Innovation Labs @ TMC set to launch for early-stage life science startups

moving in

Innovation Labs @ TMC will open next year at the TMC Innovation Factory. Photo courtesy JLABS.

The Texas Medical Center will launch its new Innovation Labs @ TMC in January 2026 to better support life science startups working within the innovation hub.

The 34,000-square-foot space, located in the TMC Innovation Factory at 2450 Holcombe Blvd., will feature labs and life science offices and will be managed by TMC. The space was previously occupied by Johnson & Johnson's JLABS @TMC, a representative from TMC tells InnovationMap. JLABS will officially vacate the space in January.

TMC shares that the expansion will allow it to "open its doors to a wider range of life science visionaries," including those in the TMC BioBridge program and Innovation Factory residents. It will also allow TMC to better integrate with the Innovation Factory's offerings, such as the TMC Health Tech accelerator, TMC Center for Device Innovation and TMC Venture Fund.

“We have witnessed an incredible demand for life science space, not only at the TMC Innovation Factory, but also on the TMC Helix Park research campus,” William McKeon, president and CEO of the TMC, said in a news release. “Innovation Labs @ TMC enables us to meet this rising demand and continue reshaping how early-stage life science companies grow, connect, and thrive.”

“By bringing together top talent, cutting-edge research, and industry access in one central hub, we can continue to advance Houston’s life science ecosystem," he continued.

The TMC Innovation Factory has hosted 450 early-stage ventures since it launched in 2015. JLABS first opened in the space in 2016 with the goal of helping health care startups commercialize.

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Optellum, based in the TMC Innovation Institute, has entered into a partnership with Johnson & Johnson. Photo via Getty Images

AI-optimized health startup with HQ in Houston takes its tech to the next level with new partner

ending cancer

Optellum, a startup whose technology helps doctors detect and treat lung cancer, has teamed up with one of the world's health care giants to broaden the software's reach.

On August 18, Optellum — whose U.S. headquarters is at Houston's TMC Innovation Institute — unveiled its new collaboration with the Lung Care Initiative at Johnson & Johnson, which racked up global sales of $82.6 billion last year. Optellum's key contribution to the partnership is its AI-powered software that aids medical professionals in detecting and treating patients with lung cancer.

With Optellum's AI-powered lung cancer diagnostics now being included in J&J's Lung Cancer Initiative, medical teams soon will enjoy access to an array of complementary technologies designed to improve diagnosis and treatment of early stage cancer. The Lung Cancer Initiative, launched in 2018 by J&J and Boston University, aims to prevent, detect, and cure lung cancer.

Lung cancer ranks as the world's most common type of cancer and leading cause of cancer deaths. About 1.8 million people around the world die from lung cancer each year. The current five-year survival rate is just 20 percent, primarily due to most patients being diagnosed after the disease has reached an advanced stage.

Optellum's Virtual Nodule Clinic software received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in March. Hospitals in the U.S. are rolling out the technology, with Asia-Pacific and European hospitals on track to eventually adopt the software.

The Optellum platform identifies and tracks at-risk patients, and assigns a "lung cancer prediction" score to lung nodules — small lesions, frequently detected in chest CT scans, that may or may not be cancerous.

"Optellum's vision is to redefine the early intervention of lung cancer by enabling every patient to be diagnosed and treated at the earliest possible stage, when the chances of cure are highest," the United Kingdom-based company says in a news release.

The startup — a 2019 graduate of the Texas Medical Center's accelerator — hopes to apply the technology to other lung diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Optellum recently was named one of the 101 best medical device startups in the United Kingdom. In June, the startup was among 38 AI projects chosen by the UK Department of Health and Social Care to participate in a roughly $50 million health care initiative.

Václav Potěšil, founder and CEO of Optellum, says the Johnson & Johnson collaboration represents a "significant milestone" for his company.

The J&J partnership "brings us one step closer to Optellum's vision of redefining early lung cancer treatment by helping every clinician in every hospital to make the right decisions and provide their patients the best chance to fight back," Potěšil says.

Of the 35 people employed by Optellum, three are based in the U.S. and the rest in the United Kingdom. The company's team also includes several part-time consultants, most of whom are based in the U.S. By the end of this year, Optellum plans to expand its U.S. team with several full-time hires, including a senior executive located in Houston.

Beginning next year in Houston, Optellum expects its technology to be available for patients in clinical settings.

For Potěšil, Optellum's mission is personal. He lost an aunt to lung cancer within a year of her Stage 4 diagnosis.

"I've seen firsthand how very healthy people can be killed, and it's still the most common and deadliest cancer worldwide," Potěšil is quoted as saying by the Texas Medical Center. "We are really focused on enabling cancer patients to be diagnosed at the earliest possible stage and be cured. It's not just the modeled data on the computer. It's addressing the right clinical problems to add value to doctors."

Houston can expect the new vaccine in the next week. WPA Pool / Getty Images

Here's when Houston can expect the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine

coming soon

Texas can expect to receive the first 200,000 doses of the coveted Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine this week. The company announced that it has started the rollout process on March 1 — after the FDA approved its Emergency Use Authorization.

The Center for Disease Control gave the developer, Janssen Pharmaceutical, the final greenlight Sunday, February 28.

What does that mean for Houston? Mayor Sylvester Turner said the Houston Health Department is also anticipated to be on the list to receive Johnson & Johnson doses within the next seven days.

"That will be a game changer," Turner said at an event on February 28 afternoon. "There will be more vaccines available in a shorter period of time. We anticipate that we will probably get a shipment in sometime this week that will add to the Pfizer [doses] that we are using at NRG."

Turner said other clinics with the Houston Health Department have been administering the Moderna vaccine.

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine does have noticeable differences from the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, experts said.

The MRNA vaccines each require two shots which are usually delivered weeks apart and stored in freezers. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is a single shot that can be stored in a refrigerator for up to three months at 35 to 46 degrees.

However, Johnson & Johnson does not have as much of the COVID-19 vaccine produced as originally anticipated. ABC13 confirmed 3.9 million doses will be shipped out across the country this week. Johnson & Johnson announced roughly an additional 16 million doses by the end of the month.

"In the next few weeks, it won't have much of any impact because they only have at least three or four million doses available, and that's disappointing news," says Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. "In the longer term, over the next few months, it's really important because we need a greater vaccine supply. We are not going to get there with the two MRNA vaccines. We need probably up to five different vaccines in order to vaccinate the American people."

Recently, there has been a decline in COVID-19 hospitalizations and COVID-19 cases reported statewide. As of Sunday, about 5,700 Texans are in the hospital due to COVID-19, which is half the number of hospitalization in the beginning of the month.

Infectious disease epidemiologist Dr. Catherine Troisi says it's important for people to not let their guard down and that people should get tested if they have been in a high-exposure situation, or if they have been in direct contact with someone who has tested positive.

"Get vaccinated, don't worry about what vaccine it is," Dr. Troisi notes. "It's true that unfortunately there are not as many doses right now of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as we have hoped, but the company is saying that by the end of June, they will have a 100 million doses, and that's into 100 million people because you don't need two doses.

"So, we expect to have 600 million doses of the other two vaccines, that's 300 million people," she continues. "That should be enough for everyone who wants the vaccine to be able to get it. With one caveat and that is as of right now we do not have a vaccine for children under age 16. Those trials are going on, hopefully as we go throughout the year there will be a vaccine licensed to 12 year-olds and then maybe going down to 8 years or older."

For more details on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine rollout, visit the FDA's website.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap. For more on this story, visit our news partner ABC13.

Tom Luby will run the Texas Medical Center's Innovation Institute. Courtesy of TMC

TMC names former JLABS leader as the director of the Innovation Institute

taking control

The Texas Medical Center didn't have to go very far to find its new Innovation Institute director. Tom Luby, who most recently served as the site head for Johnson & Johnson Innovation's JLABS @ TMC, has been hired for the position.

"I am very excited to begin the next chapter in my journey at TMC Innovation," Luby says in a release. "My time at JLABS @ TMC has shown me the tremendous opportunity there is to work with a host of talented people and companies here in Houston. Now, I'm ready to expand my role and help take TMC Innovation as a collective unit to the next level."

Luby replaces Erik Halvorsen, who left abruptly in December. According to LinkedIn, Halvorsen is now the chief business and strategy officer for Houston-based FAR Biotech, for which he previously served on the board of directors. Lance Black, associate director at TMCx, served as the director in the interim for the past few months.

Prior to JLABS, Luby was in Boston at Johnson & Johnson and served as the new ventures lead. He has 14 years of research and design experience in the Boston area.

TMC as an organization has a lot up its sleeves, says President and CEO Bill McKeon in a release, and he trusts Luby to take the lead on innovation.

"With major developments in 2018, including the announcement of the forthcoming TMC3 translational research campus, Texas Medical Center is now on the fast track to becoming the third coast for life sciences, and TMC Innovation is a critical component in the ultimate realization of this goal," says McKeon. "Tom Luby is an outstanding individual, and his proven track record working with startups in Boston and within the walls of JLABS @ TMC will serve him well as he leads us through the next evolutionary phase of the TMC Innovation Institute."

Luby will oversee the med center's accelerator program, TMCx, which is currently in the midst of its eighth cohort.

Houston has just been named an emerging life sciences hub by CBRE. The recognition took job growth and lab space into consideration for the ranking.

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Axiom Space announces new CEO amid strategic leadership change

new leader

Six months after promoting Tejpaul Bhatia from chief revenue officer to CEO, commercial space infrastructure and human spaceflight services provider Axiom Space has replaced him.

On Oct. 15, Houston-based Axiom announced Jonathan Cirtain has succeeded Bhatia as CEO. Bhatia joined Axiom in 2021. Cirtain remains the company’s president, a role he assumed in June, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In a news release, Axiom said Cirtain’s appointment as CEO is a “strategic leadership change” aimed at advancing the company’s development of space infrastructure.

Axiom hired Cirtain as president in June, according to his LinkedIn profile. The company didn’t publicly announce that move.

Kam Ghaffarian, co-founder and executive chairman of Axiom, said Cirtain’s “proven track record of leadership and commitment to excellence align perfectly with our mission of building era-defining space infrastructure that will drive exploration and fuel the global space economy.”

Aside from praising Cirtain, Ghaffarian expressed his “sincere gratitude” for Bhatia’s work at Axiom, including his leadership as CEO during “a significant transition period.”

Bhatia was promoted to CEO in April after helping Axiom gain more than $1 billion in contracts, Space News reported. He succeeded Ghaffarian as CEO. Axiom didn’t indicate whether Bhatia quit or was terminated.

Cirtain, an astrophysicist, was a senior executive at BWX Technologies, a supplier of nuclear components and fuel, for eight years before joining Axiom. Earlier, Cirtain spent nearly nine years in various roles at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. He previously co-founded a machine learning company specializing in Earth observation.

“Axiom Space is pioneering the commercialization of low-Earth orbit infrastructure while accelerating advancements in human spaceflight technologies,” Cirtain said. “I look forward to continuing our team’s important work of driving innovation to support expanded access to space and off-planet capabilities that will underpin the future of space exploration.”

Among other projects, Axiom is developing the world’s first commercial space station, creating next-generation spacesuits for astronauts and sending astronauts on low-Earth orbit missions.

Houston billionaire benefactors will donate almost entire fortune to charity

Giving Back

Houston billionaires Rich and Nancy Kinder plan to donate an astounding 95% of their multi-billion-dollar wealth to charities, they told ABC13's Melanie Lawson.

The news comes as the Kinder Foundation announced an $18.5 million expansion project for Emancipation Park in the heart of Third Ward. That historic park was founded by slaves in 1872.

The Kinders are one of the wealthiest couples in the nation, worth $11.4 billion, according to Forbes. You've certainly seen the Kinder name on buildings and facilities around the city of Houston.

The Kinders are also among the most generous, giving away hundreds of millions to Houston institutions and charities. Their plan is to give away almost all of their wealth, or more than $10 billion.

Rich Kinder helped build oil and gas pipeline giant Kinder Morgan, but he stepped down as CEO more than a decade ago for a what he calls a bigger cause.

"Well, I think we'd all like to leave the world a little better place than we found it," he said. "And we just felt early on that the right thing to do was to try to give most or all of that away. So that's what we plan to do during our lifetime and after our death."

They found kindred spirits as one of the first couples to sign The Giving Pledge, established by billionaires Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

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Continue reading the full story, with video, on ABC13.com.

Mark Cuban calls AI ‘the greater democratizer’ for young entrepreneurs

eyes on AI

Texas billionaire Mark Cuban—whose investment portfolio includes Houston-based Holliball, a startup that makes and sells large inflatable holiday ornaments—believes AI is leveling the playing field for budding low-income entrepreneurs.

At the recent Clover x Shark Tank Summit in Las Vegas, the Shark Tank alum called AI “the greater democratizer.”

Cuban told Axios that free and low-cost AI tools enable disadvantaged teenagers to compete with seasoned professionals.

“Right now, if you’re a 14- to 18-year-old and you’re in not-so-good circumstances, you have access to the best professors and the best consultants,” Cuban said. “It allows people who otherwise would not have access to any resources to have access to the best resources in real time. You can compete with anybody.”

While Cuban believes AI is “the great democratizer” for low-income young people, low-income workers still face hurdles in navigating the AI landscape, according to Public Works Partners, an urban planning and consulting firm. The firm says access to AI among low-income workers may be limited due to cost, insufficient digital literacy and infrastructure gaps.

“Without adequate resources and training, these workers may struggle to adapt to AI-driven workplaces or access the educational opportunities necessary to acquire new skills,” Public Works Partners said.

Texas 2036, a public policy organization focused on the state’s future, reported in January AI jobs in Texas are projected to grow 27 percent over the next decade. The number 2036 refers to the year when Texas will celebrate its bicentennial.

As for the current state of AI, Cuban said he doesn’t think the economy is witnessing an AI bubble comparable to the dot-com bubble, which lasted from 1998 to 2000.

“The difference is, the improvement in technology basically slowed to a trickle,” Cuban said of the dot-com era. “We’re nowhere near the improvement in technology slowing to a trickle in AI.”

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