TMCx company receives investment from Houston VC, UH program recognized, and more innovation news

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A TMCx company has raised money in Houston, UH's online program named best in the nation, and more Houston innovation news. Courtesy of TMCx

Houston's innovation ecosystem has seen a busy January so far — the city has claimed a unicorn in High Radius, The Ion has named a series of new execs, and so much more.

Given this influx of news, you might've missed some other Houston innovation headlines, like UH being recognized for its online master's program, recent fundings, and Texas being named a state for female entrepreneurs. Here's a few short stories to catch you up.

Texas Halo Fund invests in TMCx company

Photo via kegg.tech

A medical device company that focuses on keeping its female users in control of their fertility health just received an investment from a Houston venture capital firm.

Texas Halo Fund invested $200K in kegg, a San Francisco-based startup that participated in the Texas Medical Center's TMCx09 cohort. The device is an easy-to-use fertility tracker that easily analyzes cervical fluid to help detect a woman's ovulation up to 7 days in advance. Kegg pairs with a smartphone app to inform and track the user's fertility.

"kegg appeals to us for many reasons. We believe the FemTech space is growing and that women are looking take charge of their fertility. There is an increased desire to have insights into one's health and understanding trends in fertility is a natural progression, says Kyra Doolan, managing Director at Texas Halo Fund, in a news release.

"We've been impressed by the company's CEO Kristina Cahojova and how far she's taken the company with a limited budget. We look forward to seeing the product hit the consumer market."

University of Houston recognized for online graduate program

Photo courtesy of University of Houston

The University of Houston's College of Education's online master's degree programs have been recognized by U.S. News & World Report as among the top in the nation.

The college ranked No. 8 for its program in a ranking that factored in student engagement, technology tools, surveys of deans, faculty credentials, and student excellence, according to a news release from UH.

"Our faculty and staff strive to give students a top-notch experience online," says Bob McPherson, dean of the UH College of Education, in the news release. "We work to emphasize high-quality instruction and support while allowing students the flexibility and personalization of an online learning environment."

UH's program tied for No. 8 with six other schools, but it's still a huge step up from last year's ranking of No. 19.

Texas ranks No. 5 for female entrepreneurs

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According to a new ranking from Fit Small Business, Texas is the fifth best state for female entrepreneurs. The Lone Star State is holding strong in the top tier but slipped from its No. 1 ranking last year.

"High start-up growth, no corporate income tax, and a moderate cost of living are all big pluses for the state, but how does it do regarding a friendly women's business and safety climate?" the report reads. "Well, sort of 'middle-of-the-road,' by the numbers we sourced."

Each state was evaluated by four equally weighted factors: its general business climate and opportunity, the number of female-owned businesses, economic and financial health, and safety and well-being for women. Texas's startup climate and opportunity, which was weighted by 35 percent in the study, was ranked No. 4. When it came to economic and financial health, weighted at 15 percent, Texas also snagged the No. 4 spot.

Rice Business Plan Competition startup raises $1.1 million

Photo via resonado.com

Resonado, the runner-up at the 2019 Rice Business Plan Competition, has raised $1.1 million in funding for its thinner, better-sounding speaker system technology.

The company was founded by four University of Notre Dame University classmates — Brian Cho, Christian Femrite, Erik Perez-Perez, and Peter Moeckel.

Rice University's OWL Investment contributed to the round.

Fannin Innovation Studio makes strategic hire

Praveen Kudithipudi

Photo via fannininnovation.com

Praveen Kudithipudi has been named as director of business development at Houston-based Fannin Innovation Studio. He supports the licensing of Fannin's portfolio technologies as well as collaborations with pharmaceutical companies and academic partners.

"I am excited to have a wonderful opportunity to work at Fannin," says Kudithipudi in the news release. "Fannin builds successful life sciences startups while helping to catalyze the formation of a thriving and sustainable life sciences entrepreneurship ecosystem in Houston. The opportunity to lead licensing, diligence, and collaboration efforts with academic institutions and biotechnology companies here in Houston is truly a unique opportunity."

Kudithipudi received his medical degree in India and specialized in neuroscience in the United Kingdom. He received his MBA from New York University. Prior to this role, he worked in banking, venture capital, and investments in New York.

"We are excited to have someone with the range of experiences and caliber of Praveen on the team," says Atul Varadhachary, Fannin managing partner, in the release. "In our business, we look for high potential technologies at an early stage. Having someone with both a medical background and Wall Street know-how is invaluable to us as we review opportunities and reach out to prospective development partners."

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Intuitive Machines lands $180M NASA contract for lunar delivery mission

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NASA has awarded Intuitive Machines a $180.4 million Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) award to deliver science and technology to the moon.

This is the fifth CLPS award the Houston spacetech company has received from NASA, according to a release. It will be the first mission to utilize Intuitive Machines' larger cargo lunar lander, Nova-D.

Known as IM-5, the mission is expected to deliver seven payloads to Mons Malapert, a ridge near the Lunar South Pole, which is a "compelling location for future communications, navigation, and surface infrastructure," according to the release.

“We believe our space infrastructure provides the scalability and flexibility needed to support an increased cadence of new Artemis missions and advance national objectives. This CLPS award accelerates our expansion efforts as we build, connect, and operate the systems powering that infrastructure,” Steve Altemus, CEO of Intuitive Machines, said in the release. “We look forward to working closely with NASA to deliver mission success on IM-5 and to provide sustained operations and persistent connectivity in the cislunar environment and across the solar system.”

The delivery will include the Australian Space Agency’s lunar rover, known as Roo-ver, and another lunar rover from Honeybee Robotics, a part of Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. Intuitive Machines will also deliver chemical analysis instruments, radiation detectors and other technologies, as well as a capsule named Sanctuary that shows examples of human achievements.

Intuitive Machines previously completed its IM-1 and IM-2 missions, which put the first commercial lunar lander on the moon and achieved the southernmost lunar landing, respectively.

Its IM-3 mission is expected to deliver international payloads to the moon's Reiner Gamma this year. It’s IM-4 mission, funded by a $116.9 million CLPS award, is expected to deliver six science and technology payloads to the Moon’s South Pole in 2027.

The company also announced a $175 million equity investment to fuel growth earlier this month.

TotalEnergies exits U.S. offshore wind sector in $1B federal deal

Energy News

TotalEnergies, a French company whose U.S. headquarters is in Houston, has agreed to redirect nearly $930 million in capital from two offshore wind leases on the East Coast to oil, natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production.

In its agreement with the U.S. Department of the Interior, TotalEnergies has also promised not to develop new offshore wind projects in the U.S. “in light of national security concerns,” according to a department press release.

Federal agency hails ‘landmark agreement’

The Department of the Interior called the deal a “landmark agreement” that will steer capital “from expensive, unreliable offshore wind leases toward affordable, reliable natural gas projects that will provide secure energy for hardworking Americans.”

Renewable energy advocates object to what they believe is the Trump administration’s mischaracterization of offshore wind projects.

Under the Department of the Interior agreement, the federal government will reimburse TotalEnergies on a dollar-for-dollar basis for the leases, up to the amount that the energy company paid.

“Offshore wind is one of the most expensive, unreliable, environmentally disruptive, and subsidy-dependent schemes ever forced on American ratepayers and taxpayers,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in the announcement. “We welcome TotalEnergies’ commitment to developing projects that produce dependable, affordable power to lower Americans' monthly bills while providing secure U.S. baseload power today — and in the future.”

TotalEnergies cites U.S. policy in move away from U.S. wind power

In the news release, Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, says the company was “pleased” to sign the agreement to support the Trump administration’s energy policy.

“Considering that the development of offshore wind projects is not in the country’s interest, we have decided to renounce offshore wind development in the United States, in exchange for the reimbursement of the lease fees,” Pouyanné says.

TotalEnergies redirects capital to LNG, oil, and natural gas

TotalEnergies will use the $928 million it spent on the offshore wind leases for development of a joint venture LNG plant in the Rio Grande Valley, as well as for production of upstream oil in the Gulf of Mexico and for production of shale gas.

“These investments will contribute to supplying Europe with much-needed LNG from the U.S. and provide gas for U.S. data center development. We believe this is a more efficient use of capital in the United States,” Pouyanné says.

TotalEnergies paid $133.3 million for an offshore wind lease at the Carolina Long Bay project off the coast of North Carolina and $795 million in 2022 for a lease covering a 1,545-megawatt commercial offshore wind facility off the coast of New Jersey.

“TotalEnergies’ studies on these leases have shown that offshore wind developments in the United States, unlike those in Europe, are costly and might have a negative impact on power affordability for U.S. consumers,” TotalEnergies said in a company-issued press release. “Since other technologies are available to meet the growing demand for electricity in the United States in a more affordable way, TotalEnergies considers there is no need to allocate capital to this technology in the U.S.”

Since 2022, TotalEnergies has invested nearly $12 billion to promote the development of oil, LNG, and electricity in the U.S. In 2025, TotalEnergies was the No. 1 exporter of LNG from the U.S.

Industry groups push back on offshore wind pullback

The American Clean Energy Association has pushed back on the Trump administration’s characterization of offshore wind projects.

“The offshore wind industry creates thousands of high-quality, good-paying jobs, and is revitalizing American manufacturing supply chains and U.S. shipyards,” Jason Grumet, the association’s CEO, said in December after the Trump administration paused all leases for large-scale offshore wind projects under construction in the U.S. “It is a critical component of our energy security and provides stable, domestic power that helps meet demand and keep costs low.”

Grumet added that President Trump’s “relentless attacks on offshore wind undermine his own economic agenda and needlessly harm American workers and consumers.” He called for passage of federal legislation that would prevent the White House “from picking winners and losers” in the energy sector and “placing political ideology” above Americans’ best interests.

The National Resources Defense Council offered a similar response to the offshore wind leases being paused.

“In its ongoing effort to prop up waning fossil fuels interests, the administration is taking wilder and wilder swings at the clean energy projects this economy needs,” said Pasha Feinberg, the council’s offshore wind strategist. “Investments in energy infrastructure require business certainty. This is the opposite. If the administration thinks the chilling impacts of this action are limited to the clean energy sector, it is sorely mistaken.”

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This article originally appeared on EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

Houston researcher examines how AI helps and hurts creativity

eye on ai

As artificial intelligence continues to grow and seeps into spaces like art, design and writing, a Houston researcher is examining its effects on creativity.

University of Houston’s Bauer College Assistant Professor Jinghui Hou, in collaboration with scholars around the world, recently published the paper "The Double-Edged Roles of Generative AI in the Creative Process" in the journal Information Systems Research.

Through the research, the team identified two stages of creativity that AI can influence: ideation and implementation.

In one study, Hou and her team developed a lab experiment to examine the impact of a cutting-edge generative AI tool during the brainstorming or ideation phase on a group of designers with varying levels of expertise.

The study showed that nearly all designers who used generative AI during this stage improved in the creativity of their graphic design work, and that the improvements were substantial and consistent across the board.

“In the first stage, we find that for anyone, including ordinary people and expert designers, AI is very helpful because of its computational power,” Hou said in a news release. “It can go beyond the imagination that humans have. For example, if I wanted to imagine a tiger with wings, it would be hard to see that in my head, but AI can do it easily.”

However, a second study examining the implementation stage found that AI affects professionals differently than novice designers.

The study showed that novice designers continued to improve in all aspects of their work when using AI. But more expert designers did not see significant improvements in the implementation stage. Rather, expert designers who used AI spent 57 percent more time completing their work compared with their peers who did not use AI.

“In the implementation stage, we find that AI is still very helpful for those ordinary people, but it creates more work for expert designers,” Hou said in the release. “This is because the designer has years of training to materialize a piece of artwork. We find that AI uses different techniques to produce creative work. For designers, it can become burdensome to revise what AI made.”

Hou’s paper suggests that AI is most helpful in the brainstorming stage, but hopes to see generative AI developers program tailor the technology for expert-level, professional needs.

“It could give users more freedom to fit the technology to their usage pattern and workflow,” Hou added. “In a sense, it's not about people catering to the AI, but the AI technology catering to people."

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