“The Evolution of Houston’s Translational Research Hub” Speakers: C. Casey Cunningham, Cindy Farach-Carson, Robert Robbins, Robert L. Satcher Click here to register.
Author: Angela Shah
Angela Shah was formerly the editor of Xconomy Texas. She has written about startups along a wide entrepreneurial spectrum, from Silicon Valley transplants to Austin transforming a once-sleepy university town in the '90s tech boom to 20-something women defying cultural norms as they seek to build vital IT infrastructure in a war-torn Afghanistan. As a foreign correspondent based in Dubai, her work appeared in The New York Times, TIME, Newsweek/Daily Beast and Forbes Asia.
Before moving overseas, Shah was a staff writer and columnist with The Dallas Morning News and the Austin American-Statesman. She has a Bachelor's of Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and she is a 2007 Knight-Wallace Fellow at the University of Michigan. With the launch of Xconomy Texas, she's returned to her hometown of Houston.
5th Annual Texas Life Science CEO Summit
An invitation-only event for life science CEOs in Texas to network and exchange ideas in an informal setting. Register at: www.biohouston.org For more information, contact: Kim Case at BioHouston at [email protected]
Space Health Innovation Challenge
The Space Health Innovation Challenge is a hackathon sponsored by Health 2.0 and co-organized by Enventure and the Health 2.0 Houston chapter to provide new perspectives on problems faced by the Johnson Space Center that will keep astronauts healthy while living in space or traveling in NASA’s Orion spacecraft during deep space missions. For more information, see: www.MissionToMarsHealth.com
Rice Alliance Showcases Breadth of Cleantech Startups, Investors
The first misconception that needs to be banished is that cleantech and traditional energy are different. So began Rice University’s latest Energy and Clean Technology Venture Forum last week, a pitch-day for energy startups as well as a forum for venture and angel investors to discuss trends in the industry. “We need to get away … Continue reading “Rice Alliance Showcases Breadth of Cleantech Startups, Investors”
Dallas Startup Pure Discovery Gets $10 Million for Smarter Search
A Dallas startup has raised $10 million to further develop its “post-search” business. Pure Discovery is a search platform that aims to refine search beyond the keyword model we use today. Their product, Brainspace, aims to create a data “brain” that reads documents and uses artificial intelligence to connect it with other documents that relate … Continue reading “Dallas Startup Pure Discovery Gets $10 Million for Smarter Search”
Virtuix Opens a Virtual World at Your Feet, in Your living Room
Virtual reality has become a very real startup niche for Jan Goetgeluk. Six months ago, the Belgian immigrant left his job at J.P. Morgan in Houston to focus full-time on Virtuix, a startup that makes the Omni, a 360-degree treadmill that creates virtual environments for gamers. In July, he launched a Kickstarter campaign, hoping to … Continue reading “Virtuix Opens a Virtual World at Your Feet, in Your living Room”
Icahn Withdraws Opposition to Dell Buyback Offer
After months of legal wrangling this summer, it looks like Michael Dell will get his company back. Billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn conceded defeat yesterday in his bid to prevent Dell Computer from being brought private in the bid led by Dell’s founder. In a letter to shareholders, Icahn reiterated his opposition to the buyout, … Continue reading “Icahn Withdraws Opposition to Dell Buyback Offer”
Houston’s C-Voltaics Takes Nanotech From Solar Power to Stain Protection
If a Houston-based startup has its way, more red-wine drinkers of the world could dare to wear white. The young company, C-Voltaics, has come up with a chemical solution that it says will stain-proof wood, carpets, and even your best white clothing from water, coffee, red wine, or other damaging substances. C-Voltaics’ product is called … Continue reading “Houston’s C-Voltaics Takes Nanotech From Solar Power to Stain Protection”
Crowdfunding A Better Classroom, One Penny At A Time
Entrepreneurs are turning to crowdfunding to help ease the pinch in school budgets. Online platforms are already used to boost fledgling culinary or music careers, to help pay for medical expenses or support new ideas for TV shows. So it’s not a surprise that entrepreneurs have turned to crowdfunding to innovate in the education sector. … Continue reading “Crowdfunding A Better Classroom, One Penny At A Time”
A Silicon Valley Pioneer Molds the Next Wave of Innovators at Rice
Jack Gill went to northern California more than 40 years ago, becoming part of Silicon Valley’s formation. He landed there in the late ’60s and founded Autolab, which pioneered the use of microprocessor-based instruments and computers for chromatography laboratory applications and was later acquired by Spectra Physics. In 1981, Gill co-found Vanguard Ventures, one of … Continue reading “A Silicon Valley Pioneer Molds the Next Wave of Innovators at Rice”
Cleanweb Startups Make Their Debut at Start Demo Day
Houston’s prowess in energy has historically been the purview of the major oil companies whose headquarters’ marquees dot the city’s skyline. Efforts to boost startups in the sector are actually fairly new. But some new momentum is being created. On Wednesday, Start Houston, a startup incubator located in a gritty neighborhood east of downtown, held … Continue reading “Cleanweb Startups Make Their Debut at Start Demo Day”
Nest Labs Fills Spot in Austin’s Emerging Cleantech Cluster
Nest Labs has opened a technical support and customer service center in Austin. The Palo Alto-based maker of smart thermostats plans to hire 125 agents in conjunction with Spot BPO, an Austin business management consultancy, which will provide technical support services. Nest’s move to Austin, which was announced yesterday afternoon, is part of the development … Continue reading “Nest Labs Fills Spot in Austin’s Emerging Cleantech Cluster”
SXSW Seeks Input on Cleantech, Education, Film and Music Panels
Voting is underway for panels at South By Southwest Interactive, as well as for SXSW Music, SWSW Film, and SXSWedu. More than 4,000 panel ideas have been submitted for the four conferences on topics ranging from technology and women’s empowerment to virtual health and how to use “big data” for just about everything. The SXSW … Continue reading “SXSW Seeks Input on Cleantech, Education, Film and Music Panels”
Garaizar Aims to Elevate Houston Angels’ Profile and Outreach
Juliana Garaizar joined the Houston Angel Network as managing director just as the group was seeking to revamp its operations and take a more prominent role in the state’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The first challenge Garaizar confronted was the fact that the angel network, founded in 2001, had historically been a bit insular, even demure about … Continue reading “Garaizar Aims to Elevate Houston Angels’ Profile and Outreach”
Techstars Austin’s First Class: Startups in E-Commerce, Health, and 3D printing
Techstars Austin introduced its first startup class this week, with entrepreneurs innovating in health care, retail, and wearable technology, among other sectors. More than 850 startups applied for the 10 slots available for the three-month accelerator program. The companies will end the program by participating in a demo day in late October. Boulder-based Techstars announced … Continue reading “Techstars Austin’s First Class: Startups in E-Commerce, Health, and 3D printing”
Rice’s OwlSpark Accelerator Debuts First Class of Startups
The inaugural class of Rice University’s OwlSpark accelerator made its debut last week. A group of nine companies comprised the new accelerator’s class when it formed last May, including three composed of undergrads, three of graduate students, and three that are staffed by alumni. They range from IT-based analytical companies aiming to help customers make … Continue reading “Rice’s OwlSpark Accelerator Debuts First Class of Startups”
Spira’s High-Tech Running Shoes Get Big Break on “Duck Dynasty”
This might have to be called crowdfunding on steroids: A West Texas startup will today have its product featured in a special on-air segment in between the broadcast of the A&E network’s “Duck Dynasty,” one of America’s most popular TV shows. Spira Footwear, which has patented what it calls WaveSpring technology, will introduce a new … Continue reading “Spira’s High-Tech Running Shoes Get Big Break on “Duck Dynasty””
Dallas Startup Haul Links Retailers to YouTube Marketers
Celebrity endorsements are a tried-and-true method for brands to get exposure. But, thanks to technology, even everyday Joes and Janes can become important ambassadors to retailers, and get paid to do it. This marketing force is known as “haulers,” named for the shopping hauls that they show off on homemade YouTube videos. The queen bees … Continue reading “Dallas Startup Haul Links Retailers to YouTube Marketers”
Localeur Lists ‘Manly Sh*t’ in Houston, SF’s ‘Best Places to Om’
Travel suggestions on the Web abound, but one Austin, TX, startup says it can provide tourists with the inside scoop on a destination through a selected group of residents themselves. Localeur—think “local” plus “connoisseur”—has focused on what co-founder and CEO Joah Spearman calls experiences rather than reviews. “Reviews are very good for products—‘You should go … Continue reading “Localeur Lists ‘Manly Sh*t’ in Houston, SF’s ‘Best Places to Om’”
Cleantech Startup AutoGrid Tracks the Peaks of Austin’s Energy Use
Big Data has come to thermostats in Austin. Austin Energy, along with Palo Alto, CA-based AutoGrid, is analyzing when and how much electricity is used by the city’s homes, businesses, and industrial users in order to make the power grid more efficient. “We are crunching all the data and how we can drive efficiently throughout … Continue reading “Cleantech Startup AutoGrid Tracks the Peaks of Austin’s Energy Use”
Energy Startup DrillMap raises $6.5M, Helps to Digitize the Oilfield
DrillMap, an Austin-based cleantech startup, said today it has raised $6.5 million in venture capital. The Series A round was led by Rockport Capital, a Boston VC firm that specializes in energy, sustainability, and mobility, along with ConocoPhillips and Ridgewood Capital. DrillMap sells a subscription-based Internet database that displays publicly available and private data on … Continue reading “Energy Startup DrillMap raises $6.5M, Helps to Digitize the Oilfield”
Infochimps CEO: CSC’s Purchase Plays Up Strengths of Big Data, Cloud
Jim Kaskade, the CEO of Infochimps, had approached Mike Lawrie, his counterpart at Computer Sciences Corp. (NYSE: [[ticker:CSC]]), to see if he would agree to be an advisor to the Austin, TX, startup. Five months later, the men would be announcing that Falls Church, VA-based CSC would be acquiring Infochimps. “By joining forces with CSC, … Continue reading “Infochimps CEO: CSC’s Purchase Plays Up Strengths of Big Data, Cloud”
Austin’s Infochimps, Big Data Analysis Software Maker, Bought by CSC
Austin-based Infochimps has been acquired by Falls Church, VA-based Computer Sciences Corp (NYSE: CSC). About 30 minutes after the news filtered out in a series of congratulatory messages through Twitter, Jim Kaskade, the Austin startup’s CEO, confirmed the purchase in a post on his company blog. “By joining forces with CSC, we together will deliver … Continue reading “Austin’s Infochimps, Big Data Analysis Software Maker, Bought by CSC”
Dallas’s GlobeStart Connects Local Entrepreneurs With Global Peers
Accelerators often bring in international startups as part of their slate of budding companies, but rarely do the programs cater entirely to these global entrepreneurs. Yet, that’s exactly the mission of GlobeStart, which is run by Dallas-based Tech Wildcatters. The program, which is less than a year old, brings six to eight startups to Dallas … Continue reading “Dallas’s GlobeStart Connects Local Entrepreneurs With Global Peers”
Texas Roundup: EIV Capital, Appconomy, and UTMB
Temperatures are rising in Texas, but it’s not tamping down startup activity across the state. Our latest Texas Roundup includes new funds for energy investment, a new partnership that brings a Boston startup to China (with its Austin partner), and how reality TV can influence a top medical institution. —EIV Capital Management Company in Houston … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: EIV Capital, Appconomy, and UTMB”
Buyout Battle Highlights Dell’s History, Role in Austin Startup Scene
While it’s still uncertain if Michael Dell will succeed in bringing his namesake company private, the approval of his more generous buyout terms by a special committee on Friday does seem to make his path easier. Shareholders convened very briefly Friday to accept a proposal that sweetens the bid by Dell and Silver Lake Management … Continue reading “Buyout Battle Highlights Dell’s History, Role in Austin Startup Scene”
Pumps & Pipes Aims to Bring Together Energy, Medicine, Space Innovators
Companies often struggle within themselves to get different departments to collaborate. So trying to bring together completely disparate sectors—say, innovators in energy and medicine—to work together for mutual benefit would seem like madness. But that’s exactly the mission of the Houston organization Pumps & Pipes. “We work very hard to establish that even dissimilar areas … Continue reading “Pumps & Pipes Aims to Bring Together Energy, Medicine, Space Innovators”
Workshops Illustrate Growth of Houston Startup Scene
The Dog Days of August are soon upon us, but the startup scene in Houston is not showing any sign of slowing down. The Saturday afternoon traffic was brisk across Morningside Drive. And it wasn’t just the patrons of the bars and restaurants in the Rice Village, a shopping center tucked in between the Texas … Continue reading “Workshops Illustrate Growth of Houston Startup Scene”
Fort Worth’s Athlon Energy to Raise $363 Million in IPO
Athlon Energy, a Fort Worth-based oil and natural gas company, could raise as much as $363 million in an initial public stock offering this week, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company, which was founded in 2010, focuses its drilling activities in about 220 wells in the Permian Basin in … Continue reading “Fort Worth’s Athlon Energy to Raise $363 Million in IPO”
TrueAbility, San Antonio Online Recruiting Tool, Raises $2 Million
San Antonio startup TrueAbility today announced it has completed a Series A fundraising of $2 million in venture capital. TrueAbility sells a cloud-based service that allows recruiting managers to assess candidates’ technical skills in an online environment that mimics the workplace. “In the typical interview process, it isn’t easy to assess the technical skills of … Continue reading “TrueAbility, San Antonio Online Recruiting Tool, Raises $2 Million”
Texas Oilman Created The Fracking Boom, Ignited Energy Startups
Texas billionaire oilman George Mitchell, who spawned a modern-day gold rush as the “father of fracking,” died Friday in Galveston. He was 94. Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, refers to a procedure that injects fluids under pressure to increase the yield of underground oil and gas formations. Mitchell’s innovation set off an entrepreneurial boom in the … Continue reading “Texas Oilman Created The Fracking Boom, Ignited Energy Startups”
Abbott to Acquire Medical Device Startup Idev Technologies
Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) is acquiring Idev Technologies, a suburban Houston medical device company, in a $310 million deal. Idev manufactures stents used by interventional radiologists, vascular surgeons, and cardiologists to treat blockages in arteries in the leg. The market for peripheral artery disease is expected to grow to $3.3 billion by 2017, according to Millennium … Continue reading “Abbott to Acquire Medical Device Startup Idev Technologies”
Ex-Prometheus Exec Takes the Reins at Dallas’ Gradalis
Gradalis, a Dallas-based life sciences startup, announced today that it has hired pharmaceutical veteran Joseph M. Limber to lead the company as it further develops its personalized vaccine for ovarian cancer. Limber comes to Gradalis having already spent three decades in the life sciences industry. Most recently he lead Prometheus Pharmaceuticals in San Diego to … Continue reading “Ex-Prometheus Exec Takes the Reins at Dallas’ Gradalis”
OpenIncubate to Boost Open-Source Startups in Austin, Boston, and SF
[Updated at 2:06 p.m.] Austin, TX, will be one home to a new incubator designed to promote innovation in open-source technology. OpenIncubate is a joint project by Austin Ventures, Battery Ventures in Boston, and The Valley Fund, located in Menlo Park, CA. The firms hope to boost open-source startups in each region with mentoring and … Continue reading “OpenIncubate to Boost Open-Source Startups in Austin, Boston, and SF”
Startup MD: Group Aims to Help Houston Doctors Become Entrepreneurs
Physicians are used to having complete authority when in an operating room, a command-and-control environment that doesn’t allow for deliberation or consensus. That mentality, however, doesn’t work very well when it comes to entrepreneurship and building startups. “Physicians are terrible at entrepreneurship because they work in a bubble,” says Sudhen Desai, a Houston radiologist. “You … Continue reading “Startup MD: Group Aims to Help Houston Doctors Become Entrepreneurs”
U of H’s Bose Focused on Bringing Innovation to Market
Rathindra N. Bose’s business cards read the University of Houston’s vice chancellor/vice president for research and technology. But he should’ve chosen the job title: technology evangelist. You might not realize, he says, but the university is a top-tier research institution, graduating 300 PhD’s each year, with $150 million in research dollars, and a portfolio of … Continue reading “U of H’s Bose Focused on Bringing Innovation to Market”
Texas Roundup: Appconomy, Bellicum, and Datafiniti
This week brings us news of three Texas startups raising money, progressing on cancer research, and settling into a new home. Money, money, money: Austin’s Appconomy closed this week on a bridge loan of just under $3 million. Appconomy provides mobile marketing and e-commerce platforms for Chinese retailers. The new money will help fund its … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Appconomy, Bellicum, and Datafiniti”
UT “WaterChip,” Plus a Startup, Could Make Desalination More Efficient
Millions of people die each year worldwide from a lack of fresh water. Scientists at the University of Texas at Austin have an innovation that could help prevent that—and they’re working with a startup to bring the technology to market. The “WaterChip” creates a small electrical field that removes salts from seawater using a technique … Continue reading “UT “WaterChip,” Plus a Startup, Could Make Desalination More Efficient”
Mirna Therapeutics Taking on Cancer With Help of Tiny RNAs
Mirna Therapeutics, an Austin-based life sciences startup, is bringing out the big guns in the fight against cancer, in the form of tiny RNA molecules. In just over three years, Mirna has raised nearly $50 million to develop drugs based on microRNAs, very short strands of RNA that can act like genomic master switches, each … Continue reading “Mirna Therapeutics Taking on Cancer With Help of Tiny RNAs”
Texas Roundup: TechStars Austin, Houston Hackathon, and More
An Independence Day hangover notwithstanding, we at Xconomy Texas want to be sure you are updated with startup happenings. Techstars Austin—The Boulder-based accelerator received more than 850 applications for its inaugural startup class in Austin, says Jason Seats, who is heading up TechStars Austin. In May, TechStars announced its expansion to Austin, its seventh city. … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: TechStars Austin, Houston Hackathon, and More”
Houston Startup Vapogenix Aims to Build a Better Pain Drug
Treating pain usually means taking medication that has to course through our bloodstream—our entire body—before it can take effect. The thing is, we typically feel pain in one place. So why can’t we just treat that specific area, and in a faster fashion? Houston-based Vapogenix is working on a drug that could do exactly that. … Continue reading “Houston Startup Vapogenix Aims to Build a Better Pain Drug”
Texas Cancer Agency Withdraws Pending Startup Funding Applications
The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas has dismissed five pending grant applications by companies seeking funding in light of CPRIT’s ongoing reorganization. The move came days after Texas Gov. Rick Perry approved on June 15 a new law designed to reform the embattled agency. CPRIT had come under legislative and legal scrutiny late last … Continue reading “Texas Cancer Agency Withdraws Pending Startup Funding Applications”
Houston Research Institute Funds Health Startups for Earth and Space
Space may be the final frontier, but it also could represent new horizons for better, more effective healthcare back on Earth. That’s essentially the philosophy of the National Space and Biomedical Research Institute in Houston, a sort of venture capital arm for NASA which provides seed funding to healthtech and biotech startups nationally. Whether the … Continue reading “Houston Research Institute Funds Health Startups for Earth and Space”
New Entrepreneur Center Aims to Connect, Brand Startups in Dallas
Blame it on J.R. The traits displayed by the fictional oilman—enterprising, hyper-competitive, a win-at-all-costs mentality—have helped to make real-life Dallas into one of America’s top business cities and home to an impressive list of Fortune 500 corporations. But that hasn’t necessarily been the best boost to the city’s startup scene. “Historically we are a very … Continue reading “New Entrepreneur Center Aims to Connect, Brand Startups in Dallas”
Red Labs Boosts New Startup Culture at University of Houston
Hesam Panahi has spent nearly all his academic life at the University of Houston. As both an undergrad and graduate management and information systems student, he attended classes in the same building that housed the school’s entrepreneurship program—and still never knew it existed. “We’ve had this program since ’94 and I just found out about … Continue reading “Red Labs Boosts New Startup Culture at University of Houston”
Texas Roundup: CPRIT Renewed, Cancer Biomarker Test, Austin MedTech
Here are the updates this week from Xconomy Texas. —The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas is one step closer to resuming grant funding. Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Monday signed into law a number of reforms to CPRIT, a major funder of cancer research whose grant-giving activities were placed on hold by Perry … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: CPRIT Renewed, Cancer Biomarker Test, Austin MedTech”
New Fund from Austin’s S3 Boosts Venture Investment in Texas
Austin, TX-based venture capital firm S3 Ventures has raised a $75 million fund to invest in information technology and medical device companies. The fund is the firm’s fifth and largest to date, and is the first tech fund in Texas to announce a close in two years. “There are fewer and fewer local investors here, … Continue reading “New Fund from Austin’s S3 Boosts Venture Investment in Texas”
UT Gaming Academy Aims to Train Next Generation in Business
It’s time for the video game industry to grow up. No longer the purview of introverts on the sidelines of the creative arts, gaming is a global business worth tens of billions of dollars, and its practitioners need to become as savvy business-wise as they are in the creative and technical realms. That’s the perspective … Continue reading “UT Gaming Academy Aims to Train Next Generation in Business”
Texas Roundup: Appconomy and NanoRacks Expand, Upgrade
In Texas, school is already out and the lazy days of summer have begun in earnest. But things are not slowing down in the Texas startup scene, with companies this week making announcements of fundraising and product upgrades for customers as far-flung as in China and low Earth orbit. —NanoRacks, the Houston space-science startup located … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Appconomy and NanoRacks Expand, Upgrade”
UK-based Cell Medica Lands in Texas To Seek Cancer Therapy
The next frontier in fighting cancer is using the body’s own immune system to fight the disease, an approach that will supplement traditional radiation and chemotherapy treatments. So says the chief executive of Cell Medica, a London-based life sciences startup that’s put down roots in the Texas Medical Center. As the keynote speaker at a … Continue reading “UK-based Cell Medica Lands in Texas To Seek Cancer Therapy”