Q&A: How the Houston tech community can support LGBTQIA+ innovators

pride month

Tammi Wallace of the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce is a panelist on The Ion's Pride in Tech event. Photo via LinkedIn

It's Pride Month, and the Houston tech community is celebrating its LGBTQIA+ community — as well as addressing some challenges faced within the business arena.

The Ion Houston, Austin-based Pride.VC, and Houston-based Sesh Coworking are collaborating on a Pride in Tech event, tomorrow, June 24, at noon at the Ion. It's free to attend and all is welcome. The Ion is also encouraging attendees to come early for a cup of coffee at Common Bond for the weekly Cup of Joey networking happy hour from 8:30 to 10:30 am.

The event will feature a panel moderated by Sesh's Maggie Segrich and Meredith Wheeler, and will tackle topics around how Houston can do more to build a truly inclusive business community. The panelists include

Wallace, who co-founded the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce in 2016, joined InnovationMap for a quick Q&A ahead of the event.

InnovationMap: What kind of challenges do LGBTQIA+ founders in Houston face these days?

Tammi Wallace: First, LGBTQIA+ founders need to be at the table and have a voice. When we launched the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce in 2016, our primary goal was to make sure we were seen, heard and engaged.

A seat and a voice at the table matters because LGBTQIA+ founders often lack visibility in the broader economic ecosystem and continue to experience discrimination. This means they cannot engage with their full and authentic selves as entrepreneurs and experience unique challenges. More specifically, they face challenges with access to venture capital and angel investment funds and these entrepreneurs lack strong LGBTQIA+ role models and mentors.

In fact, some LGBTQIA+ business owners never come out because they fear losing customers or clients. We hear stories all the time about LGBTQIA+ founders not seeking either traditional or non-traditional funding because they fear that they will have to out themselves in the process and fear discrimination and a lack of acceptance in the process. Disclosing personal information, such as financial information, in some cases, can effectively out them as an LGBTQIA+ person. Funding paths must be fully inclusive and ensure that the process is viewed from the lens of the LGBTQIA+ entrepreneur and how that can impact their access to capital.


    IM: How would you recommend these founders find the community and support they are looking for? 

    TW: Definitely get involved with the Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce. Since 2016, the chamber has been working to build a strong community to support LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs and get them access to resources to help their businesses grow and thrive.

    We create connections and give LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs a space and place to walk through the door as their full and authentic selves. Through the Chamber, LGBTQIA+ founders can find support, whether from other entrepreneurs, mentors and Corporate Partners. We collaborate with the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) as well as the other LGBTQIA+ chambers in Texas to drive connections and build a strong LGBTQIA+ business network across the country and the state.

    We encourage LGBTQIA+ businesses to get LGBTBE® Certified as well which offers even more connection with other certified businesses, major corporations and other key stakeholders and mentoring opportunities with major companies. We can help these founders get started with the LGBTBE® certification process and tap into national, regional and statewide resources.

    IM: How do you recommend startup development organizations, investors, and other businesses become better allies to the LGBTQIA+ startup community? 

    TW: Ensure that LGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs and business and community leaders are engaged with your organization. Organizations like the Greater Houston LGBT Chamber of Commerce and the Ion are working "boots on the ground" to support the LGBTQIA+ business community and can offer the opportunity for meaningful collaboration. We also recommend advocating for others -- when you are around a table, look around and if the LGBTQIA+ community is not being represented, ask why.

    If representation is around the table, be intentional to ensure that we have a voice. As organizations that are involved in Houston's economic ecosystem, be strong and visible advocates for the LGBTQIA+ business community through engagement of businesses and the Chamber throughout the year. Be engaged -- not just during Pride Month, but twelve months out of the year.

    Whether a startup, investor or a business, you can help raise the profile for LGBTQIA+ businesses and the LGBTQIA+ business movement.

    Ad Placement 300x100
    Ad Placement 300x600

    CultureMap Emails are Awesome

    Property Showcase

    These 50+ Houston scientists rank among world’s most cited

    science stars

    Fifty-one scientists and professors from Houston-area universities and institutions were named among the most cited in the world for their research in medicine, materials sciences and an array of other fields.

    The Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers considers researchers who have authored multiple "Highly Cited Papers" that rank in the top 1percent by citations for their fields in the Web of Science Core Collection. The final list is then determined by other quantitative and qualitative measures by Clarivate's judges to recognize "researchers whose exceptional and community-wide contributions shape the future of science, technology and academia globally."

    This year, 6,868 individual researchers from 60 different countries were named to the list. About 38 percent of the researchers are based in the U.S., with China following in second place at about 20 percent.

    However, the Chinese Academy of Sciences brought in the most entries, with 258 researchers recognized. Harvard University with 170 researchers and Stanford University with 141 rounded out the top 3.

    Looking more locally, the University of Texas at Austin landed among the top 50 institutions for the first time this year, tying for 46th place with the Mayo Clinic and University of Minnesota Twin Cities, each with 27 researchers recognized.

    Houston once again had a strong showing on the list, with MD Anderson leading the pack. Below is a list of the Houston-area highly cited researchers and their fields.

    UT MD Anderson Cancer Center

    • Ajani Jaffer (Cross-Field)
    • James P. Allison (Cross-Field)
    • Maria E. Cabanillas (Cross-Field)
    • Boyi Gan (Molecular Biology and Genetics)
    • Maura L. Gillison (Cross-Field)
    • David Hong (Cross-Field)
    • Scott E. Kopetz (Clinical Medicine)
    • Pranavi Koppula (Cross-Field)
    • Guang Lei (Cross-Field)
    • Sattva S. Neelapu (Cross-Field)
    • Padmanee Sharma (Molecular Biology and Genetics)
    • Vivek Subbiah (Clinical Medicine)
    • Jennifer A. Wargo (Molecular Biology and Genetics)
    • William G. Wierda (Clinical Medicine)
    • Ignacio I. Wistuba (Clinical Medicine)
    • Yilei Zhang (Cross-Field)
    • Li Zhuang (Cross-Field)

    Rice University

    • Pulickel M. Ajayan (Materials Science)
    • Pedro J. J. Alvarez (Environment and Ecology)
    • Neva C. Durand (Cross-Field)
    • Menachem Elimelech (Chemistry and Environment and Ecology)
    • Zhiwei Fang (Cross-Field)
    • Naomi J. Halas (Cross-Field)
    • Jun Lou (Materials Science)
    • Aditya D. Mohite (Cross-Field)
    • Peter Nordlander (Cross-Field)
    • Andreas S. Tolias (Cross-Field)
    • James M. Tour (Cross-Field)
    • Robert Vajtai (Cross-Field)
    • Haotian Wang (Chemistry and Materials Science)
    • Zhen-Yu Wu (Cross-Field)

    Baylor College of Medicine

    • Nadim J. Ajami (Cross-Field)
    • Biykem Bozkurt (Clinical Medicine)
    • Hashem B. El-Serag (Clinical Medicine)
    • Matthew J. Ellis (Cross-Field)
    • Richard A. Gibbs (Cross-Field)
    • Peter H. Jones (Pharmacology and Toxicology)
    • Sanjay J. Mathew (Cross-Field)
    • Joseph F. Petrosino (Cross-Field)
    • Fritz J. Sedlazeck (Biology and Biochemistry)
    • James Versalovic (Cross-Field)

    University of Houston

    • Zhifeng Ren (Cross-Field)
    • Yan Yao (Cross-Field)
    • Yufeng Zhao (Cross-Field)
    • UT Health Science Center Houston
    • Hongfang Liu (Cross-Field)
    • Louise D. McCullough (Cross-Field)
    • Claudio Soto (Cross-Field)

    UTMB Galveston

    • Erez Lieberman Aiden (Cross-Field)
    • Pei-Yong Shi (Cross-Field)

    Houston Methodist

    • Eamonn M. M. Quigley (Cross-Field)

    New report shows surge in startup activity in Houston and across Texas

    by the numbers

    Houston and the rest of Texas are experiencing a boom in the creation of startups.

    One barometer of growth in startup activity: The Houston metro area saw a 92 percent rise from 2024 to 2025 in the number of account applications submitted to Bluevine, a banking platform for small businesses.

    New data from Bluevine also shows healthy year-over-year growth in account applications submitted by entrepreneurs in Texas’ three other major metros:

    • 242 percent growth in the San Antonio area
    • 153 percent growth in the Austin area
    • 28 percent growth in Dallas-Fort Worth

    Further evidence of Texas’ uptick in business creation comes from a new state-by-state analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by digital mailbox provider iPostal1.

    From 2019 to 2024, the number of new business applications jumped 60 percent in Texas, according to the iPostal1 analysis. Wyoming tops the list, with a five-year growth rate of 216 percent.

    “The U.S. has no shortage of ambition, but opportunity isn’t spread evenly,” says Jeff Milgram, founder and CEO of iPostal1. “In states like New York, Florida, and Texas, entrepreneurship is booming — people are starting businesses, taking risks, and finding opportunity.”

    “Other states are still catching up,” Milgram adds. “Sometimes it’s access to funding, sometimes local policy, or just the confidence that new ventures will be supported.”

    Women own many of the new businesses sprouting in Texas, according to a new analysis of 2024-25 data from the U.S. Small Business Administration. The analysis, done by SimpleTiger, a marketing agency for software-as-a-service (SaaS), shows Texas ranks eighth for the highest concentration of women entrepreneurs (109 per 1,000 female residents) among all states. That rate is three percent higher than the national average.

    “Women entrepreneurs are no longer a side story in small business growth; they’re a leading indicator of where local economies are expanding next,” SimplyTiger says. “When women-owned business density is high, it usually signals stronger access to customers, networks, and startup pathways that make it easier to launch and keep going.”

    In a December news release, Gov. Greg Abbott highlights Texas’ nation-leading job gains over the past 12 months, driven by employers small and large.

    “From innovative startups to Fortune 500 corporations, job-creating businesses invest with confidence in Texas,” Abbott says. “With our strong and growing workforce, we will continue to expand career and technical training programs for better jobs and bigger paycheck opportunities for more Texans.”

    Houston poised to add 30,900 new jobs in 2026, forecast says

    jobs forecast

    Buoyed by the growing health care sector, the Houston metro area will add 30,900 jobs in 2026, according to a new forecast from the Greater Houston Partnership.

    The report predicts the Houston area’s health care sector will tack on 14,000 jobs next year, which would make it the No. 1 industry for local job growth. The 14,000 health care jobs would represent 45 percent of the projected 30,900 new jobs. In the job-creation column, the health care industry is followed by:

    • Construction: addition of 6,100 jobs in 2026
    • Public education: Addition of 5,800 jobs
    • Public administration: Addition of 5,000 jobs

    At the opposite end of the regional workforce, the administrative support services sector is expected to lose 7,500 jobs in 2026, preceded by:

    • Manufacturing: Loss of 3,400 jobs
    • Oil-and-gas extraction: Loss of 3,200 jobs
    • Retail: Loss of 1,800 jobs

    “While current employment growth has moderated, the outlook remains robust and Houston’s broader economic foundation remains strong,” GHP president and CEO Steve Kean said in the report.

    “Global companies are choosing to invest in Houston — Eli Lilly, Foxconn, Inventec, and others — because they believe in our workforce and our long-term trajectory,” Kean added. “These commitments reinforce that Houston is a place where companies can scale and where our economy continues to demonstrate its resilience as a major engine for growth and opportunity. These commitments and current prospects we are working on give us confidence in the future growth of our economy.”

    The Greater Houston Partnership says that while the 30,900-job forecast falls short of the region’s recent average of roughly 50,000 new jobs per year, it’s “broadly in line with the muted national outlook” for employment gains anticipated in 2026.

    “Even so, Houston’s young, skilled workforce and strong pipeline of major new projects should help offset energy sector pressures and keep regional growth on pace with the nation,” the report adds.

    The report says that even though the health care sector faces rising insurance costs, which might cause some people to delay or skip medical appointments, and federal changes in Medicare and Medicaid, strong demographic trends in the region will ensure health care remains “a key pillar of Houston’s economy.”

    As for the local oil-and-gas extraction industry, the report says fluctuations and uncertainty in the global oil-and-gas market will weigh on the Houston sector in 2026. Furthermore, oil-and-gas layoffs partly “reflect a longer-term trend as companies in the sector move toward greater efficiency using fewer workers to produce similar volumes,” according to the report.

    View All Listings