3 Houston innovators to know this week

who's who

This week's roundup of Houston innovators includes Alfredo Arvide of Slalom Consulting, Allison Post of the Texas Heart Institute, and Jeff Price of Pronto Pay. 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 — tech consulting, health care, and fintech — recently making headlines in Houston innovation.

Alfredo Arvide, senior principal within product engineering at Slalom Consulting

Should you launch an app? Or just a web page? This consultant weighs in with his advice. Photo courtesy of Slalom

Tech founders have a lot of decisions to make, and Alfredo Arvide of Slalom Consulting wrote a guest column for InnovationMap to help advise on a big one.

"One of the biggest decisions you'll have to make as an entrepreneur is whether you should host your product or service on the web, via an app, or through a webapp," he writes. "Product development has a million intricacies that will dictate – and sometimes demand – a specific route to market." Read more.

Allison Post, manager of innovation partnerships at the Texas Heart Institute

Allison Post joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to share what she's focused on in cardiac innovation. Photo courtesy of THI

In a perfect world, Houston's health care institutions work collaboratively on innovative health care solutions and the city soars as a major hub for life science innovation. That perfect world is Allison Post's goal. As Texas Heart Institute's manager of innovation partnerships, she is in charge of supporting THI innovators and connecting the institute with the rest of the city.

"I only see just phenomenal things for Houston, and what I really want is for the Texas Medical Center to become even more interconnected. We've got to be able to transfer ideas and thoughts and intentions seamlessly between these institutions and right now there are a lot of barriers," Post says. "And I really think Texas Heart is hopefully going to serve as an example of how to take down those barriers." Read more and stream the episode.

Jeff Price, founder and CEO of Pronto Pay

This Houston startup has an app for helping employees get a portion of their paychecks before payday. Photo via Pexels

So much of the country lives paycheck to paycheck, and Jeff Price saw a business opportunity to help out employees who need an advance on their wages. He founded Pronto Pay in the first quarter of 2021. The software aims to connect hourly works with transparent access to wages earned before pay day without disrupting the employers' books.

"When you think about it, payroll hasn't changed in nearly two centuries. As far as we can remember, you get paid weekly or bi-weekly. And that's precisely the point we're trying to solve," Price says. Read more.

This Houston startup has an app for helping employees get a portion of their paychecks before payday. Photo via Pexels

Houston-based software startup aims to connect workers with wages in real time

there's an app for that

Could you incur an unexpected $400 expense if it hit your bank account today? According to Jeff Price, founder and CEO of Houston-based Pronto Pay, many hourly workers could not. He's set out to change that.

"When you think about it, payroll hasn't changed in nearly two centuries. As far as we can remember, you get paid weekly or bi-weekly. And that's precisely the point we're trying to solve," Price says.

A recent graduate from Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business, Price founded Pronto Pay in the first quarter of 2021. The software aims to connect hourly works with transparent access to wages earned before pay day without disrupting the employers' books. Currently the company has seven staff members, is actively hiring and is looking to expand outside of Houston soon.

Pronto Pay partners with the employers to seamlessly build out connections with their time and attendance system and payroll processor. After the company signs up, ProntoPay automatically creates an account for each employee, which allows them to view their accrued wages and withdraw their earnings instantly from the app or next-day for automated clearing house payments — all via the Pronto Pay App. When an employee wishes to withdraw funds prior to their normal pay cycle, Pronto Pay applies a small fixed fee — $2.99 — for completing the transaction. .

Come pay day, the employer's system will automatically balance the difference and route the withdrawn money back to Pronto Pay. As Price describes it, Pronto Pay aims to compete "directly with (while severely undercutting the price of) payday and other predatory lenders."

The idea was born out of a series of simple questions Price started to ask himself when he envisioned what his newborn son's first job would be earlier this year.

"My wife and I were having our son and it challenged me to ask questions like, 'Hey, why do we get paid bi-weekly? If I can Venmo 100 bucks in real time, why can't a company do that?'" Price recalls.

Apart from the impact of advanced pay, Price envisions that earned wages access will improve workplace culture and retention, too. Pronto Pay has already on-boarded users in the local staffing and warehousing markets, in the janitorial and security guard fields, and at call centers. As Price describes, Pronto Pay's clients "typically have a lot of hourly employees that struggle with employee retention and keeping folks at the same job for longer than three to 12 months."

"We're hoping that we can permanently change that employee-employer relationship," he adds. "And help those employees."

Jeff Price is the founder and CEO of Pronto Pay.

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Rice biotech accelerator appoints 2 leading researchers to team

Launch Pad

The Rice Biotech Launch Pad, which is focused on expediting the translation of Rice University’s health and medical technology discoveries into cures, has named Amanda Nash and Kelsey L. Swingle to its leadership team.

Both are assistant professors in Rice’s Department of Bioengineering and will bring “valuable perspective” to the Houston-based accelerator, according to Rice. 

“Their deep understanding of both the scientific rigor required for successful innovation and the commercial strategies necessary to bring these technologies to market will be invaluable as we continue to build our portfolio of lifesaving medical technologies,” Omid Veiseh, faculty director of the Launch Pad, said in a news release.

Amanda Nash

Nash leads a research program focused on developing cell communication technologies to treat cancer, autoimmune diseases and aging. She previously trained as a management consultant at McKinsey & Co., where she specialized in business development, portfolio strategy and operational excellence for pharmaceutical and medtech companies. She earned her doctorate in bioengineering from Rice and helped develop implantable cytokine factories for the treatment of ovarian cancer. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Houston.

“Returning to Rice represents a full-circle moment in my career, from conducting my doctoral research here to gaining strategic insights at McKinsey and now bringing that combined perspective back to advance Houston’s biotech ecosystem,” Nash said in the release. “The Launch Pad represents exactly the kind of translational bridge our industry needs. I look forward to helping researchers navigate the complex path from discovery to commercialization.”

Kelsey L. Swingle

Swingle’s research focuses on engineering lipid-based nanoparticle technologies for drug delivery to reproductive tissues, which includes the placenta. She completed her doctorate in bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, where she developed novel mRNA lipid nanoparticles for the treatment of preeclampsia. She received her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University and is a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow.

“What draws me to the Rice Biotech Launch Pad is its commitment to addressing the most pressing unmet medical needs,” Swingle added in the release. “My research in women’s health has shown me how innovation at the intersection of biomaterials and medicine can tackle challenges that have been overlooked for far too long. I am thrilled to join a team that shares this vision of designing cutting-edge technologies to create meaningful impact for underserved patient populations.”

The Rice Biotech Launch Pad opened in 2023. It held the official launch and lab opening of RBL LLC, a biotech venture creation studio in May. Read more here.

University of Houston archaeologists make history with Mayan tomb discovery

History in the Making

Two University of Houston archaeologists have made scientific history with the discovery of a Mayan king's tomb in Belize.

The UH team led by husband and wife scientists Arlen F. Chase and Diane Z. Chase made the discovery at Caracol, the largest Mayan archeological site in Belize, which is situated about 25 miles south of Xunantunich and the town of San Ignacio. Together with Belize's Institute of Archeology, as well as support from the Geraldine and Emory Ford Foundation and the KHR Family Fund, they uncovered the tomb of Caracol's founder, King Te K’ab Chaak. Their work used airborne light detection and ranging technology to uncover previously hidden roadways and structures that have been reclaimed by the jungle.

The tomb was found at the base of a royal family shrine. The king, who ascended the throne in 331 AD, lived to an advanced enough age that he no longer had teeth. His tomb held a collection of 11 pottery vessels, carved bone tubes, jadeite jewelry, a mosaic jadeite mask, Pacific spondylus shells, and various other perishable items. Pottery vessels found in the chamber depict a Maya ruler wielding a spear as he receives offerings from supplicants represented as deities; the figure of Ek Chuah, the Maya god of traders, surrounded by offerings; and bound captives, a motif also seen in two related burials. Additionally, two vessels had lids adorned with modeled handles shaped like coatimundi (pisote) heads. The coatimundi, known as tz’uutz’ in Maya, was later adopted by subsequent rulers of Caracol as part of their names.

 Diane Chase archaeologist in Mayan tomb Diane Z. Chase in the Mayan tomb. Photo courtesy of University of Houston

During the Classical Period, Caracol was one of the main hubs of the Mayan Lowlands and covered an area bigger than that of present-day Belize City. Populations survived in the area for at least 1,000 years before the city was abandoned sometime around 900 AD. The royal dynasty established by Te K’ab Chaak continued at Caracol for over 460 years.

The find is also significant because this was roughly when the Mexican city of Teotihuacan made contact with Caracol, leading to a long relationship of trade and cultural exchange. Cremation sites found in Caracol contain items that would have come from Teotihuacan, showing the relationship between the two distant cities.

"Both central Mexico and the Maya area were clearly aware of each other’s ritual practices, as reflected in the Caracol cremation," said Arlen F. Chase, professor and chair of Comparative Cultural Studies at the University of Houston.

“The connections between the two regions were undertaken by the highest levels of society, suggesting that initial kings at various Maya cities — such as Te K’ab Chaak at Caracol — were engaged in formal diplomatic relationships with Teotihuacan.”

The Chases will present their findings at a conference on Maya–Teotihuacan interaction hosted by the Maya Working Group at the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico in August 2025.

 UH professors Chase make Mayan Discovery UH archaeologists Arlen F. Chase and Diane Z. Chase Photo courtesy of University of Houston

 

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This story originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Houston palliative care company integrates with Epic platforms

epic scale

Patients and medical teams using MyChart and other Epic Systems' software will now be able to access Houston-based Koda Health's AI-enhanced end-of-life planning platform.

The Houston-based palliative care company, which was born out of the TMC's Biodesign Fellowship, has integrated its advance care planning platform with Epic, one of the most widely used electronic health record (EHR) systems in the U.S., according to a news release.

Epic estimates that more than 325 million patients have a current electronic record in its systems.

“This is a significant milestone for our mission to make advance care planning scalable, meaningful, and seamless,” Tatiana Fofanova, CEO and co-founder of Koda Health, said in the release. “By integrating into systems already used by care teams, we help eliminate friction and ensure that care delivery honors what patients truly want—especially during serious illness and at the end of life.”

The partnership will streamline processes for both patients and clinicians. Users will be able to drop advance care plans directly into the Epic charts, which will be accessible through MyChart for patients and proxies and through Epic Hyperspace/Hyperdrive for care teams. Doctors can also initiate and manage advance care plans through a simple Epic order for patients.

According to Koda Health, its platform saves an average of $10,000 to $15,000 per patient. Roughly 85 percent of users complete advance care plan documents when using the platform, which is four times the national average.

“We developed Koda to give providers the time, training, and tools to guide these critical conversations," Dr. Desh Mohan, co-founder and chief medical officer at Koda Health, added in the statement. "Our integration now makes it possible to operationalize ACP at scale—aligned with value-based care goals and clinical reality.”

The company announced a partnership with Dallas-based Guidehealth, which integrates into primary care workflows and allows providers to identify high-risk patients, coordinate care and reduce administrative burden. Guidehealth works with more than 500,000 patients

Koda Health was founded in 2020 and closed an oversubscribed seed round for an undisclosed amount last year, with investments from AARP, Memorial Hermann Health System and the Texas Medical Center Venture Fund. The company also added Kidney Action Planning to its suite of services in 2024.

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