Mark Cuban calls AI ‘the greater democratizer’ for young entrepreneurs

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Mark Cuban described AI as "the great democratizer" for low-income, young people at the Clover x Shark Tank Summit this month. Photo courtesy Clover.

Texas billionaire Mark Cuban—whose investment portfolio includes Houston-based Holliball, a startup that makes and sells large inflatable holiday ornaments—believes AI is leveling the playing field for budding low-income entrepreneurs.

At the recent Clover x Shark Tank Summit in Las Vegas, the Shark Tank alum called AI “the greater democratizer.”

Cuban told Axios that free and low-cost AI tools enable disadvantaged teenagers to compete with seasoned professionals.

“Right now, if you’re a 14- to 18-year-old and you’re in not-so-good circumstances, you have access to the best professors and the best consultants,” Cuban said. “It allows people who otherwise would not have access to any resources to have access to the best resources in real time. You can compete with anybody.”

While Cuban believes AI is “the great democratizer” for low-income young people, low-income workers still face hurdles in navigating the AI landscape, according to Public Works Partners, an urban planning and consulting firm. The firm says access to AI among low-income workers may be limited due to cost, insufficient digital literacy and infrastructure gaps.

“Without adequate resources and training, these workers may struggle to adapt to AI-driven workplaces or access the educational opportunities necessary to acquire new skills,” Public Works Partners said.

Texas 2036, a public policy organization focused on the state’s future, reported in January AI jobs in Texas are projected to grow 27 percent over the next decade. The number 2036 refers to the year when Texas will celebrate its bicentennial.

As for the current state of AI, Cuban said he doesn’t think the economy is witnessing an AI bubble comparable to the dot-com bubble, which lasted from 1998 to 2000.

“The difference is, the improvement in technology basically slowed to a trickle,” Cuban said of the dot-com era. “We’re nowhere near the improvement in technology slowing to a trickle in AI.”

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Berkley Luck and Pedro Silva, co-founders of Milkify, join the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss the impact of their successful Shark Tank experience. Photo courtesy of Milkify

Houston startup founders prepare to scale globally following Shark Tank success

HOUSTON INNOVATORS PODCAST EPISODE 205

While Milkify's founders — husband and wife team Pedro Silva and Berkley Luck — secured partners on a popular business pitch and investment show, the entire experience almost didn't happen.

Silva and Luck, who got her PhD in molecular and biomedical s at Baylor College of Medicine, founded the company to provide breast milk freeze drying as a service to Houston-area families. Now, Milkify has customers across the country, but the duo didn't know if going through the process would be worth the investment and publicity, or if it would just be a distraction.

"The competitor in me wanted to be the first breast milk company to go on the show and to tell our story to the world — to show the world what my wife came up with that we thought was so great," Silva says on the Houston Innovators Podcast. "It was probably the scariest 45 minutes of my life."

But the sharks bit. Milkify's episode aired in April, and two investors — Gwyneth Paltrow and Lori Greiner — agreed to a $400,000 convertible note for 20 percent equity in the company. Paltrow even said on the show that she would have used the service when she was breastfeeding.

"It was empowering," Luck says of getting to wear her white coat on TV and share the story of how she came up with the idea of Milkify. "It was important to me when we went on the show to express that this had a scientific basis, that we didn't start this lightly, and that we've made huge strides in doing this in the absolute safest way possible."

Silva says they can't talk about some of the details of the show or the deal, but since then, Milkify has reached new customers, received additional investment interest, grown its team, and built out its plan to scale, the founders shared on the podcast. The team also shares its big-picture scale plans, which include tapping international partners to potentially take Milkify's tech global.

"Our vision is for every family to have access to breast milk formula, but instead of re-creating breast milk in a lab, we're doing it with mom's own milk," Silva says, mentioning a partnership with a breast milk bank that will convert its operation from freezing to freeze drying donated milk. "We're also working with groups in the UK and Australia to launch similar services using our patented technology."

"By the end of the year, we hope to see some announcements with those partnerships across the globe."

From the beginning, the importance of Milkify's team has been on supporting working parents to give them the best way to care for their families, Silva says. And for Luck — who says she's proud of the integrity Milkify has at its core despite competitors offering lower-quality and, in some cases, dangerous alternatives — she sees a lot of research benefits for the company.

"It's amazing to be at this leading edge, not just of innovation but of research, and to be able to still put out meaningful advances as an industry partner, not just as an academic," Luck says, adding that she hopes to be able to continue to contribute to the ongoing research into breast milk.

Luck and Silva share more about their Shark Tank experience, their co-founder strengths, and the future of Milkify on the podcast. Listen to the interview here — or wherever you stream your podcasts — and subscribe for weekly episodes.

Houston-based Milkify will pitch their freeze-drying breast milk concept on Shark Tank this Friday. Photo courtesy of Milkify

Houston startup with breast milk freeze-drying tech heads to Shark Tank

coming to a TV near you

A Houston startup is competing in the "Super Bowl of Business," as founder Pedro Silva calls it, and you can watch the action later this week.

Milkify will appear on ABC’s “Shark Tank” this Friday, April 7. Silva, co-founder and CEO, created Milkify along with his wife, Berkley Luck, PhD, in 2019. Today, Luck is a mom, COO, and a molecular biologist, but she had the idea for the company back in grad school. A coworker was struggling with pumping breast milk “lugging the pump back to work,” as Luck puts it.

Luck was studying probiotics at the time and was using a freeze-dryer in her work. The problem inspired her to create a process of freeze-drying breast milk that is now patent pending. The trademarked process is centered around SafeDry, special freeze-drying pouches.

“The breast milk never makes contact with our equipment,” Luck explains. The powdered milk is transferred directly from the bag in which it’s freeze-dried to the final packaging under sterile conditions. The result is not only shelf-stable, but keeps for at least three years, exponentially longer than frozen milk.

Silva admits that when Luck first pitched Milkify to him, he thought it was a crazy idea. “But Berkley is way smarter than I am. There must be something to it,” he realized. At the time, he was working in energy private equity. But he vowed that if they could find a viable path to making Milkify a business, he would join Luck full-time.

Early in the company’s life, the couple purchased a blue van that said “We will freeze-dry your breast milk,” recalls Silva. This grassroots marketing introduced them to a neighbor whose baby refused to drink her frozen milk. “He spat it out, he hated the taste,” Silva says. The pair freeze-dried her milk for the baby and their neighbor soon sent a video of the little one chugging six ounces of her rehydrated milk.

“That was the lightbulb moment,” says Silva. “How often do you get to work on something really meaningful?”

Since its founding, Milkify has freeze-dried and powdered more than half a million ounces of breast milk, all carefully preserved and packaged individually. Last October, Milkify opened what Luck claims is, “The only GMP-certified processing facility in the world right now specifically designed for freeze-drying breast milk.”

The 6,400-square-foot Houston space is a vast improvement from the previous 200-square-foot facility. That was thanks to raising $1.2 million in funds, which has also allowed them to build a larger staff.

“Our entire workforce at this point other than Pedro is moms,” says Luck. Including the couple, they are a team of 10, and just hired two additional members. They are currently looking to hire, says Silva, with roles including both operations and logistics associates. Experience, he says, is less important than conscientiousness and a good attitude, as they will train their new hires in-house.

And Milkify is about to receive more attention than ever with its appearance on “Shark Tank.” “Getting on a national stage to share our story was the main motivation for it,” says Luck. That translates to both education about the potential for freeze-drying breast milk, and about Milkify’s unique model.

“We started this business as a labor of love. It wasn’t just a financial reason,” says Silva. “This can actually help a lot of people. This is a way to spread the word.” And in the process, help countless moms and babies.

Berkley Luck and Pedro Silva — the wife and husband team behind Milkify — appear on Shark Tank this Friday. Photo courtesy of Milkify

Sugar Land-based Fish Fixe floated their seafood delivery service on Shark Tank last year. Photo via Shark Tank

After catching a deal on Shark Tank, these Houston-area fish foodies swim toward more funding

reeling in cash

The benefits of working more fish into your diet are as endless as the vast ocean itself, but going about buying and cooking fish is an expensive and daunting process.

Houstonians Melissa Harrington and Emily Castro thought they could help and launched Fish Fixe in 2017 to tackle these challenges and bring high quality seafood direct to consumers. Fish Fixe delivers seafood with easy-to-access instructions on storage and thawing — plus cooking recipes that take around 20 minutes.

The duo launched the company in 2017 and appeared on the 13th season of Shark Tank last year. In 2020, with more people avoiding grocery stores and restaurants, they saw a 400-percent increase in sales. They pitched asking for $200,000 in investment. Lori Greiner, the "queen of QVC," took the bait — and 25 percent equity.

“COVID-19, which forced more people to eat at home and adopt direct-to-consumer services, and Shark Tank were both spring boards for our sales, and through these events we've been able to retain many customers,” says Harrington.

In order to sustain this growth and provide more opportunities to scale, Harrington and Castro put the Shark Tank investment into their distribution line and moved everything into a centralized distribution center which replenishes distribution centers in other parts of the country.

“By late Q2, we will have four distribution centers that can hit 99 percent of the US in less than two days,” says Harrington.

Up next, Harrington and Castro have their sights set on the customer experience and the content space, which they hope to support with some outside funding.

“We are going to go raise some money because we truly feel that with the right resources we can scale and serve more people and spread the message,” says Harrington. “The hard work, we kind of feel like, has already been done in the setup and now it’s time to go have fun and go market, which is really fun.”

Prior to Fish Fixe, Harrington and Castro both worked in food and beverage. Harrington worked in the live lobster business and sold lobsters to high-end Houston restaurants and HEB. Castro worked in wine and spirits and managed a team of 50 sales professionals. Leveraging that depth of experience, they were able to bring Fish Fixe from concept to market in 90 days.

Breathe easy. HiccAway relieves hiccups instantly. HiccAway/Instagram

Texas doctor dives into Shark Tank with invention that stops hiccups

shark bait

Humans are weird. Take, as a perfect example, the phenomenon of hiccups — the sudden and involuntary spasm of the diaphragm muscle between regular breaths. All humans experience them, and so do other mammals and even amphibians. But we’re guessing other animals don’t approach treating hiccups in the wacky ways humans do.

For instance, some less-than-successful hiccup remedies of lore include sipping water upside down (and subsequently trying to not drown), holding one’s breath for a long time (and often hiccupping throughout the hold anyway), sucking on a peppermint, gagging oneself or pulling on the tongue, and even gobbling up a spoonful of peanut butter to help change the breathing and swallowing pattern.

The truth is those ideas are mostly a waste of breath. Luckily, one San Antonio doctor has invented a device that supposedly instantly relieves hiccups — and his invention is getting so much attention that he’s even hooked a chance to pitch the product on a new episode of ABC’s entrepreneurial-focused reality show, Shark Tank.

Dr. Ali Seifi, a neurointensivist at UT Health San Antonio and the inventor of the aptly named HiccAway, will appear on an episode of Shark Tank that airs tonight, January 21 at 7 pm.

HiccAway, a straw-like device that a hiccup sufferer uses to sip water through, is likely to wow the sharks — maybe even take their breath away? — as it is the world’s first scientifically proven medical product that safely relieves hiccups.

In fact, HiccAway was recently the subject of an article in JAMA Network Open, a publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association Network. The article addresses a four-month cross-sectional study of 249 participants from multiple countries that found that HiccAway stopped hiccups in almost 92 percent of cases and was rated a heck of a lot more favorably than home remedies.

“I believe that the science behind our product is what makes our product trustworthy and reliable. There are many hiccup remedies that are all hit and miss with no exact science to them,” Seifi says. “Some healthcare products claim they can cure a medical condition, but they don’t have scientific backup to support the product. I can confidently state that HiccAway is one of the few products on Shark Tank so far with a strong published research study as a backup.”

While hiccups are simply an annoyance for most of us, they can also be chronic for patients with cancer, meningitis, multiple sclerosis, stroke, traumatic brain or thoracic injury, and even for patients who have had surgery that requires anesthesia.

“After I witnessed my own neurology patients suffering from hiccups without an effective treatment, I was inspired to develop a safe and effective device that would be simple to use and easily available to all people,” Seifi says. “When you forcefully sip water through the device, it keeps the phrenic and vagus nerves occupied, so they don’t have enough time to cause unwanted spasms in the diaphragm. This interruption stops the hiccups.”

While the HiccAway device is already available to purchase through hiccaway.com and on Amazon, as well as at walmart.com and even in H-E-B stores throughout South Texas and at heb.com, Shark Tank (which boasts a viewing audience of about 7 million) could propel HiccAway and Seifi into a new realm of entrepreneurial success.

“For me, the experience was surreal,” says Victor Fehlberg, president and CEO of Higher Innovations Inc., which manufactures and distributes HiccAway from the Denver area. “It took so long to prepare, so much time was spent waiting, that when the pitch and appearance were finally recorded, it went too fast. It was like I was dreaming because it had been so long in the making.”

The Shark Tank appearance is likely a dream come true for Seifi and the HiccAway team — and a total breath of fresh air for the hiccup-suffering public.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Tyla-Simone Crayton got a big boost from Kendra Scott on Shark Tank. Photo courtesy of Shark Tank

Houston-area teen scores golden investment from Kendra Scott on Shark Tank

teen-trepreneur

A17-year-old entrepreneur from Missouri City has struck gold with her business, thanks to a Texas-based jewelry superstar.

Tyla-Simone Crayton, who is CEO of her wing-style sauce company Sienna Sauce, scored a $100,000 investment for her business on a recent episode of Shark Tank.

Austin-based jewelry and design maven, Kendra Scott, a guest on the show, took a chance on the Houston-area teen. In return, Scott, who boasts a billion-dollar brand, nets 20 percent of Crayton's company.

"I was so impressed with Tyla-Simone's creativity and drive during her pitch in the tank," Scott tells CultureMap. "As a fellow female entrepreneur and Texan, I'm excited to see our partnership grow."

Crayton first created her own wing-style sauce when she was a mere 8 years old. She and her family, who originally hail from Brooklyn, New York, started selling wings out of their Sienna Plantation home (hence the company name) and quickly hatched a plan for a business. She launched Sienna Sauce when she was 14.

"I would wake up Sunday mornings, hand-bottle the sauce, package it, and then sell it to my local community," Crayton told CultureMap news partner ABC13. "Once I got enough money from that, we were able to go to a professional manufacturer and get my sauce manufactured."

In the episode, Crayton credited Shark Tank for inspiring her to start a business and even harked to a time when her family was homeless. The Sharks were visibly moved and impressed; Scott praised the young entrepreneur, calling her "amazing," declaring, "I am the Shark for you," and promising help with distribution, shelf space, and more.

Sienna Sauce is available in three flavors: tangy, lemon pepper, and spicy. Currently, Clayton's products are available on Amazon and in more than 70 independent stores and chains across Texas and the U.S. — including five H-E-B stores in the Houston area.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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Intuitive Machines secures $175M equity investment to fuel growth

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Houston-based space infrastructure and services company Intuitive Machines has secured a $175 million equity investment from unidentified institutional investors. The investors received shares of Class A stock in exchange for their funding.

Publicly held Intuitive Machines (Nasdaq: LUNR) says it plans to use the capital to help build revenue and invest in technology, including communications and data-processing networks.

“We are building a scalable infrastructure platform from low-Earth orbit to the moon and into deep space,” Intuitive Machines CEO Steve Altemus said in a news release. “With this investment, we can accelerate the integration of the combined company’s collective capabilities to deliver next-generation data, communications, and space-based infrastructure services.”

Intuitive Machines says the $175 million investment will improve its ability to secure deals for satellite systems, the proposed Golden Dome missile defense system and the proposed Mars telecommunications orbiter.

As the company pursues those deals, it’s seeking partners to develop space-based data centers.

The $175 million equity stake comes on the heels of Intuitive Machines completing its $800 million cash-and-stock purchase of Lanteris Space Systems. Intuitive Machines bought the satellite manufacturer from private equity firm Advent International.

In the third quarter, which ended Sept. 30, Intuitive Machines posted a $10 million net loss on revenue of $52.4 million.

Rice to revolutionize lymphatic disease research and more news to know

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Editor's note: We're looking back at the five biggest innovation headlines from the second half of February 2026, which include exciting Rice research advancements and Apple doubling down on production in Houston. Below are the five most-read InnovationMap stories from Feb. 16-28, 2026.

1. Rice University lands $18M to revolutionize lymphatic disease detection

Rice University scientists are pioneering two technologies to better diagnose and treat complex lymphatic anomalies. Photo via Getty Images.

An arm of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded $18 million to scientists at Rice University for research that has the potential to revolutionize how lymphatic diseases are detected and help increase survivability. Continue reading.

2. Tech giant Apple doubles down on Houston with new production facility

Apple doubles down on Houston with new production facility, training centerPhoto courtesy Apple.

Tech giant Apple announced that it will double the size of its Houston manufacturing footprint as it brings production of its Mac mini to the U.S. for the first time. The company plans to begin production of its compact desktop computer at a new factory at Apple’s Houston manufacturing site later this year. The move is expected to create thousands of jobs in the Houston area, according to Apple. Continue reading.

3. Houston startup debuts new drone for first responders

Paladin Drones has revealed its next-gen emergency response drone, Knighthawk 2.0. Photo courtesy Paladin.

Houston-based Paladin Drones has debuted Knighthawk 2.0, its new autonomous, first-responder drone. The drone aims to strengthen emergency response and protect first responders, the company said in a news release. “We’re excited to launch Knighthawk 2.0 to help build safer cities and give any city across the world less than a 70-second response time for any emergency,” said Divyaditya Shrivastava, CEO of Paladin. Continue reading.

4. XSpace adds 3 Houston partners to fuel national expansion

XSpace, an innovative commercial real estate company, has partnered with three Houston firms to help grow its footprint. Rendering via xspacegroup.com

Texas-based XSpace Group has brought onboard three partners from the Houston area to ramp up the company’s national expansion. The new partners of XSpace, which sells high-end multi-use commercial condos, are KDW, Pyek Financial and Welcome Wilson Jr. Houston-based KDW is a design-build real estate developer, Katy-based Pyek offers fractional CFO services and Wilson is president and CEO of Welcome Group, a Houston real estate development firm. Continue reading.

5. Houston doctor wins NIH grant to test virtual reality for ICU delirium

Dr. Hina Faisal will test the effects of VR games on patients coming out the ICU, thanks to a recent NIH grant. Photo via Getty Images.

Think of it like a reverse version of The Matrix. A person wakes up in a hospital bed and gets plugged into a virtual reality game world in order to heal. While it may sound far-fetched, Dr. Hina Faisal, a Houston Methodist critical care specialist in the Department of Surgery, was recently awarded a $242,000 grant from the National Institute of Health to test the effects of VR games on patients coming out of major surgery in the intensive care unit (ICU). Continue reading.

Houston startup debuts bio-based 'leather' fashion collection in Milan

sustainable fashion

Earlier this month, Houston-based Rheom Materials and India’s conscious design studio Econock unveiled a collaborative capsule collection that signaled more than just a product launch.

Hosted at Lineapelle—long considered the global epicenter of the world's premier leather supply chain—in the vaulted exhibition halls of Rho-Fiera Milano, the collection centered around Rheom’s 91 percent bio-based leather alternative, Shorai.

It was a bold move, one that shifted sustainability from a concept discussed in panel sessions to garments that buyers could touch and wear.

The collection featured a bomber-style jacket, an asymmetrical skirt and a suite of accessories—all fabricated from Shorai.

The standout piece, a sculptural jacket featuring a funnel neck and dual-zip closure, was designed for movement, challenging assumptions about performance limitations in bio-based materials. The design of the asymmetrical skirt was drawn from Indian armored warrior traditions, according to Rheom, with biodegradable corozo fasteners.

Built as a modular wardrobe rather than isolated pieces, the collection reflects a shared belief between Rheom and Econock in designing objects that adapt to daily life, according to the companies.

The collection was born out of a new partnership between Rheom and Econock, focused on bringing biobased materials to the market. According to Rheom, the partnership solves a problem that has stalled the adoption of many next-gen textiles: supply chain friction.

While Rheom focuses on engineering scalable bio-based materials, New Delhi-based Econock brings the complementary design and manufacturing ecosystem that integrates artisans, circular materials and production expertise to translate the innovative material into finished goods.

"This partnership removes one of the biggest barriers brands face when adopting next-generation materials,” Megan Beck, Rheom’s director of product, shared in a news release. “By reducing friction across the supply chain, Rheom can connect brands directly with manufacturers who already know how to work with Shorai, making the transition to more sustainable materials far more accessible.”

Sanyam Kapur, advisor of growth and impact at Econock, added: “Our partnership with Rheom Materials represents the benchmark of responsible design where next-gen materials meet craft, creativity, and real-world scalability.”

Rheom, formerly known as Bucha Bio, has developed Shorai, a sustainable leather alternative that can be used for apparel, accessories, car interiors and more; and Benree, an alternative to plastic without the carbon footprint. In 2025, Rheom was a finalist for Startup of the Year in the Houston Innovation Awards.

Shorai is already used by fashion lines like Wuxly and LuckyNelly, according to Rheom. The company scaled production of the sugar-based material last year and says it is now produced in rolls that brands can take to market with the right manufacturer.

Houston startup debuts leather alternative fashion collection in Milan
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