Why this innovator is dedicated to supporting, showcasing Houston energy tech startups
HOUSTON INNOVATORS PODCAST EPISODE 192
Like many successful operations, Greentown Labs, a climatetech incubator based in Somerville, Massachusetts, outside of Boston, had its humble beginnings.
"Greentown is one of those things where a business seems obvious in retrospect," says Jason Ethier, a serial energy entrepreneur, on this week's episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast.
He says he and a few other founders were working on their various ventures in a building that ended up getting slated for demolition, forcing them to find a new place to set up shop.
"We were all building stuff within energy and technology," Ethier remembers. "We had to find a new building, and the landlord looked at us and said, 'I don't want to deal with a bunch of small companies. I want one company, one check, and one lease."
The group of entrepreneurs formed Greentown as a way to make the rent work, but they started attracting interest from other founders who wanted in. The organization evolved to what it is today — a dual-located energy incubator that's supported over 500 companies that have raised over $4 billion in funding.
Ethier, whose startup at the time brought him to Houston frequently, recognized the same scrappy founder mentality and need for incubation support in the Bayou City and was a key player in expanding Greentown to Houston in 2021.
"Every city is proud of who they are, but I think Houston especially is a city that likes to solve problems and build things locally," Ethier says. "When presented the opportunity to help build and ecosystem here, members of the ecosystem raised their hands and said, 'how can I help.'"
Juliana Garaizar, who was hired as launch director for Houston and now is head of Greentown Houston, tapped Ethier to support the expansion into town. Now, as senior director of membership at Greentown Labs, he works hands on with startups at Greentown.
He's taken his knowledge as a serial entrepreneur and incubation leader to launch the EnergyTech Startups podcast with co-host Lara Cottingham, the vice president of strategy, policy, and climate impact at Greentown Labs.
"As an entrepreneur, sometimes you feel a gap in the market in your bones and you just have to do something about it," Ethier says, explaining that he observed that when meeting people, he realized Houston got a bad rap. "Houston isn't viewed as a cool place to build a company if you don't know how good it is to be here."
The other thing Ethier says he realized was that Houston founders were understated in what they accomplished. So, he set out to start a podcast that would shine the spotlight on a Houston energy entrepreneur on a regular basis. The show, launched last fall, das now introduced listeners to over 20 energy founders and is continuing to do so on a biweekly basis.
Ethier shares more on his views of the future of Houston as an energy transition leader on the show. Listen to the interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.
- How Greentown Houston accelerated the local energy transition in its inaugural year ›
- Overheard: Houston's energy sector welcomes Greentown Labs ›
- Greentown Houston announces plans for wet lab, calls for feedback from members ›
- Erik Ibarra of ORDRS and Magnolia Fund joins the Houston Innovators Podcast - InnovationMap ›
- Adrianne Stone of Bayou City Startups joins the Houston Innovators Podcast - InnovationMap ›
- Greentown Labs Houston add 9 startups - InnovationMap ›
