Houston startup Collide secures $5M to grow energy-focused AI platform

Fresh Funds

Houston-based Collide plans to use its seed funding to accelerate the development of its GenAI platform for the energy industry. Photo via Getty Images

Houston-based Collide, a provider of generative artificial intelligence for the energy sector, has raised $5 million in seed funding led by Houston’s Mercury Fund.

Other investors in the seed round include Bryan Sheffield, founder of Austin-based Parsley Energy, which was acquired by Dallas-based Pioneer Natural Resources in 2021; Billy Quinn, founder and managing partner of Dallas-based private equity firm Pearl Energy Investments; and David Albin, co-founder and former managing partner of Dallas-based private equity firm NGP Capital Partners.

“(Collide) co-founders Collin McLelland and Chuck Yates bring a unique understanding of the oil and gas industry,” Blair Garrou, managing partner at Mercury, said in a news release. “Their backgrounds, combined with Collide’s proprietary knowledge base, create a significant and strategic moat for the platform.”

Collide, founded in 2022, says the funding will enable the company to accelerate the development of its GenAI platform. GenAI creates digital content such as images, videos, text, and music.

Originally launched by Houston media organization Digital Wildcatters as “a professional network and digital community for technical discussions and knowledge sharing,” the company says it will now shift its focus to rolling out its enterprise-level, AI-enabled solution.

Collide explains that its platform gathers and synthesizes data from trusted sources to deliver industry insights for oil and gas professionals. Unlike platforms such as OpenAI, Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot, Collide’s platform “uniquely accesses a comprehensive, industry-specific knowledge base, including technical papers, internal processes, and a curated Q&A database tailored to energy professionals,” the company said.

Collide says its approximately 6,000 platform users span 122 countries.

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This story originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

Houston-based Mercury backed SmartAC.com in a follow-on round. Photo via of SmartAC.com

Houston-based startup secures fresh funding led by local investor to expand HVAC, plumbing platform

money moves

Houston-based SmartAC.com, which provides a customer loyalty management platform for contractors, has raised a follow-on round from Mercury Fund and other investors. The dollar amount of the round wasn’t disclosed.

An October filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) indicates SmartAC.com planned to raise $8.2 million in venture capital. Of that sum, about $4 million had already been raised, the company reported, and nearly $4.2 million remained to be raised.

SmartAC.com's platform enables contractors in the HVAC and plumbing industries monitor, manage, and optimize their maintenance memberships through advanced sensors, AI-driven diagnostics, and proactive alerts.

“Growing a business in the trades is all about customer loyalty, and loyalty is driven by optimizing the customer’s experience,” Josh Teekell, founder and CEO of SmartAC.com, says in a news release. “SmartAC.com was built to perfect the experience of home comfort through data-driven insights that bring long-term value to homeowners and contractors alike.”

SmartAC.com says the new funding will enable expansion of its platform.

“Amid rising consumer demand for ‘smart home’ innovations, SmartAC.com is addressing a critical need for more sophistication in HVAC and plumbing through a technology-driven strategy,” says Heath Butler, a partner at Mercury Fund.

In 2020, SmartAC.com emerged from stealth mode and announced a $10 million series A round. The company raised a $22 million series B round in 2023.

Paul Frison, the founder of the Houston Technology Center, has died. Photo via dignitymemorial.com

Houston Technology Center founder dies, leaves legacy of innovation

saying goodbye

The Houston innovation ecosystem is mourning the loss of one of its early leaders, Paul Frison, who died on September 5. He was 87.

A long-time Houston businessman, Frison founded the Houston Technology Center in 1999 and served as its CEO and president. The organization evolved into Houston Exponential several years ago. Frison remained active within Houston innovation until 2020.

“Paul Frison was a visionary and energetic leader who always presented a positive outlook on what the Houston technology entrepreneurship community could become," Brad Burke, associate vice president for industry and new ventures at Rice University's Office of Innovation, remembers. "He was one of the pioneers in the community who established the Houston Technology Center as one of the early leaders of the Houston ecosystem. I admired how he helped launch the ecosystem and created the platform for many others to build upon.”

Prior to HTC, he served in various executive roles at American Hospital Supply, LifeMark, ComputerCraft, and LifeCell, spending the last 50 of his years in Houston. Born in Glendale, California, he served in the Unites States Coast Guard.

Blair Garrou, co-founder and managing director of Mercury Fund, says Frison was his first boss and mentor in the tech and entrepreneurship sector.

“When people look back to how the Houston tech community was founded, it starts with Paul Frison," Garrou says. "Paul had run multiple companies and I was lucky to have him as CEO when I worked for him at the Houston Technology Center. He quickly became a mentor, and over time, a good friend and confidant. I have Paul to thank for launching my career in tech and venture capital.

"My favorite quote of Paul’s was, 'Do not confuse effort with results,'” Garrou continues. "Despite his results-driven work ethic – which was legendary — Paul was also deeply-rooted in family and faith, and has been a role model for me over my entire professional life.”

He is preceded in death by his wife, Barbara, and his grandson, Christian David Elders. He is survived by his daughters Maryanne Elders and Jill Cortez and their families, including grandchildren Matthew Elders, Laney Elders, Max Cortez, Jake Cortez, and Sofie Cortez.

A celebration of life will be held for Frison on September 16 at 1 pm at Second Baptist Church, with a reception following in the Deacon’s Parlor. More details are available online. In lieu of flowers, Frison's wishes were for for donations to Second Baptist Church to be made in his honor.

The grant from Rice is part of "several financial commitments" the university is making to support inclusivity at the Ion District. Photo courtesy of The Ion

Houston university awards grant to Texas accelerator to support sports tech

game on

Rice University awarded DivInc. an $800,000 grant this month to support its work in sports technology.

The Texas-based company, which operates numerous accelerators, focuses on BIPOC and female founders working toward social and economic equity through entrepreneurship. The grant from Rice is part of "several financial commitments" the university is making to support inclusivity at the Ion District.

DivInc runs its Sports Tech Accelerator out of The Ion, which recently named its latest cohort for the 2024 Sports Tech Accelerator.

“We’ve been in Houston since 2021, so we’re extremely honored and grateful to partner with Rice University,” Preston James, CEO and founder of DivInc, said in a statement. “Leveraging the top university sports management program in the U.S., Rice’s highly ranked sports medicine and sport analytics programs, we’re providing exceptional value to our portfolio of companies ... Sports tech is a vast and rapidly growing industry that represents a tremendous opportunity for diverse founders.”

Among the 10 companies selected for DivInc's current 12-week sports accelerator are a cash-back powered marketplace designed for the golf industry, a scouting automation software, an artificial intelligence company that collects real-time biometrics on athletes, and others.

Selected founders can receive up to $100,000 and access to curriculum, as well as mentorship from executives from the Houston Rockets, Houston Astros, San Antonio Spurs, Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, Mercury Fund, The Collectiv, HTX Sports Tech and more.

“We have strategically created one of the nation’s premier accelerator programs in Houston, Texas, dedicated to supporting BIPOC and women founders driving innovation in the sports industry by leveraging best practices and insights from stakeholders within the sports tech ecosystem,” Ashley DeWalt, DivInc’s managing director of startups and programs, said in a statement.

DivInc also launched its first DWeb for Social Impact Accelerator from the Ion last fall. The 12-week intensive hybrid program sponsored by Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web, supported nine companies, all of whom integrate Web3 technologies into their impact entrepreneurship, and each of the companies selected were awarded a non-dilutive $10,000 grant to use during the course of the program.

PHIOGEN, based at Texas Medical Center Innovation, is headed to Austin next month. Photo courtesy of TMC

Houston biotech startup selected to pitch at SXSW

austin bound

Houston biotech startup PHIOGEN is among 45 finalists that will present at this year’s SXSW Pitch showcase in Austin.

PHIOGEN is one of five food, nutrition, and health startups that will participate in the pitch competition, set for March 9 and 10. A panel of judges will listen to the pitches and then pick the winners. Since 2009, SXSW Pitch finalists have raised more than $23.2 billion in funding.

PHIOGEN has developed the world’s first biogenetics technology platform to harness the power of bacteriophages in the fight against serious drug-resistant infections. Bacteriophages — viruses that are found in bacterial cells — “are ubiquitous in the environment and are recognized as the most abundant biological agent on earth,” according to an article published in 2022 by StatPearls.

Founded in 2023, PHIOGEN is a spinoff of the Baylor College of Medicine’s TAILOR Labs. The startup, based at the Texas Medical Center’s Innovation Hub, has attracted more than $5 million in funding.

“Nothing about our treatments is fabricated; it boils down to creating natural environments that mimic real-life infections, driving biological changes to create ‘super phages’ against the superbugs,” Amanda Burkardt, CEO of PHIOGEN, said in 2023. “As a result, we receive high-performing phage fighters that are trained and ready to deliver safe and effective treatments for clinical applications.”

Professional services firm KPMG is the main sponsor of SXSW Pitch.

Six of this year’s SXSW Pitch judges are from Houston:

  • Heath Butler of Mercury Fund
  • Jesse Martinez of LSA Global
  • Trevor Purvis of the Houston Astros
  • Anu Puvvada of KPMG
  • Irene Tang of StartOut
  • Nate Thompson of HTX Sports Tech

“2024 is an exciting year for startups, and we are looking forward to showcasing these inspiring companies that are making waves in their respective industries and the world as a whole, as well as help connect them with the resources needed to continue advancing,” says Chris Valentine, producer of SXSW Pitch.

Fresh off a win at the Houston Innovation Awards, RepeatMD has raised funding. Photo by Emily Jaschke/InnovationMap

Houston software company raises $50M series A, plans to scale

fresh funding

Just nine months after its seed round, a Houston startup with a software platform for the aesthetic and wellness industry has secured $40 million in venture capital and $10 million in debt facility.

RepeatMD, a SaaS platform, announced today that it's secured $50 million, which includes a $10 million debt facility from Silicon Valley Bank. The round was co-led by Centana Growth Partners and Full In Partners with participation from PROOF and Mercury Fund, which also contributed to the seed round earlier this year.

The mobile ecommerce platform, launched in October 2021 by Phil Sitter, targets practices within the med spa and aesthetics industry. In the United States, the med spa market is slated to hit $19 billion in 2023, according to the company's press release, while the global aesthetics market is forecasted to reach to nearly $332 billion by 2030.

“Even though the aesthetics and wellness industry has continued to innovate a growing range of life-changing treatments, practices continue to face challenges selling treatments and services that are new and unfamiliar to patients,” Sitter, CEO of RepeatMD, says in the release. “Our goal at RepeatMD is to give these practice owners the technology to elevate their patients’ experience. Our platform serves as a med-commerce engine equipped with the same firepower as large retailers to convert sales inside and outside of practice operating hours.”

The fast-growing company, which has over 100 employees and is looking to hire 20 more according to InnovationMap data, has a client base of 2,500 med spas, dermatologists, OBGYNs, and more across all 50 states. The startup won in the Digital Solutions category at the 2023 Houston Innovation Awards, which took place earlier this month.

“Just 9 months ago Mercury provided RepeatMD’s Seed financing round. We have quickly doubled down in its Series A because of the company's massive traction, customer adoption and Phil’s leadership,” Aziz Gilani, managing director of Mercury Fund, says in the release.

In the past year, RepeatMD reports a 2,519 percent increase in Gross Merchandise Value revenue and a 130 percent increase in SaaS revenue.

“As investors in growth-stage vertical SaaS companies, we’ve closely followed the rise of platforms that not only help practitioners run their businesses, but also drive a higher ROI go-to-market motion,” Jacob Cole, principal at Full In Partners, adds. “RepeatMD stood out both for helping clinics access higher-margin, recurring revenue, and for their customer-centric mindset.”

RepeatMD will use the funding to grow its "network of strategic partners, provide further product enhancements, and integrate AI to further amplify the patient shopping experience while scaling its Inbound Revenue Platform," per the release.

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CPRIT grants $22M to bring top cancer researchers to Houston

fresh funding

Several prominent cancer researchers are coming to the Houston area thanks to $22 million in grants recently awarded by the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).

The biggest CPRIT recruitment grant — $6 million — went to genetics researcher Jean Gautier. Gautier, a professor of genetics and development at Columbia University’s Institute for Cancer Genetics, is joining the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to continue his research.

The website for Gautier’s lab at Columbia provides this explanation of his research:

“The main objective of our research is to better understand the molecular mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of genome stability. These controls are lost in cancer, which is characterized by genomic instability.”

Aside from his work as a professor, Gautier is co-leader of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Cancer Genomics and Epigenomics Program at Columbia.

Other recipients of CPRIT recruitment grants include:

  • $2 million to recruit Xun Sun from the Scripps Research Institute to the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
  • $2 million to recruit Mingqi Han from the University of California, Los Angeles to MD Anderson.
  • $2 million to recruit Matthew Jones from Stanford University to MD Anderson.
  • $2 million to recruit Linna An from the University of Washington to Rice University.
  • $2 million to recruit Alissa Greenwald from the Weizmann Institute of Science to MD Anderson.
  • $2 million to recruit Niladri Sinha from Johns Hopkins University to the Baylor College of Medicine.
  • $2 million for Luigi Perelli to stay at MD Anderson so he can be put on a tenure track and set up a research lab.
  • $2 million for Benjamin Schrank to stay at MD Anderson so he can be put on a tenure track and set up a research lab.

Over $20.2 million in academic research grants were awarded to researchers at:

  • Baylor College of Medicine
  • Houston Methodist Research Institute
  • Rice University
  • Texas Southern University
  • University of Houston
  • University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
  • University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
  • University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston

In addition, nearly $4.45 million in cancer prevention grants were awarded to one researcher at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and another at Texas Southern University.

Also, five Houston businesses benefited from CPRIT grants for product development research:

  • Allterum Therapeutics, $2,999,996
  • CTMC, $1,342,178
  • Instapath, $900,000
  • Prana Surgical, $900,000
  • InformAI, $465,188

“Texas is a national leader in the fight against cancer,” said Kristen Pauling Doyle, CPRIT’s CEO. “We can measure the return on investment from CPRIT grants … not only in the economic benefits flowing from increased financial activity and jobs in the state, but more importantly in the cancers avoided, detected early, and treated successfully. Thanks to the Legislature’s vision, this commitment is saving lives.”

Overall, CPRIT approved 61 grants totaling more than $93 million in this recent round of funding.

The Houston app that makes your commute smoother, greener + more rewarding

Return to Office

As Houstonians transition back to the office, navigating the city’s complex traffic landscape can feel overwhelming. Fortunately, Houston ConnectSmart, a free app designed specifically for the greater Houston area, is here to make that return easier on your schedule, your wallet, and even the planet.

Unlike national navigation apps, ConnectSmart is built with local commuters in mind. It offers features tailored to Houston’s unique traffic patterns, such as real-time alerts about road closures, construction zones, and flooding. The app also integrates live traffic camera feeds and notifies users about adverse weather conditions, helping them adjust their routes efficiently and avoid delays.

ConnectSmart goes beyond basic navigation. It’s the only local app that keeps commuters fully informed with proactive, real-time trip alerts. These alerts tell users exactly when to leave, flag incidents on their routes, and provide alternative paths to ensure the smoothest possible drive. Additionally, through the Tow and Go program, users stranded on eligible freeways can access no-cost towing to a safe location.

For those looking to save money, time, and the planet, ConnectSmart also shines as a carpooling tool.

With its Carpool feature, users can coordinate rides with colleagues or friends, making use of HOV lanes and cutting down on the number of single-occupancy vehicles on the road. Whether you're a driver or a rider, the app allows you to customize your commute by setting pick-up points, schedules, and drop-off locations. If plans change, Trip Protection ensures you won’t be stranded, offering compensation for a backup ride home in the event of a last-minute cancellation.

Carpooling with ConnectSmart doesn’t just ease stress — it also lightens your environmental footprint and reduces the wear and tear on your vehicle. The app even provides real-time parking information for garages, lots, and street spaces, making the end of your commute as hassle-free as the journey itself.

For employers, ConnectSmart offers an Employer Commute Suite that enables organizations to set up private carpool groups for staff. This feature fosters a more connected, sustainable workplace culture and helps businesses support employees in managing their daily commutes.

Whether you're driving solo or looking to share a ride, Houston ConnectSmart brings a smarter, more sustainable way to get around the Bayou City. Download the app for free from the App Store or Google Play, and start your commute with confidence, convenience, and community in mind.

For more information about setting up an Employer Commute Suite, contact ConnectSmart today and take the first step toward transforming how your organization gets to work.

California company to launch Walmart drone delivery in Houston

taking off

California-based Wing will soon touch down in Houston.

The drone delivery company has partnered with Walmart Supercenters in Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Orlando and Tampa. According to a news release, Wing’s drone delivery services will be available at 100 Walmart stores across the selected markets by this time next year.

Wing also plans to expand to additional Walmart stores in Dallas-Fort Worth, where Wing and Walmart already serve customers from 18 Walmart Supercenters. Wing reports that it has completed thousands of deliveries from DFW-area Walmarts with an average fulfillment time of under 19 minutes. Wing and Walmart launched their first location in the Dallas area in the fall of 2023.

"The popularity of drone delivery in DFW is a testament not just to its convenience, but to the way this technology quickly becomes a part of everyday life,” Wing CEO Adam Woodworth said in the news release. “Walmart has been a strong partner that shares our commitment to innovation and is equally eager to bring this new type of service to many more households.”

Customers in Houston and the other markets in the latest expansion can visit wing.com/walmart to be notified when drone delivery becomes available in their area.

The service works similarly to any other online shopping platform, and users can select the exact location for the drone to drop off their package. Items are packaged in a specialized box that a Wing drone retrieves from Walmart. The drones cruise up to 65 mph and drop off the package outside a shopper's home.

“This is real drone delivery at scale,” Woodworth said in the release. “People all around the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex have made drone delivery part of their normal shopping habits over the past year. Now we’re excited to share this ultra-fast delivery experience with millions more people across many more U.S. cities.”

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