3 Houston innovators to know this week

who's who

This week's roundup of Houston innovators includes Enrique Gomez of Texas Medical Center Innovation, Katie Eick of Rockin' Pets Rollin' Vets, and Jim Gable of Chevron. Courtesy photos

Editor's note: In this week's roundup of Houston innovators to know, I'm introducing you to three local innovators across industries — from health care innovation to energy — recently making headlines in Houston innovation.

Enrique Gomez, entrepreneur in residence at Texas Medical Center Innovation

Enrique Gomez joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss Houston as an oncology innovation hub. Photo via TMC.edu

When it comes to leading oncology innovation, Houston has a seat at the table, Enrique Gomez, entrepreneur in residence at Texas Medical Center Innovation's Accelerator for Cancer Therapeutics, says on the Houston Innovators Podcast.

"Houston is a place where everyone looks at when it comes to novel research and approaches to treating cancer," Gomez says. "The landscape here is going to be accelerated because we see much more collaboration between the founding institutions — and that's a very important element of growth. Houston has no comparison to any other place in terms of what's going on here and the level and quality of research." Click here to read more and stream the episode.

Katie Eick, founder of Rollin' Vets

Katie Eick always wanted to be able to offer mobile services. Photo courtesy of Rollin' Vets

Houston-based Rockin' Pets, Rollin' Vets, a full-service mobile veterinary clinic based in Houston, has closed a $5 million equity raise with plans to expand across the Lone Star State. Founded by Dr. Katie Eick, who is the company's CEO, Rollin’ Vets Group flips the switch on pet health care by bringing vets to its patients' homes.

This fresh funding helps Eick take that first step toward expansion. According to a news release, Rockin’ Pets, Rollin’ Vets expects to have a presence in Dallas and Austin by March of next year.

“This equity raise allows us to not only hire additional talent, but also increase our mobile clinic fleet, while expanding into other cities at an expedited rate. There is a vast opportunity to serve animals and people that need non-traditional veterinary care in other Texas markets. We are ready to tap into these markets and bring convenient, state-of-the-art care straight to pet owners’ doorsteps,” says Eick in the release. Click here to read more.

Jim Gable, incoming vice president of innovation and president of Chevron Technology Ventures

Barbara Burger has led Chevron's innovation efforts for almost a decade and is passing the responsibilities to Jim Gable. Photo courtesy

Barbara Burger, vice president of innovation at Chevron and president of Chevron Technology Ventures, is retiring, and passing the role to Jim Gable.

Gable brings his 23 years of experience to the role. Based in Chevron's office on the West Coast, he will be relocating to Houston, per the release. He currently oversees the development and deployment of downstream-related technology for Chevron.

“CTV has a 22-year history of investing in startups across a wide cross section of energy innovation and a track record of collaboration to bring innovation to scale,” Bonner continues. “Jim’s experience at Chevron is deep and diverse. Combined with his technology commercialization experience with CTV early in his career, as well as in his current role, Jim is poised to lead CTV to even greater success.” Click here to read more.

Enrique Gomez joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss Houston as an oncology innovation hub. Photo via TMC.edu

How Houston is emerging as a leader for oncology innovation, according to this expert

Houston innovators podcast episode 114

Houston is currently establishing itself as a hub for health care innovation — and Enrique Gomez should know. He's worked in the field of biopharmaceuticals across the continent.

As entrepreneur in residence at Texas Medical Center Innovation's Accelerator for Cancer Therapeutics, he works with early stage startups and researchers. However, for decades he's worked in a much later stage of drug development, holding leadership positions at Takada in Latin America and Shire in Boston.

"Texas is very well recognized for cancer therapeutics," Gomez says on this week's episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast. "There's a lot of research going on. These researchers are looking at every angle — every possible strategy to tackle cancer."

At ACT, Gomez connects the startups or instigators with the resources they need to get their life-saving solutions to market. With cancer, there's not one thing that's going to work. There have to be options for treating cancer.

"Cancer is very heterogeneous. Not one strategy will be the single silver bullet to overcome the disease," Gomez says. "We are talking about personalized medicine. Every person is different and every cancer in every patient is different. It will require a number of approaches to overcome the health situation."

Thankfully, through TMC's ACT and the numerous research institutions working on the future of oncology, Houston's a great spot to move that needle.

"Houston is a place where everyone looks at when it comes to novel research and approaches to treating cancer," Gomez says. "The landscape here is going to be accelerated because we see much more collaboration between the founding institutions — and that's a very important element of growth. Houston has no comparison to any other place in terms of what's going on here and the level and quality of research."

He shares more on how COVID-19 has affected drug development and research — as well as what's next for his own career — on the podcast. Listen to the full interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.

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UH med school granted $2M gift to offer student scholarships

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A new scholarship endowment aims to support students in the University of Houston’s recently established medical school.

The University of Houston’s Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine received a planned estate gift commitment estimated at $2.1 million to establish the Bob Diehl and Teresa Evans Diehl Scholarship Endowment. The scholarship will assist full-time medical students who demonstrate financial need and meet academic standards.

“Endowed scholarships like this do more than ease the burden of tuition—they empower our students to focus on learning, leadership and compassionate care,” Jonathan McCullers, UH vice president of health affairs and dean of the Fertitta College of Medicine, said in a news release. “We are deeply grateful to the Diehls for their vision and commitment to expanding access to health care through education.”

The endowment aims to provide annual scholarship support for students enrolled in the Fertitta College of Medicine. The gift also aligns with the university's fundraising initiative focused on expanding opportunities for students, known as Can’t Stop Houston: The Centennial Campaign, which works to expand research ahead of UH’s 100th anniversary next year.

The Diehls are both graduates from UH, and Bob Diehl spent 38 years working at UPS.

“It brings me happiness to know that my endowment will make a difference in young people's lives and in the communities that will need those future doctors,” he said in the release.

The Fertitta College of Medicine welcomed its inaugural class of 30 students in 2020 and expects classes to grow to 120 students in the coming years, according to UH. The university believes scholarship opportunities will be crucial for students to pursue medical education despite financial challenges.

“The Diehl family’s generosity will open doors for talented future physicians who are called to serve our communities but may otherwise face financial barriers to pursuing a medical education,” McCullers added.

9 Houston universities boast best grad programs of 2026, per U.S. News

making the grade

Nine Houston-area universities are earning new national acclaim in a report of the best graduate schools in the U.S. for 2026.

U.S. News & World Report annually publishes its national "Best Graduate Schools" rankings in early April, which comprehensively rank graduate programs across business, education, engineering, law, health, and many others.

New for the 2026 edition, the publication updated its rankings across 12 health disciplines — only physician assistant and social work were excluded — and "the first full refresh" of doctoral science programs since 2022. U.S. News also revived its Master's in Fine Arts rankings for the first time since 2020.

"We know a graduate degree is a major commitment,” said LaMont Jones, Ed.D., managing editor of Education at U.S. News. “That is why we are dedicated to methodologies that thoroughly examine a wide range of factors, from research excellence to career success. These rankings are a powerful tool for prospective students, offering clarity and confidence as they approach their most critical educational choice."

This is how the nine local schools ranked, statewide and nationally, and how they compared with last year's national ranking:

Rice University

  • Brown School of Engineering – No. 3 best graduate engineering school in Texas; No. 25 nationally (up from No. 26 last year)
  • Jones Graduate School of Business – No. 3 best business school in Texas; No. 29 nationally (unchanged)

Several of Rice’s doctoral science programs were among the 30 best in the country, including earth sciences (No. 20), chemistry (No. 22), biostatistics (No. 25), mathematics (No. 26), statistics (No. 27), and physics (No. 28). The Ph.D. biological sciences program tied as 55th best nationwide. Rice’s public affairs program tied for No. 107 nationally.

University of Houston

  • Cullen College of Engineering – No. 5 best graduate engineering school in Texas; tied for No. 71 nationally (up from No. 72 last year)
  • College of Education – No. 5 best graduate education school in Texas; No. 95 nationally (down from No. 81 last year)
  • UH Law Center – No. 5 best law school in Texas; No. 54 nationally (up from No. 63 last year)

The University of Houston has the 31st best pharmacy program in the country, its speech-language pathology program tied for No. 54 nationally, and the clinical psychology program tied as 65th best in the U.S. In the doctoral sciences rankings, UH’s earth sciences program ranked No. 80 nationally, the physics program tied for No. 81, the chemistry program ranked 84th, and the mathematics program ranked No. 87. The Ph.D. biological sciences program ranked as the 104th best in the nation. UH’s public affairs program tied as 80th best nationally. The university also has the 106th best fine arts program in the nation.

University of Houston, Clear Lake

  • College of Education – No. 12 best graduate education school in Texas; No. 164 nationally (up from No. 166 last year)

University of Texas Health Science Center (UT Health Houston)

  • Cizik School of Nursing – No. 2 best master’s in nursing program in Texas; No. 32 nationally (up from No. 41 last year)
  • McGovern Medical School – Tier 2 best research medical school in the U.S.

UT Health Houston’s public health program tied for No. 31 nationwide, and the health care management program tied for No. 47. The Cizik School of Nursing’s nurse anesthesia program tied as 49th best in the country. In the doctoral sciences rankings, the university’s biostatistics program tied as the 25th best nationwide.

University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston

  • Sealy School of Medicine – Tier 2 best medical research school in the U.S.

UT Medical Branch’s occupational therapy program tied for No. 41 nationally, the physical therapy program tied for No. 57, and the university tied for the 60th best nurse anesthesia program in the U.S. The public health program tied for No. 89 nationally. In the doctoral sciences rankings, the university’s biostatistics program tied for No. 70 nationally.

Prairie View A&M University

  • College of Nursing – No. 5 best master’s in nursing program in Texas; No. 104 nationally (unchanged)

South Texas College of Law Houston

  • No. 7 best law school in Texas; No. 128 nationally (up from No. 138 last year)

Texas Southern University

  • College of Education – No. 17 best graduate education school in Texas; No. 219 nationally (down from No. 178-195 last year)

TSU’s pharmacy program tied for No. 120 nationally.

University of Texas MD Anderson
UT MD Anderson’s doctoral biostatistics program tied as the 17th best nationally, and the doctoral biological sciences program tied for No. 50.

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Houston medtech firm secures $30M for neurosurgical robot

stroke surgery

Robotic neurosurgery is an exciting new frontier in medicine, and Houston-based medtech firm XCath is leading the charge with its revolutionary Iris robotic system. The company announced in March that it had secured $30 million in Series C funding to continue developing systems to tackle blood clots in the human brain.

“We are grateful to our investors for their conviction in our shared mission to improve clinical outcomes for patients impacted by endovascular diseases,” Eduardo Fonseca, CEO of XCath, said in a news release. “In 2025, the XCath team advanced the frontiers of endovascular robotics. This funding accelerates our commitment to expanding access to life-saving care so that where a patient lives no longer determines whether they live.”

XCath–which also has campuses in Pangyo, South Korea–has already achieved a number of remarkable firsts in robotic neurosurgery. The Iris is the only endovascular robotic system currently in development to perform intracranial navigation or neurointerventional treatment, and is the only robot in the world to have performed an intracranial neurovascular procedure involving the robotic manipulation of three devices.

These new Series C funds, which bring the company's total investment to $92 million, will go toward developing a clinical telerobot capable of performing a mechanical thrombectomy. This would bring unprecedented accuracy and precision to the surgical removal of brain clots, significantly reducing the risk of neurosurgery.

“Robotic surgery succeeds when innovation is paired with practical execution,” Dr. Fred Moll, chairman of the XCath board of directors, said in the release. “XCath has built a promising technology foundation, and just as importantly, a team that values rigor and appreciates perspective. I’m excited to support them as they take on the mission of globalizing access to gold-standard care for stroke patients.”

In November 2025, the Iris debuted under the control of Dr. Vitor Mendes Pereira at The Panama Clinic in Panama City, alongside local Principal Investigator Dr. Anastasio Ameijeiras Sibauste. It was only the second time in human history that a robot had been used for intracranial neurovascular intervention, and it established Iris as a viable technology in the fight against stroke.

“Treatment of stroke and other neurovascular diseases represents one of the most significant financial opportunities in healthcare, supported by positive reimbursement dynamics and strong demand from health systems,” Nicholas Drysdale, CFO of XCath, added in the release. “With our continued investor support and disciplined capital deployment, XCath is positioned to build a category-leading platform in endovascular robotics”.

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