Houston students develop underwater robot with energy-efficient buoyancy control

new tech

The project was part of a year-long senior design capstone by six students, known as Team Bay-Max, in Rice's Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen. Photo by Jeff Fitlow/Rice University

A team of Rice University engineering students has developed a new way for underwater robots to move around, save power and work more efficiently and quietly.

The robot uses reversible hydrogen fuel cell-based buoyancy control devices that convert water into hydrogen and oxygen (and the reverse) using electricity. Traditional underwater robots use thrusters or large pumps and propellers to change and hold depth, which can be heavy, have higher costs and use more energy. The use of reversible hydrogen fuel cells with balloons, allows the new robot to smoothly adjust its depth with less energy usage, according to a statement from Rice.

The project was part of a year-long senior design capstone by six students, known as Team Bay-Max, in Rice's Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen.

The students—Andrew Bare, Spencer Darwall, Noah Elzner, Rafe Neathery, Ethan Peck and Dan Zislis— won second place in the Willy Revolution Award for Outstanding Innovation at the Huff OEDK Engineering Design Showcase held at the Ion last month.

“Having spent a year on it now and putting so much time into it, getting to see the result of all that work come together is really rewarding,” Peck said in the statement.

“With a project like this, integration was critical,” Zislis added. “Another takeaway for me is the importance of determining a clear scope for any given project. With this robot, we could have focused on a lot of different things. For instance, we could have worked on improving fuel cell efficiency or making a robotic arm. Instead, we chose to keep these other elements simple so as not to divert focus away from the main part, which is the buoyancy control device. This kind of decision-making process is not just part of good engineering, but it’s relevant with everything in life.”

Elzner, for instance, focused on the dashboard that the robot feeds information to as it collects data from different sensors. It displays core system information, real-time graphs of the robot’s location and a simulation of its relative orientation, according to the statement.

Darwall, took a " deep dive into control theory and learn(ed) new software" to incorporate the video game joystick that allows the robot to combine manual control with an automatic stabilizing algorithm.

The proof-of-concept robot has potential applications in environmental monitoring, oceanographic research, and military and industrial tasks, according to Rice.

The team based the project on an academic paper by Houston researchers that showed that fuel cell-enabled depth control could reduce autonomous underwater vehicles’ energy consumption by as much as 85 percent.

It was authored by Rice professor Fathi Ghorbel and members of the University of Houston's Zheng Chen lab.

“This collaborative research aims to develop tetherless continuum soft engines that utilize reversible proton exchange membrane fuel cells and water electrolyzers to drive volume-mass transformation," Ghorbel said in a statement. "Through this design project, the BayMax team proved the efficacy of this technology in AUV interaction with the physical world.”

Ghorbel, Rice mechanical engineering lecturer David Trevas, and Professor in the Practice, Electrical and Computer and Engineering Gary Woods mentored the team.

Last month Rice also held its 24th annual Rice Business Plan Competition, doling out more than $1.5 million in investment and cash prizes to the top teams. Click here to see what student-led startups took home awards.
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Featured Innovators

Editor's note: Houston innovators have kicked off the new year with big developments, from an immune-boosting nanodrug to NSF research funding and more. Below, meet three local innovators who have recently been in the headlines.

Kirsten Adam, Rice University

Kirsten Adam. Courtesy photo.

Rice University psychologist Kirsten Adam has received a $600,000 National Science Foundation CAREER Award to research how visual distractions like phone notifications, flashing alerts, crowded screens and busy workspaces can negatively impact focus—and how the brain works to try to regain it. Adam’s work will aim to clarify how the brain refocuses in the age of screens, instant gratification and other lingering distractions. The funding will also be used to train graduate students in advanced cognitive neuroscience methods, expand access to electroencephalography (EEG) and for public data sharing. Read more.

Houston lab-test startup seeks $1M for nationwide expansion

Jim Gebhart, founder and CEO of TheLabCafe.com. Courtesy photo.

Driven by the desire to knock down lab-test barriers, health care industry veteran Jim Gebhart founded Houston-based TheLabCafe.com in 2024. The platform provides access to low-cost medical tests without requiring patients to carry health insurance. It currently serves patients in six states and is poised for major U.S. expansion early this year. Read more.

Wei Gao, University of Houston College of Pharmacy

Wei Gao (center). Photo courtesy UH.

Wei Gao, assistant professor of pharmacology at the University of Houston College of Pharmacy, may have a solution to regulatory B cells (Bregs) which block the body's natural immunity and are found in pancreatic and lung cancers. Gao and her team have developed Nano-273, a dual-function drug, packaged in an albumin-based particle, that boosts the immune system to help it better fight these cancers. Read more.

Texas booms as No. 3 best state to start a business right now

Innovation Starts Here

High employment growth and advantageous entrepreneurship rates have led Texas into a triumphant No. 3 spot in WalletHub's ranking of "Best and Worst States to Start a Business" for 2026.

Texas bounced back into the No. 3 spot nationally for the first time since 2023. After dropping into 8th place in 2024, the state hustled into No. 4 last year.

Ever year, WalletHub compares all 50 states based on their business environment, costs, and access to financial resources to determine the best places for starting a business. The study analyzes 25 relevant metrics to determine the rankings, such as labor costs, office space affordability, financial accessibility, the number of startups per capita, and more.

When about half of all new businesses don't last more than five years, finding the right environment for a startup is vital for long-term success, the report says.

Here's how Texas ranked across the three main categories in the study:

  • No. 1 – Business environment
  • No. 11 – Access to resources
  • No. 34 – Business costs

The state boasts the 10th highest entrepreneurship rates nationwide, and it has the 11th-highest share of fast-growing firms. WalletHub also noted that more than half (53 percent) of all Texas businesses are located in "strong clusters," which suggests they are more likely to be successful long-term.

"Clusters are interconnected businesses that specialize in the same field, and 'strong clusters' are ones that are in the top 25 percent of all regions for their particular specialization," the report said. "If businesses fit into one of these clusters, they will have an easier time getting the materials they need, and can tap into an existing customer base. To some degree, it might mean more competition, though."

Texas business owners should also keep their eye on Houston, which was recently ranked the 7th best U.S. city for starting a new business, and it was dubbed one of the top-10 tech hubs in North America. Workers in Texas are the "third-most engaged" in the country, the study added, a promising attribute for employers searching for the right place to begin their next business venture.

"Business owners in Texas benefit from favorable conditions, as the state has the third-highest growth in working-age population and the third-highest employment growth in the country, too," the report said.

The top 10 best states for starting a business in 2026 are:

  • No. 1 – Florida
  • No. 2 – Utah
  • No. 3 – Texas
  • No. 4 – Oklahoma
  • No. 5 – Idaho
  • No. 6 – Mississippi
  • No. 7 – Georgia
  • No. 8 – Indiana
  • No. 9 – Nevada
  • No. 10 – California
---

This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Houston lab-test startup seeks $1M for nationwide expansion

Testing Access

Health care industry veteran Jim Gebhart knew there had to be a better way for patients to access lab services, especially those with high health insurance deductibles or no insurance at all.

“This challenge became deeply personal when a close family member developed a serious illness, and we struggled to secure prompt appointments,” Gebhart tells InnovationMap. “It’s incredibly frustrating when a loved one cannot receive timely care simply because of provider shortages or the limited capacity of traditional clinics.”

Driven by the desire to knock down lab-test barriers, Gebhart founded Houston-based TheLabCafe.com in 2024. The platform provides access to low-cost medical tests without requiring patients to carry health insurance. TheLabCafe serves patients in six states: Texas, Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Gebhart, the startup’s CEO, says that by the end of March, LabCafe will be offering services in 20 more states and the District of Columbia.

Gebhart has spent more than 30 years in the lab industry. His career includes stints at Austin-based Clinical Pathology Laboratories, Ohio’s Cleveland Clinic Laboratories and Secaucus, New Jersey-based Quest Diagnostics.

“Since nearly 80 percent of disease diagnoses rely on laboratory testing, I decided to leverage my background to create a more accessible, self-directed process for individuals to order blood and urine tests on their own terms — when and where they need them,” says Gebhart.

So far, Gebhart is self-funding the startup. But he plans to seek $700,000 to $1 million in outside investments in late 2026 to support the nationwide expansion and the introduction of more services.

TheLabCafe contracts with labs for an array of tests, such as cholesterol, hepatitis, metabolic, testosterone, thyroid and sexually transmitted infection (STI) tests. A cholesterol test obtained through TheLabCafe might cost $29, compared with a typical cost of perhaps $39 to $59 without insurance.

A health care professional reviews every test, both when the test is ordered and when the results are delivered, often within 24 hours. After receiving test results, a patient can schedule a virtual visit with a health care professional to go over the findings and learn potential treatment options.

Gebhart says TheLabCafe particularly benefits uninsured patients, including those in Texas. Among the states, Texas has the highest rate of uninsured residents. U.S. Census Bureau data shows 21.6 percent of adults and 13.6 percent of children in Texas lacked health insurance in 2024.

“Uninsured patients often pay the highest prices in the health care system,” Gebhart explains. “We address this by offering straightforward pricing and convenient access to testing without requiring insurance.”

“Our rates are intentionally set to remain affordable, helping individuals take a proactive approach to their health,” he adds. “Regular testing enables people to identify potential health issues early and track their progress as they make lifestyle changes. Ultimately, you can’t measure improvement without data — and laboratory results provide that data.”

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