8 Houston entrepreneurs recognized on annual EY awards program

regional winners

Eight Houston entrepreneurs are among 16 recipients of EOY’s Gulf South Award, which recognizes leaders of high-growth companies in Central Texas, South Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Photo via Getty Images

Eight Houston-area entrepreneurs have been named regional winners in Ernst & Young’s 2024 Entrepreneur Of The Year program.

The eight entrepreneurs are among 16 recipients of EOY’s Gulf South Award, which recognizes leaders of high-growth companies in Central Texas, South Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

A panel of judges chose the winners based on factors such as:

  • Creation of long-term value through entrepreneurship.
  • Commitment to the purpose of their business.
  • Demonstration of growth and “substantial impact.”

“The 2024 Entrepreneur Of The Year Gulf South Award winners are exceptional business leaders fueling innovation within their industries and growth within their companies,” says Anna Horndahl, an EY partner who is co-director of EOY’s Gulf South program.

The Houston area’s Gulf South winners for 2024 are:

  • Hal Brumfield of Tachus Fiber Internet, a provider of fiber-to-the-home internet service based in The Woodlands.
  • Stuart Hinchen and Peter Jenkins of QuVa Pharma, a Sugar Land-based provider of ready-to-administer injectables.
  • Andrew Levy of Avelo Airlines, a low-cost airline based in Houston.
  • Derek Maetzold of Castle Biosciences, a Friendswood-based provider of diagnostic tests.
  • Shannon Payne of Allied Fire Protection, a Pearland-based provider of fire prevention products and services.
  • John Poindexter of JB Poindexter & Co., a Houston-based provider of automotive and manufacturing goods and services.
  • Ting Qiao of Wan Bridge, a Houston-based developer and operator of build-to-rent communities.

“These entrepreneurs are shining examples of how to lead a scaling business and also care for their employees, customers and communities,” says Travis Garms, an EY partner who is co-director of EOY’s Gulf South program.

The regional winners now qualify for consideration in the EOY national awards program. The national awards are scheduled to be presented in November.

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Was Houston snubbed? Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash

Houston falls behind other Texas cities in report ranking best tech hubs

ouch

In a recent report analyzing metrics for best cities for tech hubs, Houston failed to crack the top 20 — unlike a few other Texas cities.

The new report, "The Top Tech Cities in the US: Ranking 100 Cities in 2024," by online security experts Cloudwards, examined 100 tech-reliant cities in the nation across 17 key indicators, including salaries for information technology professionals, a city's cost of living, internet quality, job opportunities and tech-related companies, and more.

Austin is the No. 7 best tech city in the nation, yet somehow not the best in Texas; The Dallas suburb of Plano outshone the capital city at No. 4, and its neighbor Frisco came in at No. 10. Houston, however, came in at No. 22.


Courtesy of: Cloudwards.net

Here's how Houston stacked up in the major categories in the study:

  • No. 13 – Cost of Living and Tech Salaries
  • No. 16 – Career and Education
  • No. 40 – Tech Community
  • No. 44 – Innovation and Entrepreneurship
  • No. 53 – Internet Coverage and Quality

Austin's spot in No. 7 behind Plano's No. 4 might be surprising, but, according to the report, the Texas capitol's higher cost of living is to blame.

"Texas’s capital, Austin is a good place for startups since it’s easy to find top talent, initial capital and inexpensive office space," wrote the report's author. "However, due to the rapid rise in population (3 percent between 2021 and 2022), the cost of living has increased and access to good real estate has become more costly. Even so, the city’s distinct culture, access to educational opportunities and work-life balance continue to make Austin a popular choice for many IT professionals."

With many employers still embracing remote work, having a good wifi connection can make or break a person's ability to work from home. It seems that helped Plano get a leg up on Austin; 96 percent of Plano households have internet access, which was the single best connection rate of any city in the study. Austin didn't make the top five — but at least it didn't make the bottom five either.

Frisco also topped out in one category in particular, earning the title as "the most livable city in the U.S." according to Cloudwards.

Average salaries for IT professionals in Frisco come out to about $95,516 annually, which is only a $217 difference from Plano at $95,733. Given Austin's middling rank on the list above, no data was shared.

Central Texas didn't have much representation on the list. Although there were several North Texas suburbs, the only city near Austin was San Antonio, which came in at No. 18. It was the "Innovation and Entrepreneurship" category that brought it down, ranking No. 72.

Nationally, the cities that round out the top five most tech-savvy cities in the U.S. are:

  • No. 1 – New York City, New York
  • No. 2 – Washington, D.C.
  • No. 3 – San Francisco, California
  • No. 4 – Plano, Texas
  • No. 5 – Jersey City, New Jersey

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

San Antonio, Austin, and the space in between could be the state's next big mega-metro. Photo by Matthew LeJune on Unsplash

Surprising new documentary explores emerging Texas mega-metro that could rival Houston

bigger in texas

It's no secret that Austin and San Antonio are becoming some of the biggest cities in Texas, and that together, they just might rival the likes of Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth one day.

A new documentary called San Antonio-Austin: The Emerging Mega-Metro takes a deep dive into the booming 80-mile region between the Central Texas cities

Produced by KLRN, San Antonio's local PBS station, the program centers on the region's growth and the challenges that arise with such rapid expansion, such as water scarcity, environmental impacts, and increasingly common transportation and traffic woes.

They're issues that Houston residents know well, as the city's population continues to explode at a staggering rate.

"We know the area between San Antonio and Austin is growing at a tremendously rapid pace, but what is really happening is the development of a mega-metro that will be one of the biggest economic powerhouses in the world," says Shari St. Clair, the documentary's executive producer, in a release.

“We delve into the questions that need to be asked right now — how do we retain quality of life as we grow? How do we build a sustainable workforce?" St. Clair continues. "And, can San Antonio and Austin truly join forces and work together to make the most of this incredible opportunity?"

The hour-long documentary is hosted by former San Antonio mayor Henry Cisneros, who also authored The Texas Triangle: An Emerging Power in the Global Economy. The special highlights several prominent Central Texas leaders, including interviews with Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenburg, U.S. Congressman Greg Casar, and more.

As Texas is also a state of committed sports fans, the idea of a mega-metro between Austin and San Antonio is additionally explored through a sports lens. The documentary interviewed legends like Nolan Ryan, Sean Elliot, and Spurs Chairman Peter J. Holt.

San Antonio-Austin: The Emerging Mega-Metro can be watched online at klrn.org.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Houston geothermal unicorn Fervo officially files for IPO

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Fervo Energy has officially filed for IPO.

The Houston-based geothermal unicorn filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on April 17 to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq exchange. Fervo intends to be listed under the ticker symbol "FRVO."

The number and price of the shares have not yet been determined, according to a news release from Fervo. J.P. Morgan, BofA Securities, RBC Capital Markets and Barclays are leading the offering.

The highly anticipated filing comes as Fervo readies its flagship Cape Station geothermal project to deliver its first power later this year

"Today, miles-long lines for gasoline have been replaced by lines for electricity. Tech companies compete for megawatts to claim AI market share. Manufacturers jockey for power to strengthen American industry. Utilities demand clean, firm electricity to stabilize the grid," Fervo CEO Tim Latimer shared in the filing. "Fervo is prepared to serve all of these customers. Not with complex, idiosyncratic projects but with a simplified, standardized product capable of delivering around-the-clock, carbon-free power using proven oil and gas technology."

Fervo has been preparing to file for IPO for months. Axios Pro first reported that the company "quietly" filed for an IPO in January and estimated it would be valued between $2 billion and $3 billion.

Fervo also closed $421 million in non-recourse debt financing for the first phase of Cape Station last month and raised a $462 million Series E in December. The company also announced the addition of four heavyweights to its board of directors last week, including Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay, Hewlett-Packard, and Spring-based HPE.

Fervo reported a net loss of $70.5 million for the 2025 fiscal year in the S-1 filing and a loss of $41.1 million in 2024.

Tracxn.com estimates that Fervo has raised $1.12 billion over 12 funding rounds. The company was founded in 2017 by Latimer and CTO Jack Norbeck.

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This article originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

New UT Austin med center, anchored by MD Anderson, gets $1 billion gift

Future of Health

A donation announced Tuesday, April 21, breaks a major record at the University of Texas at Austin. Michael and Susan Dell are now UT Austin's first supporters to give $1 billion. In response, the university will create the UT Dell Campus for Advanced Research and the UT Dell Medical Center to "advance human health," per a press release.

The release also records "significant support" for undergraduate scholarships, student housing, and the Texas Advanced Computing Center for supercomputing research.

Both the new research campus and the UT Dell Medical Center will integrate advanced computing into their research and practices. At the medical center, the university hopes that will lead to "earlier detection, more precise and personalized care, and better health outcomes." The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center will also be integrated into the new medical center.

That comes with a numeric goal measured in 10s: raise $10 billion and rank among the top 10 medical centers in the U.S., both in the next decade.

In the shorter term, the university will break ground on the medical center with architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) "later this year."

“UT Austin, where Dell Technologies was founded from a dorm room, has always been a place where bold ideas become real-world impact,” said Michael and Susan Dell in a joint statement.

They continued, “What makes this moment so meaningful is the opportunity to build something that brings every part of the journey together — from how students learn, to how discoveries are made, to how care reaches families. By bringing together medicine, science and computing in one campus designed for the AI era, UT can create more opportunity, deliver better outcomes, and build a stronger future for communities across Texas and beyond.”

This is the second major gift this year for the planned multibillion-dollar medical center. In January, Tench Coxe, a former venture capitalist who’s a major shareholder in chipmaking giant Nvidia, and Simone Coxe, co-founder and former CEO of the Blanc & Otus PR firm, contributed $100 million$100 million.

Baylor scientist lands $2M grant to explore links between viruses and Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s research

A Baylor College of Medicine scientist will begin exploring the possible link between Alzheimer’s disease and viral infections thanks to a $2 million grant awarded in March.

Dr. Ryan S. Dhindsa is an assistant professor of pathology & immunology at Baylor and a principal investigator at Texas Children’s Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Duncan NRI). He hypothesizes that Alzheimer’s may have some link to previous viral infections contracted by the patient. To study this intriguing possibility, the American Brain Foundation has gifted him the Cure One, Cure Many award in neuroinflammation.

“It is an honor to receive this support from the Cure One, Cure Many Award. Viral infections are emerging as a major, underappreciated driver of Alzheimer's disease, and this award will allow our team to conduct the most comprehensive screen of viral exposures and host genetics in Alzheimer's to date, spanning over a million individuals,” Dhindsa said in a news release. “Our goal is to identify which viruses matter most, why some people are more vulnerable than others, and ultimately move the field closer to new therapeutic strategies for patients.”

Roughly 150 million people worldwide will suffer from Alzheimer’s by 2050, making it the most common cause of dementia in the world. Despite this, scientists are still at a loss as to what exactly causes it.

Dhindsa’s research is part of a new range of theories that certain viral infections may trigger Alzheimer’s. His team will take a two-fold approach. First, they will analyze the medical records of more than a million individuals looking for patterns. Second, they will analyze viral DNA in stem cell-derived brain cells to see how the infections could contribute to neurological decay. The scale of the genomic data gathering is unprecedented and may highlight a link that traditional studies have missed.

Also joining the project are Dr. Caleb Lareau of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Dr. Artem Babaian of the University of Toronto. Should a link be found, it would open the door to using anti-virals to prevent or treat Alzheimer’s.

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