10th Houston cohort named to early-stage accelerator

ready to grow

Meet the 10th cohort for gBETA Houston. Photo via gener8tor.com

National venture capital firm gener8tor named its 10th Houston cohort this week, which includes startups focused on innovative tableware to substitute teacher operations.

gBETA Houston offers startups and founders with a non-equity seven-week program that features intensive concierge coaching and access to a network of investors and partners. The founders will pitch their ideas on Oct. 24 at 6:30 p.m. at the Esperson Building.

"Each cohort shows us how innovation evolves and thrives," Muriel Foster, gBETA Houston director, says in a statement. "The Spring 2024 gBETA Houston cohort embodies creative brilliance and unyielding ambition."

The five companies named to gBETA were chosen based on their growth potential and investor readiness. They include:

  • BrainBuffet, an AI-powered platform that has already created over 250 courses to refine its personalized learning algorithm that builds customized courses that feature curated content, YouTube videos, quizzes, and progress tracking
  • Colorfull Plates, a tableware startup that creates durable, vibrant products that aim to streamline family meals and encourage children to try new flavors. It has generated $300,000 in revenue without outside dilutive funding.
  • The Parent Teacher Collaborative, a web- and mobile-based platform that aims to improve student outcomes by building strong collaborative partnerships, growing parent-teacher organizations and better managing school events. It's worked with five Houston-area communities and has raised over $144,000 in grant and contract funding since April 2023.
  • Kinfolk, a user-friendly mobile application that creates a digital time capsule of family traditions, memories and cultural heritage. It has over 50 beta-testing customers.
  • SubSpark, a mobile and desktop app that allows school administrators and teachers to post available openings for substitute teachers. The Houston-based LLC is currently beta-testing its apps with one Houston-area private school.

The five companies joined the spring 2024 cohort and the rest of the Houston gBETA network.

gBETA is supported by Downtown Houston, the City of Houston and the Downtown Redevelopment Authority. The program has accelerated 45 Houston companies since its launch in Houston in 2019. It was launched by a $1.25 million grant to be paid out over five years.
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Pitch decks in San Francisco and New York tend to be simpler. Getty Images

When it comes to meeting with investors, a simpler pitch deck is better

On deck

There's something about California pitch decks that Houston companies can learn a thing or two from. Most of them are simpler and highlight those few key points that really show a company might be a success. Simpler, in this case, is good.

However, the investor pitch deck doesn't get you the investment, the deck gets you the meeting. And when an investor is considering a company to meet with, they don't want to comb through scientific detail before getting to know the entrepreneur. It's the entrepreneur who we want to talk to. We want to see and hear their ability to communicate the complex information.

The simple pitch deck is crucial for the entrepreneur to get that initial meeting. It forces the entrepreneur to showcase their best and most important key metrics. Then, it's the entrepreneurs live performance is the real key to attaining an investment.

In Houston — and in other more conservative towns — we tend to see pitch decks that have a lot more information density on each page. It ends up being a traditional business plan, but in landscape orientation instead of portrait orientation.

A lot of more traditional investors in cities like Houston must prefer this additional detail in the deck, right?

Perhaps, but the trend I see is that cities where more venture capital dollars are raised (seed-stage and otherwise) tend to have simpler pitch decks for that initial outreach. San Francisco's are simpler than New York's. New York's are simpler than Austin's. Austin's are simpler than Houston's. And so on.

Maybe I am wrong to recommend having the simpler pitch deck in an environment where there are fewer investors and fewer deals. However, when the simpler pitch deck can be made by cutting away parts of the longer more complex one, shouldn't entrepreneurs be able to create this pitch deck? The process is boiling down the core message, and who doesn't want to work on that?

Work on that elevator pitch and work on that short pitch deck. Of course you need to detail, but sometimes you need the simplicity.

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Mark Friday is an associate leading venture capital investments at Houston-based Cathexis Holdings LP.

From enlightening talks to anniversary celebrations, here's where you need to be in January. Getty Images

Updated: 10 can't-miss innovation events for January

Where to be

Houston's innovation community is starting 2019 strong with plenty of business professional events.

If you know of innovation-focused events for February, email me at natalie@innovationmap.com with the details.

1. How to Start a Startup with Roberto Moctezuma, founder & CEO of Fractal River

Thinking 2019 is the year you finally turn your business idea into a startup? Station Houston wants to help. It's free to attend this discussion lead by Roberto Moctezuma, the founder and CEO of Houston-based Fractal River, an advisory firm. The talk will focus on identifying problems, determining market needs, learning important metrics, and more.

The event is from 6 to 7 pm on Tuesday, January 8, at Station Houston (1301 Fannin St., Suite 2440).

Learn more here.

2. January U.S. Oil & Gas Blockchain Forum Luncheon

For the first event of the year, the U.S. Oil & Gas Blockchain Forum is focusing on how blockchain can help the energy industry. Guest speakers are Andrew Bruce, CEO and founder of Houston-based Data Gumbo, and Rebecca Hofmann, blockchain strategist at Equinor.

The luncheon is from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm on Tuesday, January 15, at the Equinor Auditorium (2107 CityWest Blvd). Tickets to attend are $50.

Learn more here.

3. Salesforce Essentials Workshop: Houston

Attention small business owners: Salesforce has a workshop designed for you. Learn about the platform and how it can help your business strategy over lunch.

The workshop isn Tuesday, January 15, from noon to 2 p.m. at The Cannon (1336 Brittmoore Road) and is free to attend.

Learn more here.

4. Society of Petroleum Engineers Women-in-Energy Congress

Energy industry ladies take center stage of a full-day event focused on women in oil and gas. Susan Dio, chairman and president of BP America, will deliver the keynote address before the rest of the day's panels and presentations begin.

This event is January 18, from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at the Houston Community College West Houston Institute (2811 Hayes Road).

Learn more here.

5. Houston Startup Demo Day

Three Houston startups will present their product and business plan at The Station's monthly demo day. The companies and judges are still being determined, but the event details are finalized.

Hear the pitches on Wednesday, January 23, from 6 to 8 p.m., at Station Houston (1301 Fannin Street, Suite 2440). The event is free to attend.

Learn more here.

6. NRLC Workshop: Pitching Part 2: The Physical Pitch with Beth O'Sullivan

If you thought you were pitch perfect, think again. Beth O'Sullivan, a management senior lecturer at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business, is giving a free lecture on the art of pitching your company. The Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is offering the event.

The lecture will be from 4 to 5:30 pm on Wednesday, January 23, at the Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (6100 Main Street Cambridge Office Building, Suite 130).

Learn more here.

7. Women Entrepreneurs Pitch Party at The Cannon

Calling all angel investors — The Cannon Ventures would like to introduce you to a few female entrepreneurs this month. InnovationMap is a media partner for the event, and the goal is to generate connections between the entrepreneurs and potential investors.

The event takes place on Thursday, January 24, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at The Cannon (1336 Brittmoore Road).

If you're an interested investor and would like to attend, email Jake Askew at jaskew@cannonventureshouston.com.

8. Oil & Gas Happy Hour Hosted by OGGN + The Cannon

Grab a beer and some bites at Oil & Gas Global Network's monthly happy hour — this time in collaboration with Houston-based The Cannon.

Join oil and gas professionals at The Cannon (1336 Brittmoore Road) on Tuesday, January 29, from 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $10 for this happy hour event, and proceeds go to Redeemed Ministries, a local charity to help human trafficking victims.

Learn more here.

9. Station Houston 3.0 and Launch Party

As Station Houston officially becomes a nonprofit on January 1, and, in preparation for its move to the Midtown Innovation District, the organization is revealing Station Houston 3.0 to start 2019 with. The free event is Wednesday, January 30, from 6 to 8 pm at Station Houston (1301 Fannin St., Suite 2440).

Guests can mingle until the short program and announcement, which is followed by light bites. Station will also be showing off Houston's first VR Lab and its new space.

Learn more here.

10. Inaugural meeting of the Houston Industrial Digital Transformation & IoT Meetup

Calling all digital and tech innovation leaders in oil and gas or utilities — there's a new group for you to join. The Houston Industrial Digital Transformation and IoT Meetup formed to bring leaders of industrial innovation together for collaboration and so that they can learn from each other's digital transformations.

The inaugural meetup is from 6 to 8 pm on Wednesday, January 30, at ChaiOne HQ (9 Greenway Plaza, Suite 850). It's free to attend.

Learn more here.

Whether you're pitching your startup in a competition or for capital, here are some expert tips. Getty Images

4 secrets to being pitch perfect from a startup founder

Down pat

One of the things our team at EllieGrid is most famous for is pitching. We have pitched our smart pill box in over 20 business plan competitions, on television, radio, and to so many investors that I have lost count. I can't remember what our first pitch was like but I know it has certainly evolved overtime. You could even say that we A/B tested some of our methods.

When you first organize your thoughts, you want to consider the basics, so before I give my advice, consider these tried-and-true tips.

  • Get to the point — say what your company is in the first 10 seconds
  • Know your audience
  • Shorter usually means better
  • Keep numbers to a minimum
  • Have a clear ask

In order to save you a little time, here are some of the of the lessons I learned the hard way to help you perfect your pitch.

Don't pitch. Tell a story.
I am going to let you in on a little secret: most people don't want to hear your pitch, especially if yours is not the first they have heard that day. Put yourself in their shoes, do you really want to listen to someone ramble on about facts and figures? Chances are, no. Instead, tell a story. Use engaging voices and set the scene. Recall your creative writing classes from high school and how you should mention what it was like in terms of feel, smell, taste, etc. and don't use generic adjectives such as "too small" or "the old way was hard."

People remember how you made them feel
What is in it for your audience? Is it wealth, power, fame, praise or glory, and/or pleasure? It might sound obvious to make this point when pitching, but I suggest you write out your pitch and highlight exactly where you say what is in it for them, maybe even more than once. Making the audience feel like you are caring about their desires and engaging them in conversation will help you be more memorable.

Come full circle
My favorite technique in any pitch or speech is if the speaker can connect the closing back to something they said at the beginning of their pitch. I enjoy this because sometimes the speaker will leave a question unanswered and then reveal how their solution is the answer in a creative way. This keeps your listeners engaged and connects the pain to your solution. Watch a few TED talks and you will see what I mean.

Pitch to a kid
This is probably the best advice I can give because it is a surefire way to make sure your pitch makes sense to a wide range of listeners. This also forces you to leave out jargon and filler words that you think might make you sound fancy like "innovative" or "disruptive" but actually make you sound like everyone else.

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Regina Vatterott is the COO and co-founder of Ellie Grid, a Houston-based company reinventing medical devices. Read more about Regina here.

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3 Houston innovators who made headlines in May 2025

Innovators to Know

Editor's note: Houston innovators are making waves this month with revolutionary VC funding, big steps towards humanoid robotics, and software that is impacting the agriculture sector. Here are three Houston innovators to know right now.

Zach Ellis, founder and partner of South Loop Ventures

Zach Ellis. Photo via LinkedIn

Zach Ellis Jr., founder and general partner of South Loop Ventures, says the firm wants to address the "billion-dollar blind spot" of inequitable distribution of venture capital to underrepresented founders of color. The Houston-based firm recently closed its debut fund for more than $21 million. Learn more.

Ty Audronis, CEO and founder of Tempest Droneworx

Ty Audronis, CEO and founder of Tempest Droneworx

Ty Audronis, center. Photo via LinkedIn.

Ty Audronis and his company, Tempest Droneworx, made a splash at SXSW Interactive 2025, winning the Best Speed Pitch award at the annual festival. The company is known for it flagship product, Harbinger, a software solution that agnostically gathers data at virtually any scale and presents that data in easy-to-understand visualizations using a video game engine. Audronis says his company won based on its merits and the impact it’s making and will make on the world, beginning with agriculture. Learn more.

Nicolaus Radford, CEO of Persona AI

Nicolaus Radford, founder and CEO of Nauticus RoboticsNicolaus Radford. Image via LinkedIn

Houston-based Persona AI and CEO Nicolaus Radford continue to make steps toward deploying a rugged humanoid robot, and with that comes the expansion of its operations at Houston's Ion. Radford and company will establish a state-of-the-art development center in the prominent corner suite on the first floor of the building, with the expansion slated to begin in June. “We chose the Ion because it’s more than just a building — it’s a thriving innovation ecosystem,” Radford says. Learn more.

Pharmaceutical giant plans $5.9B Houston facility and more news to know

Trending News

Editor's note: It's time to look back at the top Houston innovation news from the second half of May 2025. From exciting VC raises to major manufacturing facilities in the works, here are the most-read InnovationMap stories from May 16-30.

1. Pharmaceutical giant looks to bring $5.9 billion facility to Houston

Eli Lilly is looking to build an active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturing facility at Generation Park. Rendering courtesy of McCord

Pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Company is looking to build a $5.9 billion active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturing facility in Houston, according to a recent filing with the state of Texas.

The proposal states that the project plans to employ 604 full-time direct employees at the site upon ramp-up completion. Construction is projected to begin in 2026, with a completion target of 2030 and commercial operations beginning in 2031. Continue reading.

2. Houston VC firm closes $21M fund for underrepresented founders

Zach Ellis, founder and general partner of South Loop Ventures, which recently closed its debut fund. Photo via LinkedIn

Houston-based South Loop Ventures recently closed its debut fund for more than $21 million, led by investments from Rice Management Company and Chevron Technology Ventures.

The funds will go toward teams with at least one underrepresented founder of color working in the energy, health, space, sports and fintech sectors. Additional investments came from The Great Commission Foundation of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas, Texas CapitalBank and others organizations. Continue reading.

3. Houston-founded startup raises $1.2M and moves headquarters to Detroit

ChurchSpace, founded in Houston by Day Edwards and Emmanuel Brown, is moving to Detroit. Photo courtesy ChurchSpace.

Houston-founded ChurchSpace, known as the Airbnb for churches, has formed an official partnership with the City of Detroit and will relocate its headquarters.

The announcements come as the company successfully closed a $1.2 million oversubscribed funding round. The round was led by California-based Black Ops Ventures, with participation from Michigan Rise and Dug Song of Minor Capital, who is also the founder of the Song Foundation, another Michigan-based organization. Continue reading.

4. Houston aerospace co. soars with first U.S. test flight of hypersonic engine

Venus Aerospace successfully completed the flight test of its hypersonic engine, the first of an American-developed engine of its kind. Photo courtesy Venus Aerospace

Houston-based Venus Aerospace successfully completed the first U.S. flight test of its proprietary engine at a demonstration at Spaceport America in New Mexico.

Venus’ next-generation rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE) is supported by a $155,908 federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from NASA and aims to enable vehicles to travel four to six times the speed of sound from a conventional runway. The recent flight test was the first of an American-developed engine of its kind. Continue reading.

5. Houston regenerative medicine company expands lab for future trials

FibroBiologics has opened a new 10,000-square-foot Houston lab to scale up research efforts and pave the way for in-house manufacturing. Photo via Fibrobiologics.com

A Houston regenerative medicine company has unveiled new laboratory space with the goal of expanding its pioneering science.

FibroBiologics uses fibroblasts, the body’s most common type of cell, rather than stem cells, to help grow new cells. With its new space, the publicly traded company, which has more than 240 patents issued or pending, will be even better equipped to power forward with its research. Continue reading.

Houston university to launch artificial intelligence major, one of first in nation

BS in AI

Rice University announced this month that it plans to introduce a Bachelor of Science in AI in the fall 2025 semester.

The new degree program will be part of the university's department of computer science in the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing and is one of only a few like it in the country. It aims to focus on "responsible and interdisciplinary approaches to AI," according to a news release from the university.

“We are in a moment of rapid transformation driven by AI, and Rice is committed to preparing students not just to participate in that future but to shape it responsibly,” Amy Dittmar, the Howard R. Hughes Provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, said in the release. “This new major builds on our strengths in computing and education and is a vital part of our broader vision to lead in ethical AI and deliver real-world solutions across health, sustainability and resilient communities.”

John Greiner, an assistant teaching professor of computer science in Rice's online Master of Computer Science program, will serve as the new program's director. Vicente Ordóñez-Román, an associate professor of computer science, was also instrumental in developing and approving the new major.

Until now, Rice students could study AI through elective courses and an advanced degree. The new bachelor's degree program opens up deeper learning opportunities to undergrads by blending traditional engineering and math requirements with other courses on ethics and philosophy as they relate to AI.

“With the major, we’re really setting out a curriculum that makes sense as a whole,” Greiner said in the release. “We are not simply taking a collection of courses that have been created already and putting a new wrapper around them. We’re actually creating a brand new curriculum. Most of the required courses are brand new courses designed for this major.”

Students in the program will also benefit from resources through Rice’s growing AI ecosystem, like the Ken Kennedy Institute, which focuses on AI solutions and ethical AI. The university also opened its new AI-focused "innovation factory," Rice Nexus, earlier this year.

“We have been building expertise in artificial intelligence,” Ordóñez-Román added in the release. “There are people working here on natural language processing, information retrieval systems for machine learning, more theoretical machine learning, quantum machine learning. We have a lot of expertise in these areas, and I think we’re trying to leverage that strength we’re building.”

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