Play it back: How this Houstonian is leading heart health innovation

HOUSTON INNOVATORS PODCAST EPISODE 246

Revisiting a conversation with Dr. Joseph Rogers, president and CEO of the Texas Heart Institute, on the Houston Innovators Podcast. Photo via texasheart.org

Heart health innovation is at a major moment in history — and Houston is at the center of it.

Last summer, Dr. Joseph Rogers, president and CEO of the Houston-based Texas Heart Institute, joined the Houston Innovators Podcast to share how he came to be at the helm of THI, as well as the incredible technologies the institute is working on to address heart failure, a global epidemic affecting at least 26 million people worldwide, 6.2 million adults in the U.S.

This month, one of THI’s technologies reached a major milestone. BiVACOR, a Houston company successfully implanted the company's first Total Artificial Heart in a human. The device was implanted in the patient on July 9. Eight days later, a donor heart became available and was transplanted into the patient, removing the TAH, establishing the device as a successful bridge-to-heart-transplant solution for patients, THI reported.

In addition to this breakthrough in health tech, THI is focused on addressing Cardiometabolic Syndrome at a new conference on Friday, August 23, in Houston. The full-day symposium will take place in collaboration with Arianna Huffington, the founder and CEO of Thrive Global. Dr. Rogers is co-directing the program with Dr. Stephanie Coulter, medical director for THI Center for Women’s Heart & Vascular Health.


In the episode, Rogers explains why he's bullish on Houston and THI leading heart health innovation alongside other health care organizations — nonprofits, universities, local government — to collaborate in ways never been done before. And THI is dedicated to this mission.

"We should act as a convener," Rogers says. "Houston is the place to do this.

"The reason I think this is such an important community to address this problem is it's the most diverse city in the United States. And I've never lived anywhere or heard of another city that I was so convinced believed they could do anything they set their minds to. It's about making the community aware of the problem and a potential solution — and then working on trying to solve it," he continues. "But I think all of the pieces are here to show the world how to do this at a community level."

The Texas Heart Institute is hosting a conference to educate the health care community about Cardiometabolic Syndrome. Photo courtesy of THI

Houston health care organization to host conference about cardiac health crisis

heartbeat heroes

Cardiometabolic Syndrome (CMS) is a major danger to public health around the world. No one knows this better than the Texas Heart Institute, which will host its first Cardiometabolic Syndrome Conference on Friday, August 23.

The conference’s subtitle, “A population health crisis” brings home the unpleasant reality that many recent projections anticipate drastic growth for the condition.

CMS is a combination of interrelated metabolic maladies that are risk factors not just for cardiovascular disease, but also fatty liver disease and cancer. According to THI, the underlying conditions for CMS may include hypertension, insulin resistance and type II diabetes, elevated serum lipids, and obesity, all increasingly common among the global population.

The conference will address the crisis with the help of Arianna Huffington, the founder and CEO of Thrive Global and former editor in chief of The Huffington Post Media Group. Thrive's behavior change technology may be a possible step in the right direction to prevent CMS.

“We are at a pivotal moment in the fight against cardiometabolic syndrome,” Huffington says in a press release. “This conference is not just a gathering of experts, but a catalyst for innovative thinking and actionable solutions. By integrating diverse perspectives and harnessing the collective expertise of our attendees, we can transform disease prevention strategies and improve health outcomes globally.”

THI experts will both lead the conference and participate in discussions. The co-directors are renowned cardiologists, Dr. Joseph G. Rogers, CEO and president of The Texas Heart Institute, and Dr. Stephanie Coulter, medical director for THI Center for Women’s Heart & Vascular Health. Topics will include screening and treatment guidelines, the impact of CMS on children, and integrating social determinants of health into clinical practice. Health professionals among the attendees will include cardiologists, hepatologists and endocrinologists.

“We must transcend traditional healthcare solutions to effectively tackle the rising burden of cardiometabolic syndrome,” says Rogers. “By bringing together key stakeholders and encouraging collaboration among multidisciplinary healthcare professionals, we aim to ignite groundbreaking ideas and forge novel strategies to combat this pressing health crisis."

Speaking of novel technologies, THI and BiVACOR this month reported that they successfully implanted the company's first Total Artificial Heart in a human at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in the TMC.

BiVACOR and The Texas Heart Institute have celebrated a major milestone in the future of heart health. Photo courtesy of BiVACOR

Houston medical device startup implants artificial heart in first human patient

big win

Heart health tech company BiVACOR and The Texas Heart Institute announced that they successfully implanted the company's first Total Artificial Heart in a human at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in the TMC.

The milestone is part of an FDA-approved early feasibility study that will test the safety and performance of the TAH device, which is based on a magnetically levitated rotor that takes over functions of a failing heart while a patient is awaiting a heart transplant, according to a statement from the organizations.

The "bridge-to-transplant" device could support an active adult male, as well as many women and children suffering from severe biventricular heart failure or univentricular heart failure.

"With heart failure remaining a leading cause of mortality globally, the BiVACOR TAH offers a beacon of hope for countless patients awaiting a heart transplant,” Dr. Joseph Rogers, president and CEO of THI and national principal investigator on the research, says in a statement. “We are proud to be at the forefront of this medical breakthrough, working alongside the dedicated teams at BiVACOR, Baylor College of Medicine, and Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center to transform the future of heart failure therapy for this vulnerable population.”

BiVACOR received approval from the FDA for the early feasibility study in late 2023 and has four other patients enrolled in the study. At the time the study was approved, 10 hospitals were enrolled as possible sites.

“I’m incredibly proud to witness the successful first-in-human implant of our TAH. This achievement would not have been possible without the courage of our first patient and their family, the dedication of our team, and our expert collaborators at The Texas Heart Institute ... our TAH brings us one step closer to providing a desperately needed option for people with end-stage heart failure who require support while waiting for a heart transplant. I look forward to continuing the next phase of our clinical trial,” Daniel Timms, PhD, founder and CTO of BiVACOR, adds.

About 100,000 patients suffering from severe heart failure could benefit from BiVACOR’s artificial heart, the company says. Globally, only about 6,000 heart transplants are performed each year, while 26 million people worldwide are affected by heart failure.

BiVACOR was founded in 2008 and maintains its headquarters in Houston, along with offices in Huntington Beach, California, and Brisbane, Australia.

To date, the company has raised nearly $50.8 million, according to CB Insights. The company raised $18 million in 2023, and $22 million in 2021.

Earlier this year, BiVACOR named a new CEO in Jim Dillon, a longtime executive in the medical device sector.

Last summer, Rogers joined the Houston Innovators Podcast to share his excitement with THI's innovations.


Yaxin Wang is director of THI's Innovative Device & Engineering Applications Lab. Photo via texasheart.org

Houston health tech innovator collaborates on promising medical device funded by DOD

team work

The United States Department of Defense has awarded a grant that will allow the Texas Heart Institute and Rice University to continue to break ground on a novel left ventricular assist device (LVAD) that could be an alternative to current devices that prevent heart transplantation and are a long-term option in end-stage heart failure.

The grant is part of the DOD’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP). It was awarded to Georgia Institute of Technology, one of four collaborators on the project that will be designed and evaluated by the co-investigator Yaxin Wang. Wang is part of O.H. “Bud” Frazier’s team at Texas Heart Institute, where she is director of Innovative Device & Engineering Applications Lab. The other institution working on the new LVAD is North Carolina State University.

The project is funded by a four-year, $7.8 million grant. THI will use about $2.94 million of that to fund its part of the research. As Wang explained to us last year, an LVAD is a minimally invasive device that mechanically pumps a person’s own heart. Frazier claims to have performed more than 900 LVAD implantations, but the devices are far from perfect.

The team working on this new research seeks to minimize near-eventualities like blood clot formation, blood damage, and driveline complications such as infection and limitations in mobility. The four institutions will try to innovate with a device featuring new engineering designs, antithrombotic slippery hydrophilic coatings (SLIC), wireless power transfer systems, and magnetically levitated driving systems.

Wang and her team believe that the non-contact-bearing technology will help to decrease the risk of blood clotting and damage when implanting an LVAD. The IDEA Lab will test the efficacy and safety of the SLIC LVAD developed by the multi-institutional team with a lab-bench-based blood flow loop, but also in preclinical models.

“The Texas Heart Institute continues to be a leading center for innovation in mechanical circulatory support systems,” said Joseph G. Rogers, MD, the president and CEO of THI, in a press release.

“This award will further the development and testing of the SLIC LVAD, a device intended to provide an option for a vulnerable patient population and another tool in the armamentarium of the heart failure teams worldwide.”

If it works as hypothesized, the SLIC LVAD will improve upon current LVAD technology, which will boost quality of life for countless heart patients. But the innovation won’t stop there. Technologies that IDEA Lab is testing include wireless power transfer for medical devices and coatings to reduce blood clotting could find applications in many other technologies that could help patients live longer, healthier lives.

The study will include 10 hospitals enrolled as possible sites and is slated to begin in 2024. One location is Houston’s own Texas Heart Institute. Photo courtesy of BiVACOR

Houston medical device company with long-lasting artificial heart reaches FDA milestone

feasibility focused

A Houston company with a breakthrough heart health tech has received a green light from the FDA.

BiVACOR, a Houston-headquartered medical device company, has received FDA approval for its Total Artificial Heart (BTAH) IDE first-in-human early feasibility study (EFS). The BTAH device itself is designed to take over all function for patients with heart failure. The BTAH is roughly the size of a human fist, which means that, while it could support an active adult male, it may also fit many women and children.

Led by CEO Thomas Vassiliades, a former heart surgeon, BiVACOR is based on a system of magnetic levitation. “Our pump is just one moving impeller that sits in the middle of the housing where the blood is. Imagine an artificial heart — the container that has your blood — and the device spinning in the inside — basically a wheel spinning your blood to the rest of your body. The device is suspended by magnets — it's not touching anything,” Vassiliades told InnovationMap in a podcast earlier this year.

Because of that, BiVACOR could potentially last for a patient’s entire life with no wear — something, Vassiliades explains, is new to the field.

The EFS includes 10 hospitals enrolled as possible sites and is slated to begin in 2024. One location is Houston’s own Texas Heart Institute.

“I am eager to begin the BiVACOR Total Artificial Heart EFS to evaluate what I believe is a promising and potentially life-saving technology,” Joseph Rogers, CEO of the Texas Heart Institute, says in a press release. “The implantation of a TAH system is a potential treatment option for patients with heart failure who need support while on the heart transplant waiting list and for those who do not qualify for a transplant. The BTAH is designed to replace the function of the native heart completely. It is an impressive technology, and I am excited to see the potential of BTAH in treating patients with severe heart failure.”

BiVACOR’s chief medical officer is Texas Heart Institute cardiac surgeon William Cohn. He said that this EFS is a “critical milestone” for him and the BiVACOR team.

“This device will provide a unique approach to help patients currently with limited clinical options,” he explains.

The upcoming study is planned for biventricular heart failure patients who need a mechanical circulatory support device as a bridge to later transplantation. However, the team hopes that future studies will follow to chart the BTAH’s success with short-term and long-term destination therapy.

The Texas Heart Institute recently received its largest charitable donation in its history. Photo courtesy of THI

Massive $32M gift from former patient, new UH deal pump big changes into Houston organization

all heart

Leadership at The Texas Heart Institute has two major things to celebrate. First, it just received a $32 million donation from a patient — the largest charitable donation in its history.

Shortly after that news came out, the institute announced a new partnership with the University of Houston Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine that allows those UH medical students to join a clinical rotation at The Texas Heart Institute. The alliance means valuable insights and experience with both inpatient and outpatient cardiology for UH's future doctors.

"Students will have the chance to develop their skills in the diagnosis and management of cardiovascular conditions and will be taught by outstanding clinical educators,” said Dr. Joseph G. Rogers, president and CEO of The Texas Heart Institute and heart failure specialist at The Texas Heart Institute Center for Cardiovascular Care, in a press release announcing the news.

A game-changing gift that's all heart

As for that mammoth gift, the $32 million donation comes from Dr. Frederick M. Weissman, a neurologist from New York who was a patient at the Institute 40 years ago. Fittingly, huis gift will be used to support cardiovascular research.

This isn't Weissman's first gift to the institution. That came following his experience there in the mid-1980s, when he was treated by world-renowned cardiac surgeon Dr. Denton A. Cooley.

In November of 1986, Weissman wrote a check for $5,000; another followed the next month, with a note that read, in part, “my conscience compels me to make another contribution to The Texas Heart Institute. I don’t think I could ever repay you for what you and your staff have done for me.” Weissman and Cooley would go on to be friends throughout their lives.

When Dr. Weissman died in 2005, he left The Texas Heart Institute $500,000. The organization recently received the residual of his estate — valued at more than $32 million.

“Those of us who were fortunate enough to work with and be trained by Dr. Cooley know he was much more than just an incredibly gifted surgeon," renowned transplant surgeon and Co-director of THI’s Center for Preclinical Surgical & Interventional Research, Dr. O.H. “Bud” Frazier, said in press materials announcing the donation. "He established lifelong relationships with his patients and encouraged all of us to do the same. Dr. Weissman’s extraordinary generosity reflects the impact Dr. Cooley still has on the Institute he founded.”

A big leap for THI and the Coogs

Looking ahead, this game-changing gift and new affiliation with UH promises big things for students, doctors, researchers, and patients.

Medical students in rotation at The Texas Heart Institute will be exposed to progressive clinical care, allowing them to gain a deep understanding of the etiology, pathophysiology and management of cardiovascular disease from prevention to the most contemporary treatments available today. This level of hands-on experience is invaluable for future physicians, and will certainly contribute to the advancement of cardiovascular medicine.

"We are honored to launch this new affiliation with Fertitta Family College of Medicine,” said Dr. Jorge Escobar, director of undergraduate medical education at The Texas Heart Institute. "With new advances in diagnostic imaging, bedside testing, and clinical trials coupled with the complex care we provide to our patients, the rotation will be an impactful experience for the students."

Pumping with growth

Meanwhile, THI recently established The Texas Heart Institute Research Innovation Fund to propel the next generation of cardiovascular research by sparking discovery, supporting innovation, and recognizing excellence in high-risk, high-reward scientific exploration.

To that end, $5 million of the Weissman bequest has been designated to match philanthropic commitments of $10,000 or greater made to THI’s Research Innovation Fund and its priority initiatives in 2023, allowing donors the opportunity to double the impact of their research investment.

Founded in 1962, THI performed the first successful heart transplant and total artificial heart implant in the United States. It has gone on to become one of the world's leading institutions for cardiovascular treatment and research.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Houston legacy planning platform secures $2.5M investment, adds to board

fresh funding

Houston-based Paige, a comprehensive life planning and succession software company, has secured a $2.5 million investment to expand the AI-driven tools on its platform.

The funding comes from Alabama-based 22nd State Banking Company, according to a news release. Paige says it will use the funding to expand automation, AI-driven onboarding and self-service tools, as well as add to its sales and customer success teams.

The company was originally founded by CEO Emily Cisek in 2020 as The Postage and rebranded to Paige last year. It helps users navigate and organize end-of-life planning with features like document storage and organization, password management, and funeral and last wishes planning.

“Too many families are left trying to piece together important information during some of the hardest moments of their lives,” Cisek said in the news release. “This investment allows us to accelerate the next phase of growth for Paige by improving the product and expanding support for our members, our financial institution partners and the communities they serve,”

In addition to the funding news, the company also announced that 22nd State Banking CEO and President Steve Smith will join Paige's board of directors.

“We believe banking should be grounded in relationships and built around the real needs of the people and communities we serve. Paige brings something deeply relevant to that mission," Smith added in the release. "It helps families prepare for the future in a practical and meaningful way, and it gives the banking community new pathways to support customers through important life transitions.”

Paige estimates that $124 trillion in assets will change hands through 2048. Yet about 56 percent of Americans do not have an estate plan.

Read more on the topic from Cisek in a recent op-ed here; or listen to InnovationMap's 2021 interview with her here.

Houston digital health platform Koda lands strategic investment

money moves

Houston-based advance care planning platform Koda Health has added another investor to the lineup.

The company secured a strategic investment for an undisclosed amount from UPMC Enterprises, the commercialization arm of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. The funding is part of Koda's oversubscribed series A funding round that closed in October, according to a release.

"UPMC Enterprises’ investment is a meaningful signal, not just to Koda, but to the broader market," Dr. Desh Mohan, chief medical officer and co-founder of Koda Health, said in the news release. "It validates that health systems are ready to invest in infrastructure that makes advance care planning work the way it should: proactively, at scale, and with the human support that these conversations require. Having UPMC Enterprises as a strategic investor puts us in a unique position to prove what's possible."

Koda has raised $14 million to date, according to a representative from the company. Its series A round was led by Evidenced, with participation from Mudita Venture Partners, Techstars and the Texas Medical Center last year. At the time, the company said the funding would allow it to scale operations and expand engineering, clinical strategy and customer success. The company described the round as a "pivotal moment," as it had secured investments from influential leaders in the healthcare and venture capital space.

Koda Health, which was born out of the TMC's Biodesign Fellowship in 2020, saw major growth last year, as well, and now supports more than 1 million patients nationwide through partnerships with Cigna Healthcare, Privia Health, Guidehealth, Sentara, UPMC and Memorial Hermann Health System.

The company integrated its end-of-life care planning platform with Dallas-based Guidehealth in April 2025 and with Epic Systems in July 2025. It also won the 2025 Houston Innovation Award in the Health Tech Business category. Read more here.

UH med school gets $2M gift and more top Houston innovation news

Trending Topics

Editor's note: The top Houston innovation news of the month is full of fresh funding, with two Texas medical schools receiving major gifts — one of historic proportions. Below are the five most-read InnovationMap headlines from April 16-30, 2026.

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

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. Continue reading.

How Houston innovators played a role in the historic Artemis II splashdown

Research from Rice University played a critical role in the safe return of U.S. astronauts aboard NASA’s Artemis II mission this month. Rice mechanical engineer Tayfun E. Tezduyar and longtime collaborator Kenji Takizawa developed a key computational parachute fluid-structure interaction (FSI) analysis system that proved vital in NASA’s Orion capsule’s descent into the Pacific Ocean. The FSI system, originally developed in 2013 alongside NASA Johnson Space Center, was critical in Orion’s three-parachute design, which slowed the capsule as it returned to Earth, according to Rice. Continue reading.

Baylor scientist lands $2M grant to explore links between viruses and Alzheimer’s

A Baylor College of Medicine scientist will begin exploring the possible link between Alzheimer’s disease and viral infections thanks to a $2 million grant awarded in March. Dr. Ryan S. Dhindsa hypothesizes that Alzheimer’s may have some link to previous viral infections contracted by the patient. To study this intriguing possibility, the American Brain Foundation has gifted him the Cure One, Cure Many award in neuroinflammation. Continue reading.

New UT Austin med center, anchored by MD Anderson, gets historic gift

A donation announced April 21 breaks a major record at the University of Texas at Austin. Michael and Susan Dell are now UT Austin's first supporters to give $1 billion. In response, the university will create the UT Dell Campus for Advanced Research and the UT Dell Medical Center to "advance human health," per a press release. Continue reading.

Houston VC funding surged nearly 50% in Q1 2026, report says

Houston saw a jump in VC funding in Q1 2026, fueled by several major investments in clean energy startups. Image via Getty Images

First-quarter venture capital funding for Houston-area startups climbed nearly 50 percent compared to the same time last year, according to the PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. In Q1 2026, Houston-area startups raised $532.3 million, a 49 percent jump from $320.2 million in Q1 2025, according to the PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. However, the Q1 total fell 23 percent from the $671.05 million raised in Q4 2025. Continue reading.

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