Khaliah Guillory, founder of Nap Bar, says she hopes to expand to 30 locations in three years. Photo courtesy Khaliah Guillory

Houston’s Khaliah Guillory takes a 30-minute nap every day. She says this is how she’s so productive.

The habit also led to the founding of her white-glove, eco-friendly rest sanctuary business, Nap Bar.

Guillory launched the luxury sleep suites company back in 2019 to offer a unique rest experience with artificial intelligence integration for working professionals, entrepreneurs and travelers who needed a place to rest, recharge and rejuvenate. The company was named a Houston Innovation Awards finalist last year.

She says naps are backed by science. And by her professional network, too.

“Once I polled and surveyed my friends, most of them said that they also took naps during their lunch break, whether it be in their office or in their car,” says Guillory, former vice president of marketing strategy at Wells Fargo. “Once they overwhelmingly agreed that they would absolutely use a dedicated place for them to take naps if I created it, I got to work, and Nap Bar was born.”

Simply put, Guillory has effectively made it acceptable and, yes, even cool for working adults to take naps.

“I played D1 basketball at the University of Central Florida and that’s really where I learned the art of a power nap and the benefits of it,” Guillory says. “And I just continued to nap throughout my corporate career. So, in November of 2018, I retired from corporate America … I just knew I had a higher calling to do something else.”

Guillory first opened up shop in Rice Village as a beta test for her novel nap idea and it took off. She soon forged strategic partnerships with organizations like UT Health, where Nap Bar provided much-needed naps to postpartum mothers.

“Nap Bar showed what the benefits of a good nap was, specifically to postpartum moms in terms of mental stressors, productivity, and things of that nature,” Guillory says.

In November 2019, Guillory moved Nap Bar to The Galleria and says the business produced revenue from day one. However, in March 2020, she was forced to shut us down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I promised myself that I was not going back to corporate America, so I pivoted. I moved forward by creating a better sleep box, with a vegan pillow mist and soy-based candle. I also became a certified sleep coach. And I just kept pivoting from there, reinventing Nap Bar as a company,” she says.

One pivot included adding a virtual reality sleep experience, MetaSnooze.

“MetaSnooze is a really cool technology that offers sleep therapy and relaxation that I curated myself,” Guillory says. “Basically, the user puts on the VR headset, and it escapes them. They're transported to places all over the country. For example, they're sitting in serene environments all the while listening to these rhythmic beats that are designed to help them release and relax. Visualizations have been scientifically proven to improve one’s mental health and mental stressors.”

Guillory initially rolled out MetaSnooze in 2020 at events like South by Southwest and kept improving the experience and building her business. By February 2024, she was curating a wellness experience at The Grammy Awards.

“That was huge for us,” Guillory says. “Being able to get feedback from the celebrities, with a handful of them even inquiring where they could purchase the headset. They were excited about the future of Nap Bar, so that was really, really cool.”

The widespread interest in Nap Bar has Guillory thinking big. She aims to expand to 30 locations in three years.

“When I say that, it sounds ambitious,” says Guillory. “It is, but I come from the school of thought that if you shoot for 30 and you get 25, no one's going to shake their finger at you for doing that, right? It's really aiming towards this big, hairy, audacious goal. I learned that in corporate America. So, what we're looking to do now is raise money like crazy.”

Guillory says she’s now looking to scale the business by partnering with like-minded investors with experience in the wellness space.

She envisions locations at national and international airports, which she says offer ripe scenarios for patrons needing to recharge. Additionally, Guillory wants to build on her initial partnership with UT Health by going onsite to curate rest experiences for patients, caregivers, faculty, staff, nurses and doctors. Colleges also offer an opportunity for growth.

“We’ve done some really cool pop-ups with the University of Houston, where we brought the rest experience on campus,” Guillory says. “That means we bring a portable, full-size, organic mattress with disposable sheets, as well as our virtual reality experience.”

Nap Bar will also serve companies, office buildings, and even sports venues, according to Guillory.

“We can literally go any and everywhere,” she says. “Our collected data suggests that we’ve just got to go where sleepy people are so that they can get restorative sleep.”

From a pricing standpoint, Nap Bar’s model is a dollar a minute. Depending on where the client is, the pop-up experience is based on a day rate or a half-day rate, starting at $4,000.

Add-ons include a full-size organic mattress or hosting a masseuse or massage therapist onsite.

With the Grammys already under her belt, Guillory would like to see Nap Bar utilized at the 2028 Olympics and build partnerships with other virtual reality companies to bring its licensed MetaSnooze software to the masses.

She also sees opportunities in athletic treatment, sleep apnea, and insomnia.

“We have done several studies with proven results that MetaSnooze has reduced mental stressors and anxiety,” Guillory says. “I'm excited about what the future holds for MetaSnooze. It definitely is a game-changer … We will continue to innovate sleep or provide sleep resources and tools in a very innovative way.”

These three innovators are ones to look out for. Courtesy photos

3 Houston innovators to know this week

Who's who

From venture capital funding to nap research, these Houston innovators are leading the way in their industries. This week's innovators to know are a finance expert, LGBT leader and productivity expert, and a Houston expat making big moves in real estate.

Remington Tonar, managing director at The Cannon Houston

Courtesy of Remington Tonar

A banker, a crowdfunding specialist, and a venture capital expert walk into a room. It might be the beginning of a joke, or it might just be how Remington Tonar and a few other panelists contributed to Houston Community College's Small Business Summit.

The panel discussed different avenues for funding startups have. Tonar represented the venture capital firms — a type of funding that's currently. changing.

"There's a new phenomenon in venture where a lot of early stage investors and angel investors are looking at social impact investing," Tonar says. "They want to invest in women- or minority-owned businesses or companies that have a sustainability or social impact component to them. For those investors, the return demands are much more flexible." Read the full story here.

Khaliah Guillory, founder of Nap Bar

Courtesy of Khaliah Guillory

Khaliah Guillory needed a place to nap one day when commuting with her wife into the city from their home in Richmond, Texas. She usually resorted to a quick car nap to get her back to 100 percent, but it was weird to do that with someone else in the car. So, she created it, and Nap Bar was born.

Guillory, who also specializes in diversity and inclusion with her consulting company, KOG & Company, serves on the city's LGBT Advisory Board. She's the third installment of InnovationMap's Innovating Pride feature. Read the full interview here.

Jonathan Wasserstrum, founder and CEO of SquareFoot

Courtesy of SquareFoot

Houston native Jonathan Wasserstrum started a company and took it to New York City. He now has over 10 years of real estate experience and still runs that company — SquareFoot. But even he remembers the days of startup life that consisted of never knowing where your office might be in a year or even in a few months.

Wasserstrum wrote a guest article for InnovationMap about the things to consider before you take the leap and move to a coworking space. Click here to read the guest column.

From opening Nap Bar and consulting corporations on diversity and inclusion to serving the city as an LGBT adviser, Khaliah Guillory is focused on productivity. Courtesy of Khaliah Guillory

From nap research to diversity and inclusion, this entrepreneur is making Houston workers more productive

Featured Innovator

Khaliah Guillory is an avid napper — and she's had to be. A multiple hat wearer and big proponent of side hustles, she's always piled responsibilities high on her plate.

Earlier this year left a corporate leadership position to open Nap Bar in Rice Village, but for years before that, she had her diversity and inclusion side hustle, KOG & Company. She works with companies — big and small — to integrate the best diversity and inclusion initiatives into the workplace.

"The intersection between KOG and Nap Bar and the common denominator is productivity and performance," Guillory says. "From a corporate standpoint — even when you think about diversity and inclusion — it all boils down to we want people who don't look like us or don't come from where we come from to be productive and perform well."

Guillory, who is this week's Pride Month Featured Innovator on InnovationMap, also serves on Mayor Sylvester Turner's LGBT Advisory Board.

InnovationMap: When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

Khaliah Guillory: I was 8 or 9 years old, and my family drank a lot of soda. Where I grew up in Port Arthur, Texas, you could go and trade in cans for change. I would go outside, line up all the cans, and step on them to crush them. I saw an infomercial about a can crusher. It made my business more efficient. That's when my entrepreneurial journey started.

IM: How did The Nap Bar come about? 

KG: I have always been an avid napper. When I was in Kindergarten, and the teacher would say go grab your red or blue mat, I did it and I was out. I enjoyed naptime. In high school, I played basketball and I napped at the end of school. When I got into college, I played basketball at the University of Central Florida. My days would start at 5 am and wouldn't end until midnight. The only way I was able to graduate on time and maintain my grades for my scholarships was napping. It just continued throughout my professional career, and I started napping in my car.

One day, my wife and I commuted into the city — we live in the Sugar Land/Richmond area. We had about an hour and a half to spare. It was nap time, but it would be awkward with her in the car. She suggested Googling naps in Houston. She says, "We live in Houston, there's got to be a place where you could take a quick nap." There was no such place. She told me I should create it. That was April of last year.

IM: Then what did you do to get the ball rolling?

KG: The next day I surveyed all my friends and asked them if I was the only one out here napping. I quickly realized that I wasn't. Specifically, 52 percent of Americans, according to Amerisleep, admitted to napping at work. I committed to doing more research. I've committed 10,000 plus hours to researching the benefits to napping and the indicators of sleep exhaustion. Fast forward to November of last year, I transitioned away from my C-level position at a Fortune 500 company to really pursue Nap Bar.

IM: How’s business been?

KG: We just celebrated our 30th day of business a couple of weeks ago. We are already generating revenue. We are excited for what's to come. June is shaping up to be a real opportunity for us to be in the black, and July is shaping up to have a lot of events. We found that our biggest challenge is educating the masses on the benefits of taking a chill session in the middle of the day, and also educating on the indicators of what it's like to be sleep deprived.

IM: With KOG & Company, your other company, you’ve worked for years with large companies to help incorporate diversity and inclusion. How does that tie into your nap research?

KG: The intersection between KOG and Nap Bar and the common denominator is productivity and performance. From a corporate standpoint — even when you think about diversity and inclusion — it all boils down to we want people who don't look like us or don't come from where we come from to be productive and perform well. The best place for any corporation that has a philosophy or a vision of values and embraces corporate social responsibility is to acknowledge that people are going to be the heartbeat of their company.

IM: What do organizations — from startups to Fortune 500 companies — need to know about diversity and inclusion?

KG: The biggest thing is that from a culture standpoint, just simply hiring people to check a box isn't going to provide the desired ROI. It really, truly has to be embraced by the culture. If I am a business owner or corporation, and my goal is to have a diversity of talent, then I need to go where those people are. If I create and curate an environment with diversity and inclusivity, then going to recruit and then ask them what type of organization they want to work for and what it would look like — then go out and build that. And if they don't know where to start, they can hire me and I can hold their hand and give some real life experience. I've lived it as a banker, as a supervisor, and as a C-level executive.

IM: What’s surprised you about being on Mayor Sylvester Turner’s LGBT Advisory Board?

KG: I think what surprised me most about is that the city of Houston is really progressing and striving. It just makes sense. We're the most diverse city in the country, and I applaud Mayor Sylvester Turner for assembling the LGBT Advisory Board and for appointing me.

The city of Houston — and all the entities that fall under it from a government landscape — is desiring a journey to get more training and education. How do we educate on how to report a hate crime. How do we make sure that city employees are showing up to work and are 100 percent comfortable in their own skin. The biggest surprise I'd have to say is that the city has done an incredible job with the training. I walked away from the meeting learning things that I didn't even know about the LGBTQ community.

IM: What does Pride Month mean to you?

KG: Pride means to me being comfortable in my skin as I am, who I am. The month is a pleasant reminder to be "me" every day, all day. Pride month means my uniqueness is celebrated, not tolerated which should be the norm everyday; not just a month. Pride means being secure in the community — workplace, networking event, the gym, basically everywhere — and confidently say "my wife."

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Portions of this interview have been edited.

The Nap Bar offers "pay-by-snooze" rest. Photo by Dominique Monday

New Rice Village nap bar refreshes sleep-deprived Houstonians

Stay woke

Khaliah Guillory wants to put you to sleep. To clarify: She wants you to nap. And the power nap is all the rage right now. Busy workers, executives and entrepreneurs in New York, Europe, and Japan are all napping during the day — taking a short snooze that not only helps them be more productive in their daily tasks, but allows them to be healthier.

"Americans lose 1.2 million work days because of sleep deprivation," Guillory tells CultureMap. "That costs the economy $411 billion. And the Centers for Disease Control estimate that driving while you're sleep deprived is the equivalent of driving under the influence."

To counter the trends, Guillory will open Nap Bar in Rice Village. Slated for a late April unveiling, a pay-by-the-snooze napping facility will be at the back of New Living. Guillory has partnered with the company, already known for its commitment to sustainability. Nap Bar's custom-patented napping pods are designed with sound-proof materials and contain organic, nontoxic Bungaloom mattresses and bedding.

A Comfort Concierge will greet visitors and lead them to a private suite surrounded with T.L.C. There are also two shared nap pods with twin mattresses available. Naps are scheduled 20 to 26 minutes for short-term alertness, or longer, if needed. A 20-minute snooze will set you back $25, while 26 minutes run $32. (If you're looking for a full hour, that's available for $69). Sleeping pods have blackout curtains and are soundproof.

Guillory has also made the napping experience into a luxury one so Nap Bar nappers receive complimentary aromatherapy and custom brain wave therapy with every siesta. Other add-ons include, lymphatic massages, hot showers, espressos, and EarthCraft Juicery blends that are crafted from raw, healing ingredients. The all-organic experience all designed to provide gentle healing and peaceful rest.

"Our culture tells us that if you're napping during the day, you're either a kid or you're lazy," says Guillory. "But that's not true. If you take as little as 20 minutes to nap, you'll feel revitalized."

A snooze story
Guillory didn't intend to become a nap guru. Like many things in life, however, necessity became the mother of invention. While working as an executive for a Fortune 500 company, Guillory was traveling heavily, catching brief bits of shut-eye in airport lounges or her car. At one point she found herself in Richmond, with an hour and a half to kill before her next meeting in Houston. Driving straight into town would make her far too early for her appointment. There wasn't time to go home. And checking into a hotel seemed silly.

"That's when my wife said to me, Google nap spaces in Houston," she recalls. She did. There were none. And that's why she created her own. "I wanted a safe haven for people to unplug," Guillory says. "It doesn't have to be full-on sleep. It can be relaxation, meditation, whatever you need."

And far from resting on her own laurels with her business on the cusp of opening, Guillory is pursuing other nap-centric opportunities. She's looking to partner with area businesses to incorporate nap pods into their space for employees, and is planning a Nap Bar Snooze Unit, a mobile tour bus that will "roll through downtown and let people take power naps," she explains.

She generated a great deal of interest when she took her concept on the road to Bush Intercontinental Airport earlier this week, displaying the nap pod and sharing the feedback she'd received from Nap Bar's beta testers. That input is something she takes seriously; when Nap Bar debuts, it'll be with products that her testers recommended — and they had opinions on everything from the bedding to the materials used in the pod.

"I want to turn sustainable rest into sustained productivity," says Guillory. "And I think this is just what Houston needs."

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Oils and scents help you relax. Photo by Dominique Monday

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5 incubators and accelerators fueling the growth of Houston startups

meet the finalists

Houston is home to numerous accelerators and incubators that support founders in pushing their innovative startups and technologies forward.

As part of our 2025 Houston Innovation Awards, the new Incubator/Accelerator of the Year category honors a local incubator or accelerator that is championing and fueling the growth of Houston startups.

Five incubators and accelerators have been named finalists for the 2025 award. They support startups ranging from hard-tech companies to digital health startups.

Read more about these organizations below. Then join us at the Houston Innovation Awards on Nov. 13 at Greentown Labs, when the winner will be unveiled.

Get your tickets now on sale for this exclusive event celebrating Houston Innovation.

Activate

Hard tech incubator Activate supports scientists in "the outset of their entrepreneurial journey." The Houston hub was introduced last year, and joins others in Boston, New York, and Berkley, California—where Activate is headquartered. It named its second Houston cohort this summer.

This year, the incubator grew to include its largest number of concurrent supported fellows, with 88 companies currently being supported nationally. In total, Activate has supported 296 fellows who have created 236 companies. Those companies have raised over $4 billion in follow-on funding, according to Activate. In Houston, it has supported several Innovation Awards finalists, including Solidec, Bairitone Health and Deep Anchor Solutions. It is led locally by Houston Managing Director Jeremy Pitts.

EnergyTech Nexus

Cleantech startup hub EnergyTech Nexus' mission is to accelerate the energy transition by connecting founders, investors and industrial stakeholders and helping to develop transformative companies, known as "thunderlizards."

The hub was founded in 2023 by CEO Jason Ethier, Juliana Garaizar and Nada Ahmed. It has supported startups including Capwell Services, Resollant, Syzygy Plasmonics, Hertha Metals, EarthEn Energy and Solidec—many of which are current or past Innovation Awards finalists. This year Energy Tech Nexus launched its COPILOT Accelerator, powered by Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN²) at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). COPILOT partners with Browning the Green Space, a nonprofit that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the clean energy and climatech sectors. Energy Tech Nexus also launched its Liftoff fundraising program, its Investor Program, and a "strategic ecosystem partnership" with Greentown Labs.

Greentown Labs

Climatetech incubator Greentown Labs offers its community resources and a network to climate and energy innovation startups looking to grow. The collaborative community offers members state-of-the-art prototyping labs, business resources and access to investors and corporate partners. The co-located incubator was first launched in Boston in 2011 before opening in Houston in 2021.

Greentown has seen major changes and activity this year. In February, Greentown announced Georgina Campbell Flatter as its new CEO, along with a new Board of Directors. In July, it announced Lawson Gow as its Head of Houston, a "dedicated role to champion the success of Greentown Houston’s startups and lead Greentown’s next chapter of impact in the region," according to Greentown. It has since announced numerous new partnerships, including those with Energy Tech Nexus, Los Angeles-based software development firm Nominal, to launch the new Industrial Center of Excellence; and Houston-based Shoreless, to launch an AI lab onsite. Greentown Houston has supported 175 startups since its launch in 2021, with 45 joining in the last two years. Those startups include the likes of Hertha Metals, RepAir Carbon, Solidec, Eclipse Energy (formerly GoldH2) and many others.

Healthtech Accelerator (TMCi)

The Healthtech Accelerator, formerly TMCx, focuses on clinical partnerships to improve healthcare delivery and outcomes. Emerging digital health and medical device startups that join the accelerator are connected with a network of TMC hospitals and seasoned advisors that will prepare them for clinical validation, funding and deployment.

The Healthtech Accelerator is part of Texas Medical Center Innovation, which also offers the TMCi Accelerator for Cancer Therapeutics. The Healthtech Accelerator named its 19th, and latest, cohort of 11 companies last month.

Impact Hub Houston

Impact Hub Houston supports early-stage ventures at various stages of development through innovative programs that address pressing societal issues. The nonprofit organization supports social impact startups through mentorship, connections and training opportunities.

There are more than 110 Impact Hubs globally with 24,000-plus members spanning 69 countries, making it one of the world’s largest communities for accelerating entrepreneurial solutions toward the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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The Houston Innovation Awards program is sponsored by Houston City College Northwest, Houston Powder Coaters, FLIGHT by Yuengling, and more to be announced soon. For sponsorship opportunities, please contact sales@innovationmap.com.



Rice University launches  engineering-led brain science and health institute

brain research

Rice University has announced the creation of a new interdisciplinary center known as the Rice Brain Institute (RBI).

The new hub will aim to use engineering, natural sciences and social sciences to research the brain and reduce the burden of neurodegenerative, neurodevelopmental and mental health disorders.

“The Rice Brain Institute reflects Rice’s strength in collaboration without boundaries,” Rachel Kimbro, dean of the School of Social Sciences, said in a news release. “Our researchers are not only advancing fundamental science but they’re also ensuring that knowledge reaches society in ways that promote human flourishing.”

RBI researchers will work in thematic clusters focusing on neurodegeneration, mental health, brain injury and neurodevelopment. The clusters will work toward goals such as significantly improving key brain health outcomes, reducing mortality and mental health disorders and improving quality of life for patients living with brain injuries and neurodevelopmental disorders, according to Rice.

The institute will focus on “engineering-driven innovation,” rather than traditional neuroscience, to design tools that can measure, model and modulate brain activity based around Rice’s expertise in soft robotics, neuroimaging, data science and artificial intelligence—making it unique among peer organizations, according to Rice.

Additionally, RBI will be structured around three collaborative Rice “pillars”:

  • The Neuroengineering Initiative, launched in 2018, brings together neuroscience, engineering, and related fields experts
  • The Neuroscience Initiative, a new initiative that brings together cell biologists, neurobiologists, biochemists, chemists and physicists to explore fundamental mechanisms of the brain and nervous system
  • The Brain and Society Initiative, also a new initiative, considers brain research within the broader social and policy landscape

Rice’s Neuroengineering Initiative has already garnered more than $78 million in research funding, according to Rice, and has established major partnerships, like the Rice-Houston Methodist Center for Neural Systems Restoration.

“Rice is uniquely equipped to bridge and connect scientific understanding of the brain and behavior sciences with the technologies and policies that shape our world,” Amy Dittmar, the Howard R. Hughes Provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, added in the news release. “By uniting faculty in neuroengineering, neuroscience and psychological sciences, this interdisciplinary hub embodies the kind of bold, nimble collaboration that allows Rice to turn discovery into societal impact to save lives and enhance human flourishing.”

The formation of the RBI coincides with recent support of the Dementia Prevention Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT), which landed voter approval earlier this week and aims to make Texas the center for dementia research via brain-health tech. According to the World Economic Forum, brain disorders and mental health disorders cost the global economy an estimated $5 trillion per year and could be as high as $16 trillion by 2030.

“Few areas of research have as direct and profound an impact on human well-being as brain health,” Rice President Reginald DesRoches added in the news release. “As rates of Alzheimer’s, dementia and other neurological diseases rise in our country and around the world, universities have a responsibility to lead the discovery of solutions that preserve memory, movement and quality of life. We all know someone who has been affected by a brain-related health issue, so this research is personal to all of us.”

Texas voters OK $3 billion for new dementia research institute

state funding

Texas voters on Nov. 4 overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure that provides $3 billion in state funding over a 10-year span for the newly established Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT).

Thanks to the passage of Proposition 14, Texas now boasts the country’s largest state-funded initiative dedicated to dementia research and prevention, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Up to $300 million in grants will be awarded during the 10-year funding period.

“This is a transformative moment for Texas and for the fight against Alzheimer’s and all other dementia,” said Joanne Pike, president and CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association. “Texans have chosen to invest in hope, innovation, and solutions for the millions of families affected by these devastating diseases. With the passage of Proposition 14, Texas is now poised to lead the nation in dementia research and prevention.”

The association says DPRIT will drive scientific breakthroughs, attract top-notch dementia researchers to Texas, and generate thousands of jobs statewide.

An estimated 460,000 Texans are living with dementia, the association says, and more than one million caregivers support them.

DPRIT is modeled after the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). Since 2008, the state agency has awarded nearly $4 billion in grants to research organizations for cancer-related academic research, prevention programs, and product development.

An analysis by the McKinsey Health Institute found that investing in brain health initiatives like DPRIT could boost Texas’ GDP by $260 billion. Much of that GDP bump could benefit the Houston area, which is home to dementia-focused organizations such as UTHealth Houston Neurosciences, Baylor College of Medicine’s Center for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston’s Collaborative Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Program, and the Houston Methodist Research Institute’s John M. O’Quinn Foundation Neurodegenerative Disorders Laboratory.

The Greater Houston Partnership says DPRIT holds the potential “to elevate Texas — particularly Houston — as a hub for brain health research.”

State Sen. Joan Huffman, a Houston Republican, is one of DPRIT’s champions. She sponsored legislation this year to create the institute and ask Texas voters to approve the $3 billion in funding.

“By establishing the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, we are positioning our state to lead the charge against one of the most devastating health challenges of our time,” Huffman said in May. “With $3 billion in funding over the next decade, we will drive critical research, develop new strategies for prevention and treatment, and support our health care community.”