This week's roundup of Houston innovators includes Jeff James of PickleJar, Madison Long and Simone May of Clutch, and Tarun Girish of Spark Spaces. Photos courtesy

Editor's note: In this week's roundup of Houston innovators to know, I'm introducing you to four local startup founders across industries — from electric vehicles to app development— recently making headlines in Houston innovation.

Jeff James, co-founder and CEO of PickleJar

Jeff James and his company, PickleJar, are streamlining and strengthening the connection between performer and audience. Photo courtesy of PickleJar

Jeff James had the idea for a platform that allows musicians to engage with their audiences — specifically when it came to receiving tips. Right when he started working on the idea for PickleJar, an app-based, performer-focused platform where fans can conduct cashless tips, the pandemic hit.

"As the pandemic lingered on, we realized the project wasn't just about tipping or on-stage engagement, it's about something greater than that," James says on the Houston Innovators Podcast. "It's all the different ways how artists are being disenfranchised. We really set out on a mission to help artists make more money."

As distracting as the pandemic was at first to PickleJar, which officially launched in May of 2021, the company ended up having a huge opportunity to be a revenue stream for artists when they needed it most. The duo decided they had to build the company — even during the pandemic and uncertain times. Click here to read more and listen to the episode.

Madison Long and Simone May, co-founders of Clutch

Madison Long, left, and Simone May co-founded Clutch to democratize side gig success on college campuses. Photo courtesy of Clutch

Clutch, a digital marketplace startup founded by Simone May and Madison Long, has fresh funding after closing its pre-seed round of funding at $1.2 million. The investment from this round will support Clutch’s national open beta launch of its platform for brands and student creators nationwide and its continued investment in customer and product strategy.

“We are at this inflection point where marketing is changing,” May says in a press release. “We know that the next generation can clearly see that and I think a lot of marketing agencies are starting to catch on.

"We need to be prioritizing the next generation’s opinion because they are driving who is interested in what they buy. This upcoming generation does not want to be sold to and they don’t like inorganic, inauthentic advertisements. That’s why user generated content is so big, it feels authentic.” Click here to continue reading.

Tarun Girish, founder and CEO of Sparks Spaces

Houston-based Spark Spaces is looking to build out luxury spots for electric vehicle charging. Rendering courtesy of Spark Spaces

Tarun Girish wanted to upgrade EV drivers' charging experiences. His idea became Sparks Spaces, a startup formed in 2021 looking to shake up the EV charging game — the company aims to elevate the experience of charging electric vehicles by focusing on the space between car and charger by creating an airport lounge-type space for drivers. These EV lounges would include luxury waiting areas, clean restrooms, high-end food options, and availability to utilize them 24/7.

“We’ve seen a huge issue in the EV charging space where the experience side has been neglected,” says Girish, founder and CEO of Sparks Spaces.

Currently, Sparks Spaces is operating out of The Ion and installed a charging point outside of the building to help collect insights into what drivers are needing and are wanting to learn more about their customer base. Click here to learn more.

Jeff James and his company, PickleJar, are streamlining and strengthening the connection between performer and audience. Photo courtesy of PickleJar

This Houston innovator is making sure musicians are getting paid

houston innovators podcast episode 146

One night a few years ago, Jeff James found himself at a bar with a live musician serenading the crowd. And, living in an increasingly cashless society, he didn't have an easy way to show his appreciation by way of a tip.

He turned to Kristian Barowsky, a business colleague — the two were working on a project, and together they spitballed an idea for a cashless way to better engage with performing artists.

"The idea stuck with us, and, even though we were working on other projects, we decided that this really was an issue — the way that artists make money," James says on the Houston Innovators Podcast "It's such an ecosystem of scepticism, and everyone has their fingers in the pockets of these musicians."

James and Barowsky started working on the idea that would become PickleJar, an app-based, performer-focused platform where fans can conduct cashless tips — and they can be sure the artist is getting 100 percent of that money.

The duo wrote their first line of code two months before the pandemic hit and all of live music performances were postponed or streamed.

"As the pandemic lingered on, we realized the project wasn't just about tipping or on-stage engagement, it's about something greater than that," James says. "It's all the different ways how artists are being disenfranchised. We really set out on a mission to help artists make more money."

Now, PickleJar is a comprehensive engagement platform where artists can receive song requests and tips, but also sell tickets and merchandise and even crowdfund their next album.

As distracting as the pandemic was at first to PickleJar, which officially launched in May of 2021, the company ended up having a huge opportunity to be a revenue stream for artists when they needed it most. The duo decided they had to build the company — even during the pandemic and uncertain times.

"We decided that if we weren't going to solve this problem, then who was?" James says. "The negative impact the pandemic was having on artists — we had to be there waiting for them as we come out of the pandemic."

Over a year in now, PickleJar has over 2,500 artists on the platform who have generated over $1 million in income.

James shares more about the future of Pickle Jar on the podcast. Listen to the interview below — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.

A Houston entrepreneur has created a platform that puts artists first. Photo courtesy of PickleJar

New Houston-based app tips the scales in favor of musicians and fans

tuned in to tips

Like so many business owners, Jeff James' inspiration for his innovative new music app PickleJar, came out of sheer necessity. Sitting in a bar in the buzzy Broadway district in Nashville, Tennessee, James, a serial entrepreneur, realized there had to be a better way to tip performing musicians.

"This young girl comes through the crowd carrying a Yeti bucket asking for 20 dollars for the band," James tells CultureMap. With no cash on hand, James donated via Square. "Sixty dollars later, I had so many questions: would she remember my name? Would she remember my songs? There's gotta be a better way to do this."

James, a former radio DJ and record label veteran, started scribbling his idea for a musician tipping app on a napkin. Two years later, PickleJar was sparked, James says, because "every musician we spoke to hates the way they're paid on these apps like Venmo and Facebook."

Pushing an "artist first," mission statement, PickleJar ensures that every musician utilizing the app keeps 100 percent of the money — something unheard of when James started the process two years ago. Fans donate to musicians on the app, and in turn, get five times that tip in proprietary digital currency called Pick Coins.

"If you tip 100 dollars to a musician, you get 500 Pick Coins," explains James, "that goes to buying tickets, merch, or VIP experiences on our app." Another artist-first perk: The artist also gets 500 Pick Coins in that scenario.

With its own e-commerce platform, PickleJar allows fans to use these Pick Coins for experiences, and musicians to use them for much-needed equipment. PickleJar has partnered with Austin-based Strait Music Company, which will provide musicians with instruments and gear. Musicians can create their own wish lists so that fans can directly contribute to the desired gear.

Fittingly, the company has partnered with local venues for themed nights. Buzzy bar McIntyre's Downtown will feature a tip-worthy Texas artist every Wednesday night in its PickLounge.

PickleJar also allows musicians to livestream. "On Facebook Live, data shows that only about eight to 10 percent of an artist's audience know they're live. On top of that, Facebook takes 30 to 40 percent of the tips." With PickleJar, 100 percent of an artists fans will be notified when the artists in livestreaming.

Fans can even donate directly to a musician's nonprofit of choice, something happening now during Hurricane Ida relief efforts. Numerous artists on PickleJar are raising funds for Ida assistance, James notes. "We really believe that a 'gratitude economy' is emerging," he says. "We wanted to create the easiest way possible for fans to say thank you."

That thank-you option also means fans can send direct messages, notes, and even pictures on the app, which, James acknowledges with a chuckle, could get very interesting.

Another musician-first nuance not found on other apps: PickleJar allows for "smart" splits, so that musicians are appropriately compensated for their specific contribution. An artist who wrote songs and drove the van to a gig, for example, can be funneled a higher percentage of tips than bandmates who contributed less.

James and his Houston-based tech team are also working on a TV channel on streaming devices, dubbed PickleJar Plus.

While one might be tempted to assume PickleJar is meant for those gig-to-gig, struggling musicians, James assures that the app is meant for every level, which he breaks down accordingly:

  • "Never-evers": These folks will never get signed, but use the app to get better
  • "Got talent, not signed": Artists can use PickleJar to build audiences and crowdfund
  • "I'm signed/labeled": Here, signed artists curate setlists which can be monetized via tips
  • "Idols": These artists are already brands. "Kenny Chesney can use this to make sure every dollar goes to a nonprofit," says James. Chesney's team can watch a meter, and when donations hit a specific dollar amount, Chesney can reward fans with their favorite song."

If all this seems to point to James one day managing and representing artists, James says that idea is not entirely off. PickleJar could one day be the world's biggest independent record label, he acknowledges, by the way it allows indies to promote themselves.

"We were in a meeting and the guy says, 'you're gonna change the entertainment world forever,'" James, recalls. "We hope so. We just want to build a relationship with artists — and put them first."

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Rice research breakthrough paves the way for advanced disease therapies

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Bioengineers at Rice University have developed a “new construction kit” for building custom sense-and-respond circuits in human cells, representing a major breakthrough in the field of synthetic biology, which could "revolutionize" autoimmune disease and cancer therapeutics.

In a study published in the journal Science, the team focused on phosphorylation, a cellular process in the body in which a phosphate group is added to a protein, signaling a response. In multicellular organisms, phosphorylation-based signaling can involve a multistage, or a cascading-like effect. Rice’s team set out to show that each cycle in a cascade can be treated as an elementary unit, meaning that they can be reassembled in new configurations to form entirely novel pathways linking cellular inputs and outputs.

Previous research on using phosphorylation-based signaling for therapeutic purposes has focused on re-engineering pathways.

“This opens up the signaling circuit design space dramatically,” Caleb Bashor, assistant professor of bioengineering and biosciences and corresponding author on the study, said in a news release. “It turns out, phosphorylation cycles are not just interconnected but interconnectable … Our design strategy enabled us to engineer synthetic phosphorylation circuits that are not only highly tunable but that can also function in parallel with cells’ own processes without impacting their viability or growth rate.”

Bashor is the deputy director for the Rice Synthetic Biology Institute, which launched last year.

The Rice lab's sense-and-respond cellular circuit design is also innovative because phosphorylation occurs rapidly. Thus, the new circuits could potentially be programmed to respond to physiological events in minutes, compared to other methods, which take hours to activate.

Rice’s team successfully tested the circuits for sensitivity and their ability to respond to external signals, such as inflammatory issues. The researchers then used the framework to engineer a cellular circuit that can detect certain factors, control autoimmune flare-ups and reduce immunotherapy-associated toxicity.

“This work brings us a whole lot closer to being able to build ‘smart cells’ that can detect signs of disease and immediately release customizable treatments in response,” Xiaoyu Yang, a graduate student in the Systems, Synthetic and Physical Biology Ph.D. program at Rice who is the lead author on the study, said in a news release.

Ajo-Franklin, a professor of biosciences, bioengineering, chemical and biomolecular engineering and a Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas Scholar, added “the Bashor lab’s work vaults us forward to a new frontier — controlling mammalian cells’ immediate response to change.”

Greentown Labs names new CEO to lead pioneering climate tech incubator

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Houston and Boston climate tech incubator Greentown Labs has named Georgina Campbell Flatter as the organization’s incoming CEO.

Flatter will transition to Greentown from her role as co-founder and executive director of TomorrowNow.org, a global nonprofit that studies and connects next-generation weather and climate technologies with communities most affected by climate change.

“We are at a transformational moment in the energy transition, with an unprecedented opportunity to drive solutions in energy production, sustainability, and climate resilience,” Flatter said in a news release. “Greentown Labs is, and has always been, a home for entrepreneurs and a powerhouse of collaboration and innovation.”

Previously, Flatter worked to launch TomorrowNow out of tomorrow.io, a Boston-based AI-powered weather intelligence and satellite technology company. The organization secured millions in climate philanthropy from partners, including the Gates Foundation, which helped deliver cutting-edge climate solutions to millions of African farmers weekly.

Flatter also spent 10 years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she was a senior lecturer and led global initiatives at the intersection of technology and social impact. Her research work includes time at Langer Lab and Sun Catalytix, an MIT – ARPA-E-funded spin-out that focused on energy storage solutions inspired by natural photosynthesis. Flatter is also an Acumen Rockefeller Global Food Systems Fellow and was closely involved with Greentown Labs when it was founded in Boston in 2011, according to the release.

“It’s rare to find an individual who has impressive climate and energy expertise along with nonprofit and entrepreneurial leadership—we’re fortunate Georgie brings all of this and more to Greentown Labs,” Bobby Tudor, Greentown Labs Board Chair and Chairman of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, said in a news release.

Flatter will collaborate with Kevin Dutt, Greentown’s Interim CEO, and also continue to serve on Greentown’s Board of Directors, which was recently announced in December and contributed to a successful $4 million funding round. She’s also slated to speak at CERAWeek next month.

“In this next chapter, I’m excited to build on our entrepreneurial roots and the strength of our ever-growing communities in Boston and Houston,” Flatter added in a news release. “Together, we will unite entrepreneurs, partners, and resources to tackle frontier challenges and scale breakthrough technologies.”

Greentown also named Naheed Malik its new chief financial officer last month. The announcements come after Greentown’s former CEO and president, Kevin Knobloch, announced that he would step down in July 2024 after less than a year in the role.

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This article originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapital.

Houston firm invests $150M in leading 'lab on a chip' medical diagnostics co.

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Houston-based health technology investment firm Hamershlag Private Capital Management Limited (HPCM) announced a $150.15 million venture investment in Patho Care LLC.

Patho Care is a “lab on a chip” medical diagnostics company known for its noninvasive point-of-care testing platforms, such as its Raman spectroscopy-based platform.

Its digital point-of-care testing devices are programmable, mobile, and reusable and can detect current or future respiratory bacterial or viral infections. The company says the technology is more cost-effective and provides results faster than traditional diagnostic methods.

“Patho Care LLC is a distinguished leader in healthcare diagnostics through the utilization of a novel approach with spectroscopy and this investment aligns with HPCM’s strategy of partnering with high-potential companies in dynamic industries,” L. Mychal Jefferson, Chairman of Hamershlag, said in a news release.

The transaction was structured as an acquisition and recapitalization using newly issued common stock and cash, which will work through a newly formed entity, PathoCare Holdings Inc. The deal will also facilitate the repayment of Patho Care LLC's existing financial obligations and settle Patho Care’s outstanding notes, helping ensure the company’s financial readiness, according to the release.

The investment will help Patho Care LLC improve operational efficiencies, broaden its service offerings and continue to innovate in the diagnostic testing space. The companies hope the collaboration will help “unlock new growth opportunities while maintaining the company’s legacy of excellence in an emerging technology,” according to a news release.

“Our commitment to delivering transformative value through innovative investments underscores our confidence in Patho Care’s vision and capabilities,” Jefferson added.