Houston startup expands DOD partnership to provide clean energy at Texas site

seeing green

Sage Geosystems will onboard its technology at the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi. Photo via Naval Air Station Corpus Christi/Facebook

Expanding on its partnership with the United States Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Unit, Sage Geosystems has been selected to conduct geothermal project development initiatives at Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi.

Along with the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program, Sage will provide its proprietary Geopressured Geothermal Systems technology, will be able to evaluate the potential for geothermal baseload power generation to provide clean and consistent energy at the Naval Air Station base.

“We’re pleased to expand our partnership with the DOD at NAS Corpus Christi to demonstrate the advantages of geothermal technology for military energy independence,” Cindy Taff, CEO of Sage Geosystems, says in a news release.

Sage is also conducting initiatives at Fort Bliss and has completed an analysis at the Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base. The analyses could “pave the way for expanding geothermal energy solutions across additional U.S. military installations,” according to Sage.

The company’s proprietary technology works by leveraging hot dry rock, which is a more abundant geothermal resource compared to traditional hydrothermal formations, and it provides energy resilience for infrastructures. In addition, Sage is building a 3 megawatt commercial EarthStore geothermal energy storage facility in Christine, Texas, which is expected to be completed by December. Sage also announced a partnership with Meta Platforms. With Meta Platforms, Sage will deliver up to 150 megawatt of geothermal power generation east of the Rocky Mountains.

The Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is considered a critical training and operations hub for the U.S. Navy, and the partnership with Sage shows the Navy's commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2045. Sage’s technology will be assessed for its ability to create a microgrid, which can reduce reliance on the utility grid and ensure power supply during outages.

“As we advance our Geopressured Geothermal Systems, we see tremendous potential to not only provide carbon-free power, but also strengthen the operational capabilities of U.S. military installations in an increasingly digital and electric world,” Taff adds.

In September, the Air Force awarded Sage a grant of $1.9 million in a first-of-its kind contract to determine whether a power plant using Geopressured Geothermal Systems is able to generate clean energy needed for a base to achieve energy resilience.

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This article originally ran on EnergyCapital.

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Rice researchers are cleaning up when it comes to grants and competitions. Photo via Rice.edu

Rice University innovators claim prizes across health care, energy research

big wins

Undergraduate students from Rice University were awarded the top prize in a health innovation challenge.

Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams (DEBUT) Challenge, which is organized by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the non-profit organization VentureWell, selected medical device team UroFlo as its winner, claiming the $20,000 prize. The technology, a continuous bladder irrigation system, was recognized for its potential to revolutionize post-operative care and improve patient outcomes.

The winning team from Rice consists of 2024 bioengineering graduates Anushka Agrawal, Sahana Prasanna, Robert Heeter, Archit Chabbi, Kevin Li, and Richard Chan. The UroFlo system provides care to patients after surgery and reduces the burden on health care professionals by implementing state-of-the-art sensors and machine learning algorithms with a touchscreen user interface. This helps with data collection, processing and visualization. UroFlo promises to enhance the management of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and help prevent blood clots.

“We have learned so much from this process and we are really proud of what we have accomplished,” says Chabbi in a news release. “It’s truly rewarding to know that our work can impact patients’ experience and help improve quality of care. Over the many hours we spent working in the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen (OEDK) at Rice, we’ve not only developed an amazing set of skills, but have also forged really strong connections with one-another and the nearby medical community at the Texas Medical Center.”

The award will be presented on Oct. 25 in Baltimore during the annual Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) conference.

UroFlo was also with first place in the Johns Hopkins Healthcare Design Competition in the Post-Surgical Infection Management category; first place in the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs Student Design Competition; “Best Medical Device Technology Award” in the 2024 Huff Engineering Design Showcase and competition held by the OEDK; “Outstanding Bioengineering Design Project,” Rice Department of Bioengineering; “Best Presentation” in the Texas Children’s Hospital Surgical Research Day; finalist and “Best Engineering Project” in Rice’s 2024 Shapiro Research Showcases; and semi-finalist in the H. Albert Napier Rice Launch Challenge. UroFlo will continue after Rice, as the project will be developed further.

“We are all very passionate about biomedical engineering, and dedicated and committed to making a difference” Chan said in a news release. “We actually decided to continue to develop UroFlo after our graduation from Rice a few months ago with the hope of improving our innovative solution for urological care.”

In other news, Rice University’s Naomi Halas won $7.5 million over five years from the United States Department of Defense (DOD) Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) with her project proposal Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) for her project titled “Combining Nonequilibrium Chemistries with Atomic Precision,” which competed in the category “plasmon-controlled single-atom catalysis.”

“Combining Nonequilibrium Chemistries with Atomic Precision” addressed the need for more energy-efficient and less protocol-intensive chemical processes that involve using light to drive chemical reactions and single-atom “reactors” to catalyze chemical reactions that are nearly 100 percent specific in terms of reaction products.

Plasmons work when they make metal nanoparticles act like antennas, and certain designed reactor sites on their surfaces can then carry out chemical reactions at a fraction of the “energy expenditure of conventional industrial catalysts” according to a news release.

Rice University and Baylor College of Medicine have also received $2.8 million in funding from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) for their research on reducing inflammation and lung damage in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients.

“Cell Based Immunomodulation to Suppress Lung Inflammation and Promote Repair,” will be co-led byRice’s Omid Veiseh, a professor of bioengineering and faculty director of the Rice Biotech Launch Pad, and professor of surgery at Baylor Ravi Kiran Ghanta. They will develop a new translational cell therapy platform “ to allow a better local administration of cytokines to the lungs in order to suppress inflammation and potentially prevent lung damage in ARDS patients” according to a news release.

Houston-based companies, Fervo Energy and Sage Geosystems, have been tapped for a new geothermal exploration efforts. Photo via Getty Images

2 Houston startups selected by US military for geothermal projects

hot new recruits

Two clean energy companies in Houston have been recruited for geothermal projects at U.S. military installations.

Fervo Energy is exploring the potential for a geothermal energy system at Naval Air Station Fallon in Nevada.

Meanwhile, Sage Geosystems is working on an exploratory geothermal project for the Army’s Fort Bliss post in Texas. The Bliss project is the third U.S. Department of Defense geothermal initiative in the Lone Star State.

“Energy resilience for the U.S. military is essential in an increasingly digital and electric world, and we are pleased to help the U.S. Army and [the Defense Innovation Unit] to support energy resilience at Fort Bliss,” Cindy Taff, CEO of Sage, says in a news release.

A spokeswoman for Fervo declined to comment.

Andy Sabin, director of the Navy’s Geothermal Program Office, says in a military news release that previous geothermal exploration efforts indicate the Fallon facility “is ideally suited for enhanced geothermal systems to be deployed onsite.”

As for the Fort Bliss project, Michael Jones, a project director in the Army Office of Energy Initiatives, says it’ll combine geothermal technology with innovations from the oil and gas sector.

“This initiative adds to the momentum of Texas as a leader in the ‘geothermal anywhere’ revolution, leveraging the robust oil and gas industry profile in the state,” says Ken Wisian, associate director of the Environmental Division at the U.S. Bureau of Economic Geology.

The Department of Defense kicked off its geothermal initiative in September 2023. Specifically, the Army, Navy, and Defense Innovation Unit launched four exploratory geothermal projects at three U.S. military installations.

One of the three installations is the Air Force’s Joint Base San Antonio. Canada-based geothermal company Eavor is leading the San Antonio project.

Another geothermal company, Atlanta-based Teverra, was tapped for an exploratory geothermal project at the Army’s Fort Wainwright in Alaska. Teverra maintains an office in Houston.

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This article originally ran on EnergyCapital.

Yaxin Wang is director of THI's Innovative Device & Engineering Applications Lab. Photo via texasheart.org

Houston health tech innovator collaborates on promising medical device funded by DOD

team work

The United States Department of Defense has awarded a grant that will allow the Texas Heart Institute and Rice University to continue to break ground on a novel left ventricular assist device (LVAD) that could be an alternative to current devices that prevent heart transplantation and are a long-term option in end-stage heart failure.

The grant is part of the DOD’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). It was awarded to Georgia Institute of Technology, one of four collaborators on the project that will be designed and evaluated by the co-investigator Yaxin Wang. Wang is part of O.H. “Bud” Frazier’s team at Texas Heart Institute, where she is director of Innovative Device & Engineering Applications Lab. The other institution working on the new LVAD is North Carolina State University.

The project is funded by a four-year, $7.8 million grant. THI will use about $2.94 million of that to fund its part of the research. As Wang explained to us last year, an LVAD is a minimally invasive device that mechanically pumps a person’s own heart. Frazier claims to have performed more than 900 LVAD implantations, but the devices are far from perfect.

The team working on this new research seeks to minimize near-eventualities like blood clot formation, blood damage, and driveline complications such as infection and limitations in mobility. The four institutions will try to innovate with a device featuring new engineering designs, antithrombotic slippery hydrophilic coatings (SLIC), wireless power transfer systems, and magnetically levitated driving systems.

Wang and her team believe that the non-contact-bearing technology will help to decrease the risk of blood clotting and damage when implanting an LVAD. The IDEA Lab will test the efficacy and safety of the SLIC LVAD developed by the multi-institutional team with a lab-bench-based blood flow loop, but also in preclinical models.

“The Texas Heart Institute continues to be a leading center for innovation in mechanical circulatory support systems,” said Joseph G. Rogers, MD, the president and CEO of THI, in a press release.

“This award will further the development and testing of the SLIC LVAD, a device intended to provide an option for a vulnerable patient population and another tool in the armamentarium of the heart failure teams worldwide.”

If it works as hypothesized, the SLIC LVAD will improve upon current LVAD technology, which will boost quality of life for countless heart patients. But the innovation won’t stop there. Technologies that IDEA Lab is testing include wireless power transfer for medical devices and coatings to reduce blood clotting could find applications in many other technologies that could help patients live longer, healthier lives.

Texas A&M University signed an agreement with NASA's Johnson Space Center last month, and the American Center for Manufacturing and Innovation signed a similar agreement a few weeks later. Photo via nasa.gov

NASA signs 2 public-private lease agreements at Houston campus to promote human space research

ready to launch

NASA and the American Center for Manufacturing and Innovation signed an agreement Thursday, Feb. 29 to lease underutilized land in a 240-acre Exploration Park at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The deal comes after a similar lease with the Texas A&M University System.

ACMI will enable the development of facilities to enable commercial and defense space manufacturing, while A&M reports that it will develop a facility for human spaceflight research and development.

These two public/private lease agreements allow industry and academia to use NASA Johnson land to create facilities for a collaborative development environment that increases commercial access and enhances the United States' commercial competitiveness in the space and aerospace industries.

“For more than 60 years, NASA Johnson has been the hub of human spaceflight,” NASA Johnson Director Vanessa Wyche says in a news release. “Exploration Park will be the next spoke in the larger wheel of a robust and durable space economy that will benefit not only exploration of the Moon, Mars and the asteroids, but all of humanity as the benefits of space exploration research roll home to Earth.”

Calling it the Space Systems Campus, ACMI plans to incorporate an applied research facility partnered with multiple stakeholders across academia, state and local government, the Department of Defense and regional economic development organizations.

"This Space Systems Campus will be a significant component within our objectives for a robust and durable space economy that will benefit not only the nation's efforts to explore the Moon, Mars and the asteroids, but all of humanity as the benefits of space exploration research roll home to Earth," Wyche says of the ACMI deal.

As the home of Mission Control Center for the agency's human space missions, astronaut training, robotics, human health and space medicine, NASA Johnson leads the way for the human exploration. Leveraging this unique role and location, Exploration Park will play a key role in helping the human spaceflight community attain U.S. goals for the commercialization and development of a robust space economy by creating an infrastructure that fosters a multi-use environment where academic researchers, aerospace companies and entrepreneurs can collaborate with NASA. Exploration Park will create an infrastructure that allows for a multi-use space hardware development environment, where academic researchers, aerospace companies and entrepreneurs can collaborate on space exploration's greatest challenges.

"ACMI Properties will develop this Campus to serve the needs of our future tenants, aerospace industry, the Department of Defense and other significant stakeholders that comprise our ecosystem approach," said Simon Shewmaker, head of development for ACMI Properties. "Our aim is to support human spaceflight missions for the next 40 years and beyond."

NASA issued an announcement for proposals for use of the undeveloped and underutilized land near Saturn Lane on June 9, 2023, and has just completed negotiations with ACMI to formalize the lease agreement. The parcel is outside of Johnson's controlled access area and adjacent to its main campus. NASA will lease the land for 20 years with two 20-year extension options, for a potential of up to 60 years.

In the coming years, NASA and its academic, commercial, and international partners will see the completion of the International Space Station Program, the commercial development of low Earth orbit, and the first human Artemis campaign missions establishing sustainable human presence on the Moon in preparation for human missions to Mars.

Johnson already is leading the commercialization of space with the commercial cargo and crew programs and private astronaut missions to the space station. The center also is supporting the development of commercial space stations in low Earth orbit, and lunar-capable commercial spacesuits and lunar landers that will be provided as services to both NASA and the private sector to accelerate human access to space. Through the development of Exploration Park, the center will broaden the scope of the human spaceflight community that is tackling the many difficult challenges ahead.

Scott Schneider of HTX Labs joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss how his VR software is helping to train Department of Defense pilots. Photo via htxlabs.com

Houston software startup is tapping into the military sector with VR training tools

Houston innovators podcast episode 127

For years, the idea of virtual and augmented reality has been growing in use and popularity from a consumer perspective. VR art experiences are popping up in every major city, and Snapchat and Instagram filters are flooding our phone screens daily. But one Houston company had the foresight to tap this tech in the business world.

"Our real mission around HTX Labs was to take what we felt was amazing technology — virtual reality, augmented reality, extended reality, and immersive technology in general — and take it from a primary consumer focus into enterprise," Scott Schneider says on this week's episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast.

A VR headset is different from your usual office appliance — it's not a printer or a desktop computer. So, addressing this technology and how companies deal with network security and identity management — plus the software designing itself — has been HTX Labs' bread and butter since it was founded in 2017.

"It's always been around how do we elevate training — and that's really been our mission for the past five years," Schneider says.

Over the years, the startup has had the opportunity to enter a new sector, and it's represented a pretty big pivot for the company. Now, 95 percent of HTX Labs's focus is on the Department of Defense.

"Around 2018, we were approached by the U.S. Air Force," Schneider says. "Three and a half years later, we are fully engaged with the DoD – Air Force, Navy, Army. Our big focus is around training aircraft pilots and maintainers — if you fly them or you fix them, they are using our technology."

HTX Labs has tripled its team over the past few years, and is looking to hire another 20 people to support its growth — specifically looking for sales, business development, and operational positions.

"In 2021, we were all about building capability and building our platform," Schneider says, "and 2022 is all about adoption. It's a land grab out there for doing what we're doing. We're trying to drive adoption within the government and outside in the commercial and private sector."

Schneider shares more on what he's focused on this year and how HTX Labs has grown alongside the Houston innovation ecosystem on the podcast episode. Listen to the full interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.


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12+ can't-miss Houston business and innovation events for September

where to be

Editor's note: Houston's business and innovation events are back in session. From the return of Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week to a send-off for an impactful innovation leader and several health conferences, here's what not to miss and how to register. Please note: this article may be updated to include additional event listings.

Sept. 5-7 — Houston Hackathon

Impact Hub Houston is bringing back the Houston Hacakthon this month, where developers of all skill sets can work together to propose solutions to some of the Bayou City’s most pressing issues. The event is focused on ideating, designing, and developing both policy-based and tech solutions to improve Houston.

This event starts Saturday, Sept. 5, at noon at the Ion. Register here.

Sept. 8 — Community Celebration: A Send-Off for Paul Cherukuri

Come out to the Ion to celebrate Paul Cherukuri, Rice’s first chief innovation officer, whose visionary leadership has left a lasting impact on Houston’s innovation ecosystem. Cherukuri is leaving the university to accept a position at the University of Virginia. Hear remarks from Cherukuri and enjoy a networking reception following the talk.

This event is Monday, Sept. 8, from 2:30-5:00 p.m. at the Ion. Register here

Sept. 11 — Houston Methodist Leadership Speaker Series – Dr. Evan Collins

The Houston Methodist Tech Hub at the Ion will host its recurring leadership speaker series, this time featuring Dr. Evan Collins, chief of the Houston Methodist Hand & Upper Extremity Center at Houston Methodist and the Houston Methodist Center for Innovation's first innovator-in-residency. Collins will present on the creative process of innovation.

This event is Thursday, Sept. 11, from 4:45-6 p.m. at the Ion. Register here.

Sept. 12 — Future of Space

The Greater Houston Partnership’s 2025 Future of Space event will feature a keynote address by Vanessa E. Wyche, acting associate administrator of NASA. In her new role, Wyche serves as NASA’s chief operating officer, leading more than 18,000 employees and overseeing an annual budget exceeding $25 billion. Discussions will highlight how Houston’s space ecosystem is driving economic growth, technological innovation and new opportunities across the region and the nation.

The event is Friday, Sept. 12, from noon-1:30 p.m. at the Royal Sonesta. Find more information here.

Sept. 15-19 — Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week

Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week returns for its second year, with panels, happy hours and pitch days focused on the energy transition. The week features major events, including the Energytech Nexus Pilotathon, the Rice Alliance Energy Tech Venture Forum, Halliburton Labs Finalists Pitch Day and many others. See a preview of the week on our sister site EnergyCapitalHTX.com and learn more in the event listings below.

This event starts Monday, Sept. 15. The Ion District will host many of the week's events. Find more information here.

Sept. 16 — Energytech Nexus Pilotathon

Grab breakfast and take in keynotes and panels by leaders from New Climate Ventures, V1 Climate, Halliburton, Energy Tech Nexus and many others during Houston Energy & Climate Week. Then hear pitches during the Pilotathon, which targets startups ready to implement pilot projects within six to 12 months.

This event is Tuesday, Sept. 16, from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at GreenStreet. Get tickets here.

Sept. 16 — Meet the Activate Houston Cohort 2025 Fellows

Meet Activate's latest cohort, which was named this summer, and also learn more about its 2024 group during Houston Energy & Climate Week.

This event is Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 5 p.m. at the Ion. Register here.

Sept. 17 — Green ICU Conference: Sustainability in Health Care for a Healthier Future

Houston Methodist will host its inaugural Green ICU Conference during Houston Energy & Climate Week. The conference is designed to bring together healthcare professionals, industry leaders, policymakers and innovators to explore solutions for building a more sustainable healthcare system.

This event is Wednesday, Sept. 17. from 8 a.m.-3 p.m. at TMC Helix Park. Register here.

Sept. 18 — Rice Alliance Energy Tech Venture Forum

Hear from clean energy startups from nine countries and 19 states at the 22nd annual Energy Tech Venture Forum during Houston Energy & Climate Week. The 12 companies that were named to Class 5 of the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator will present during Demo Day to wrap up their 10-week program. Apart from pitches, this event will also host keynotes from Arjun Murti, partner of energy macro and policy at Veriten, and Susan Schofer, partner at HAX and chief science officer at SOSV. Panels will focus on corporate innovation and institutional venture capital.

This event is Thursday, Sept. 18, from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business. Register here.

Sept. 18 — ACCEL Year 3 Showcase

Celebrate Advancing Climatetech and Clean Energy Leaders Program, or ACCEL, an accelerator program for startups led by BIPOC and other underrepresented founders from Greentown Labs and Browning the Green Space. Two Houston companies and one from Austin are among the eight startups to be named to the 2025 group. Hear startup pitches from the cohort, and from Greentown's Head of Houston, Lawson Gow, CEO Georgina Campbell Flatter and others. This event is part of Houston Energy & Climate Week.

This event is Thursday, Sept. 18, from 5-8 p.m. at Greentown Labs. Get tickets here.

Sept. 19 — Halliburton Labs Finalists Pitch Day

Hear from Halliburton Labs' latest cohort of entrepreneurs during Houston Energy & Climate Week. The incubator aims to advance the companies’ commercialization with support from Halliburton's network, facilities and financing opportunities. Its latest cohort includes one company from Texas.

This event is Friday, Sept. 19, from 8 a.m.-noon at The Ion. Register here.

Sept. 21-25 — AI in Health Conference

The Ken Kennedy Institute at Rice University will present the fourth annual AI in Health Conference, which aims to bridge the gap between artificial intelligence and real-world health outcomes. The event will explore the current landscape of artificial intelligence in health and present a research-driven outlook for the future of computational health innovation.

This conference is from Tuesday, Sept. 23, to Wednesday, Sept. 24. Additional workshops will be offered on Monday, Sept. 22, and Thursday, Sept. 25. The events will be held at the BioScience Research Collaborative at Rice University. Find more information here.

Sept. 25 — Industrial AI Nexus Connect

InnovateEnergy and Industrial AI Nexus will host a talk by Matthew Alberts, manager of innovation and emerging technologies at Southern Company and author of "The Gen AI Manufacturing Revolution: Smarter Factories, Enhanced Products, and Reduced Costs." Alberts will present “The Gen AI Revolution," followed by happy hour and a complimentary book signing.

This event is Thursday, Sept. 25, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Ion. Register here.

Texas is the 4th hardest working state in America, report finds

Ranking It

It's no secret that Texans are hardworking people. To align with the Labor Day holiday, a new WalletHub study asserts that the Lone Star State is one of the five most hardworking states in America for 2025.

The report ranked Texas the fourth most hardworking state this year, indicating that its residents are working harder than ever after the state fell into seventh place in 2024. Texas previously ranked No. 4 in 2019 and 2020, slipped into No. 5 in 2021 and 2022, then continued falling into sixth place in 2023. But now the state is making its way back to the top of the list.

WalletHub's analysts compared all 50 states based on "direct" and "indirect" work factors. The six "direct" work factors included each state's average workweek hours, employment rates, the share of households where no adults work, the share of workers leaving vacation time unused, and other data. The four "indirect" work factors consisted of workers' average commute times, the share of workers with multiple jobs, the annual volunteer hours per resident, and the average leisure time spent per day.

North Dakota landed on top as the most hardworking state in America for 2025 for another year in a row, earning a score of 66.17 points out of a possible 100. For comparison, Texas ranked No. 4 with 57.06 points. Alaska (No. 2), South Dakota (No. 3), and Hawaii (No. 5) round out the top five hardest working states.

Across the study's two main categories, Texas ranked No. 5 in the "direct" work factors ranking, and earned a respectable No. 18 rank for its "indirect" work factors.

Broken down further, Texans have the second-longest average workweek hours in America, and they have the 12th best average commute times. Texans have the 6th lowest amount of average leisure time spent per day, the report also found.

According to the study's findings, many Americans nationwide won't take the chance to not work as hard when presented with the opportunity. A 2024 Sorbet PTO report found 33 percent of Americans' paid time off was left unused in 2023.

"While leaving vacation time on the table may seem strange to some people, there are plenty of reasons why workers choose to do so," the report's author wrote. "Some fear that if they take time off they will look less dedicated to the job than other employees, risking a layoff. Others worry about falling behind on their work or are concerned that the normal workflow will not be able to function without them."

The top 10 hardest working states are:

  • No. 1 – North Dakota
  • No. 2 – Alaska
  • No. 3 – South Dakota
  • No. 4 – Texas
  • No. 5 – Hawaii
  • No. 6 – Virginia
  • No. 7 – New Hampshire
  • No. 8 – Wyoming
  • No. 9 – Maryland
  • No. 10 – Nebraska
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This story originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Houston co. makes waves in brain health and more innovation news to know

Trending Topics

Editor's note: The top innovation news for the second of half of August includes the Inc. 5000, a big contract from NASA, a new energy accelerator's launch, and innovative brain health treatment. Here are the five most-read InnovationMap stories from August 15-31:

1. How a Houston company is fighting anxiety, insomnia & Alzheimer’s through waveforms

Nexalin develops non-invasive devices that help reset networks in the brain associated with symptoms of anxiety and insomnia. Photo via Getty Images.

A Houston-based company is taking a medicine-free approach to target brain neurologically associated with mental illness. Nexalin Technology’s patented, FDA-cleared frequency-based waveform targets key centers of the midbrain to support the normalization of neurochemicals through a process known as Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation (tACS). Delivered via a non-invasive device, the treatment gently stimulates the hypothalamus and midbrain, helping to “reset networks associated with symptoms” of anxiety and insomnia. Early clinical evidence suggests this approach can promote healthier brain function and improved sleep. Continue reading.

2. Houston innovation hub announces first cohort for energy-focused accelerator

Alabama-based Accelerate Wind is a member of the COPILOT cohort. Courtesy photo

Energytech Nexus, a Houston-based hub for energy startups, has named its inaugural cohort of 14 companies for the new COPILOT accelerator. The eight-month COPILOT program offers mentorship, training and networking for startups. Program participants will be tasked with developing pilot projects for their innovations. Two Houston startups are members of the first COPILOT class. Continue reading.

3. Houston foundation doles out $700K for Texas chemical research

The Welch Foundation has awarded funding through two of its newest grant programs. Photo via Getty Images.

Houston-based The Welch Foundation has issued $700,000 in additional funding to support chemical research through two of its newest grant programs. The foundation has named the recipients of its Welch eXperimental (WelchX) Collaboration Retreat and Pilot Grants and the Welch Postdoctoral Fellows of the Life Sciences Research Foundation Grants. The WelchX grants were awarded to teams of two Texas researchers who presented "innovative and collaborative ideas" addressing challenges in the clean energy space, according to the foundation. Continue reading.

4. Houston tech company secures $450M NASA contract

Barrios Technology has secured a two-year contract with NASA. Photo via Getty Images.

NASA’s Johnson Space Center awarded Houston-based aerospace technology and engineering services company Barrios Technology the Mission Technical Integration Contract (MTIC). The two-year contract is worth $450 million and will begin Oct. 1, 2025. Barrios will provide technical and management support to some of NASA’s human spaceflight programs, which include the Orion and Gateway programs, the International Space Station (ISS) and possibly more human spaceflight initiatives. Continue reading.

5. Fast-growing Houston tech firm leads dozens of local companies on Inc. 5000

Houston-based Action1 landed at No. 29 nationally and No. 1 in the software category in this year's Inc. 5000 ranking. Photo via Getty Images.

Dozens of Houston-area businesses appear in this year’s Inc. 5000 ranking of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the U.S., with a security software provider capturing the region’s No. 1 spot on the list. Landing at No. 29 nationally and No. 1 in the software category, the top-ranked Houston-area private company is Houston-based Action1. The company recorded median revenue growth of 7,188 percent from 2021 to 2024, according to the Inc. 5000. It’s the first appearance on the Inc. 5000 list for Action1, founded in 2018. Continue reading.

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