend Goldman Sachs Bloomberg Clean Energy ETF (the “ETF”). Bloomberg does not guarantee the timeliness, accurateness, or completeness of any data or information relating to the ETF.

Solactive US Large Cap Equal Weight Index is calculated and published by Solactive AG. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Solactive Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Solactive Index to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF. Neither publication of a Solactive Index by Solactive AG nor the licensing of the Solactive Index or Solactive Index trade mark for the purpose of use in connection with the Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF constitutes a recommendation by Solactive AG to invest capital in said fund nor does it in any way represent an assurance or opinion of Solactive AG with regard to any investment in this fund.

The Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund VIP Index^TM is owned and maintained by the Index Provider. The Index is calculated by Solactive AG. The Index consists of the US-Iisted stocks whose performance is expected to influence the long portfolios of hedge funds. Those stocks are defined as the positions that appear most frequently among the top 10 long equity holdings within the portfolios of fundamentally driven hedge fund managers. It is not possible to invest directly in an unmanaged index.

Solactive Innovative Global Equity Index is calculated and published by Solactive AG. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Solactive Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Solactive Index to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF. Neither publication of a Solactive Index by Solactive AG nor the licensing of the Solactive Index or Solactive Index trade mark for the purpose of use in connection with the Goldman Sachs Equal Weight U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF constitutes a recommendation by Solactive AG to invest capital in said fund nor does it in any way represent an assurance or opinion of Solactive AG with regard to any investment in this fund.

JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index “JUST” and “JUST Capital” are trademarks of JUST Capital Foundation, Inc. or its affiliates and have been licensed for use in connection with the issuance and distribution of the Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF. JUST Capital Foundation, Inc. and its affiliates do not in any way recommend the purchase, sale or holding of any security based on the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index including the Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF, or have any involvement in their operations or distribution. JUST Capital Foundation, Inc., its affiliates, calculation agent, and data providers expressly disclaim all representations, warranties, and liabilities relating to or in connection with the Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF (including, without limitation, any warranties of originality, accuracy, completeness, timeliness, non-infringement, merchantability, and fitness for a particular purpose). Frank Russell Company (“Russell”) acts solely as calculation agent in respect of the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index. Russell does not in any way sponsor, support, promote or endorse the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index or the Goldman Sachs JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF. In no event shall any Russell party have any liability for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, punitive, consequential (including without limitation, lost profits) or any other damages in connection with the JUST US Large Cap Diversified Index. The index provider may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.

Solactive Energy Infrastructure Enhanced Index is calculated and published by Solactive AG. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Solactive Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards Goldman Sachs North American Pipelines & Power Equity ETF, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Solactive Index to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of Goldman Sachs North American Pipelines & Power Equity ETF. Neither publication of a Solactive Index by Solactive AG nor the licensing of the Solactive Index or Solactive Index trade mark for the purpose of use in connection with the Goldman Sachs North American Pipelines & Power Equity ETF constitutes a recommendation by Solactive AG to invest capital in said fund nor does it in any way represent an assurance or opinion of Solactive AG with regard to any investment in this fund.

40

GOLDMAN SACHS BLOOMBERG CLEAN ENERGY EQUITY ETF

Schedule of Investments

August 31, 2023

GOLDMAN SACHS BLOOMBERG CLEAN ENERGY EQUITY ETF

Schedule of Investments (continued)

August 31, 2023