New Houston co. transforms emergency response with geolocation, AI, and augmented reality tech

to the rescunomics

Rescunomics is designing technology to enhance responses to active shooter situations, fires, and rescues. Photo via Getty Images

A Houston startup is innovating on safety using its geolocation, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality technology.

Rescunomics is designing technology to enhance responses to active shooter situations, fires, and rescues.The company, which provides tiered pricing, is currently working on a platform exclusively for first-responders.

Founded by CEO Emmanuel Joel, a retired captain of the Houston Fire Department, Rescunomics is using a “mission driven” approach to safety that is fueled by leveraging technology. As a part of the HFD, Joel experienced the loss of his mentor and Captain at a house fire that inspired him to take future action.

“This dark period for me inspired a vision to find a solution to this problem that has claimed 1,000 firefighter lives in structural fires in the last three decades,” Joel says in a news release. ”Since my retirement, I have focused on the growth of Rescunomics as a solution provider of innovative solutions to global safety for emergency responders.”

The company uses geolocation technology that can enable first responders to pinpoint their positions within a building to a precise location. By collaborating with geolocation service company NextNav, Rescunomics can integrate a nationwide mesh network,which will ensure accurate Z-axis data in real-time. This can still occur even when GPS fails. Rescunomics’ partnership with T-Mobile uses their 5G low-band network to provide affordable geolocation services.

With a voice-activated Hērōs AI chatbot, Rescunomics can provide instant guidance in high-pressure situations. By using predictive analytics, users can optimize resource allocation during large-scale disasters by utilizing IoT connectivity and SMART analytics with the Hērōs platform. The platform also utilizes its Indoor Mapping Data Format (IMDF). The IMDF allows users access to customized indoor maps of venues like stadiums, airports, and campuses.

For active shooter situations, Rescunomics says its discreet SOS signaling system can enable individuals to alert law enforcement directly.Rescunomics says 60 percent of shooting events end before law enforcement arrives.

Going beyond training purposes, Rescunomics' AR lens technology can arm responders with thermal imaging and VR-enhanced visuals via helmet-mounted displays to help monitor live incident footage.

The Detroit Fire Department is just one of the departments in the U.S. using technology similar to this, as the department is in a pilot program using Safety Cloud by HAAS Alert.
The Aldine Independent School District is the first to employ a new technology focused on campus safety. Educational First Steps/Facebook

Houston-area school district to install first-of-its-kind safety technology

A+ in safety

Insight Enterprises has announced a collaboration with the city of Houston, Microsoft, and BeSafe to bring the ActiveShield concept to two Houston-area schools this summer. Aldine Independent School District was selected to be the first school district in the nation to implement an IoT platform like this, a representative says.

Safe Spaces a group of tools developed by Tempe, Arizona-based Insight, a Fortune 500 global systems integrator. The safety technology focuses on emergency situations, such as sound sensors, color-coded LED lighting, and real-time information sharing that can notify first responders with pertinent information as soon as possible.

"Knowledge is power, and our mission is to save lives by providing the right information to the right people at the right time," says Kevin Harrington, CEO of BeSafe Technologies, in a release. "What we see with Insight Safe Spaces is the ability to use IoT to build on our core capabilities to further improve public safety. This creates a communication hub that instantly connects on-site security with police, fire and other emergency responders, as well as building occupants."

The schools will be equipped with several of Safe Spaces' technologies, such as:

  • Cameras, sound and motion sensors, etc. that capture data that is then integrated with third-party security systems. (This allows for real-time information sharing and emergency response.)
  • Panic buttons for teachers or staff.
  • Color-coded smart lights that automatically warn of an emergency and indicate how close you are to danger or the school's safe zones.
  • Real-time communication to on-site security and emergency services, with different alerts or action plans based on the information being shared with the central system.
  • Direct lines of communication for people involved in the crisis via a navigation-based mobile app to provide updates and safety instructions in real time.

Together, Insight Safe Spaces and Microsoft Azure IoT solution accelerators combine technological forces to enable Raleigh, North Carolina-based BeSafe to open "new doors to enhanced public safety," says Stan Lequin, vice president and general manager, Insight Digital Innovation, in the release.

"Insight is helping BeSafe expand its foundation of advanced building information technology, transforming these capabilities into interactive action plans that give emergency responders a critical advantage when every second saved potentially means a life saved," Lequin adds.

BeSafe was founded in 1999 to enhance safety in schools by providing emergency response teams advance information about the school's layout, emergency exits, and more. Now, with the new age of technology, the organization is expanding its horizons, and AISD is the first to implement the collaboration of this technology.

"Student and staff safety are a top priority. The partnership with the city of Houston and Microsoft will take our efforts to the next level," says AISD's superintendent of schools, LaTonya M. Goffney, in the release.

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New Texas Stock Exchange officially begins trading in Dallas

Welcome to Y'all Street

Two-step aside, New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq. The Dallas-based Texas Stock Exchange, nicknamed Y’all Street, just kicked off live trading with five stocks — and lots of Lone Star ambition.

“The Texas Stock Exchange aims to revitalize competition for [stock] issuers, establish the premier venue for listings, and create a world-class trading platform for all market participants,” the exchange says in a fact sheet.

The exchange — whose Texas-influenced nickname is a nod to New York City’s Wall Street — has collected at least $275 million in investments. The roughly 90 financial backers of TXSE include Bank of America, BlackRock, Charles Schwab, Citadel Securities, Dell Family Office, Fortress, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan Chase.

Representatives of TXSE couldn’t be reached for comment. On its website, the exchange calls itself “the most well-capitalized equities exchange to ever be approved” by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Not to be outdone, NYSE has launched Dallas-based NYSE Texas and Nasdaq has expanded its presence in Dallas.

Y’all Street adds to Dallas-Fort Worth’s rising status as a major hub for financial services, with The Wall Street Journal naming North Texas the country’s second biggest financial hub after New York City.

“A homegrown national exchange means more jobs, more investment, and more growth opportunities for businesses and communities across the Lone Star State,” Gabriela von zur Muehlen, senior vice president and chief policy officer at the Texas Association of Business, told The Texas Tribune.

Bulent Temel, an associate professor of practice in economics at the University of Texas at San Antonio, told Texas Standard that TXSE “is going to boost the credibility of the Texas economy.”

Texas’ estimated gross domestic product (GDP), a yardstick for the size of an economy, climbed to a record-setting $2.9 trillion in 2025, making it the state with the second highest GDP after California. DFW’s estimated GDP in 2023 stood at $744.6 billion, eclipsing the GDP of many countries.

“The center of gravity for American capitalism is now headquartered in the Boom Belt,” Abbott proclaimed in April, referring to an 11-state region (including Texas) in the South and Southeast that’s seeing tremendous economic and population growth. “The Texas Stock Exchange is the natural extension of that capitalism. It ensures that capital markets will reflect the quadrant that is driving American growth.”

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Orion vehicle manager reflects on Artemis II, looks to 2028 moon mission

Q&A

Humanity is finally headed back to the moon after more than half a century. This year's launch of the Artemis II mission in the Orion spacecraft put four crew members in lunar orbit and tested the new ship developed by Lockheed Martin.

Everything went smoothly, safely returning astronauts home, but there is always room to improve. InnovationMap chatted via email with Orion vehicle manager Branelle Rodriguez, shortly after a talk at The Ion, for insight on how Orion might perform in the future as the next lunar landing approaches in early 2028.

InnovationMap: How satisfied are you with the way Orion operated on this past mission?

Branelle Rodriguez: Orion performed exceptionally well during Artemis II, successfully demonstrating critical spacecraft capabilities, including life support systems, displays and controls, and executing manual piloting operations. Artemis II brought humans back to the moon, achieving key exploration and scientific imagery, while validating systems essential for future Artemis missions.

IM: What is the most important thing you learned about improving Orion for the next mission?

BR: The Artemis II mission provided invaluable insights into crew operations and spacecraft performance in a deep-space environment. With every mission, NASA applies lessons learned to continuously improve Orion’s operations, validate design and ensure mission readiness. Artemis II offered our first opportunity to evaluate several new systems and gain a deeper understanding of what it is like for astronauts to live and work inside the spacecraft. The operational, technical and human factors data collected are being integrated across the program to refine future missions, reduce risk and enhance overall mission success.

IM: How has Orion helped the mission to explore space?

BR: Orion is one of NASA’s foundational elements for human deep space exploration—not only supporting the mission but serving as a core component of it. It is currently the only spacecraft capable of carrying crew on deep space missions and returning them safely to Earth from the high speeds required from the vicinity of the moon. No other spacecraft has the technology to endure the extremes that come with human deep-space travel, such as advanced environmental and life support, navigation, communications, radiation shielding, and the world’s largest ablative heat shield to protect the astronauts during reentry into Earth’s atmosphere. Orion has already taken astronauts to explore space farther than ever before—252,756 miles from Earth— and will carry crews to the moon on future missions to explore the lunar South Pole region. The astronauts’ observations, samples, and data collected on these future missions will expand our understanding of our solar system and home planet.

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This conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Houston VC funding nears $1B in first half of 2026, report says

by the numbers

Despite a weak second quarter, venture capital funding for Houston-area startups approached $1 billion in the first half of 2026, the region’s highest first-half total since 2022, according to the latest PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor.

This year’s first-half total of $962.4 million represented a nearly 8 percent increase over last year’s first-half total of $891.7 million. Dating back to 2016, this year’s first-half haul lags behind only 2021 and 2022 for the most first-half funding.

Houston’s year-over-year VC jump of 73 percent in the first quarter of 2026 more than made up for the year-over-year drop of 34 percent in the second quarter of 2026, according to the report.

Deal count tells a more encouraging story: Houston startups closed 102 deals in the first half, up from 93 a year earlier and the region’s busiest first half since 2022. However, the average deal size shrank, as no single funding source dominated the total.

Keep in mind that PitchBook and NVCA routinely revise quarterly numbers upward to reflect deals that were reported after a previous quarter’s data was published. So, in the case of Houston, numbers initially reported for the first quarter of 2026 may not match newly reported numbers.

Perhaps the most notable Houston-area deal announced in the first half of this year was Cart.com’s $180 million growth equity investment, led by Springcoast Partners. Cart.com is an e-commerce platform and logistics provider.

PitchBook-NVCA data shows Houston’s VC activity is growing modestly, delivering better numbers in the first half of 2026 versus 2024 and 2025, but it still sits below the highs of 2021 and 2022. This is one sign that so far in 2026, the national VC boom isn’t benefiting non-hub markets like Houston the way it’s boosting some hub markets, especially Silicon Valley and New York City.

Nationwide, AI dominated VC funding in the first half of this year. The sector made up 86 percent of VC from January through June. The report notes that the markets have still struggled to unlock IPOs, with SpaceX being the biggest exception, and few M&A deals outside health care have been significant.

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