Houston incubator announces merger with local nonprofit

teamwork

Grace Rodriguez, CEO and executive director of Impact Hub Houston, and Jeff Reichman, founder of Sketch City, have announced a partnership between their organizations. Photos courtesy

Two Houston organizations that have partnered for three years to provide a platform for innovation and ideation have announced a more formalized partnership.

Impact Hub Houston, a global impact innovation incubator, and Sketch City, a nonprofit focused on advancing technology and data in public decision making and social good, have announced the merger of Sketch City into a new initiative under Impact Hub Houston: Code for Houston.

"We're honored to continue Sketch City's work of connecting Houston's tech talent with civic innovation opportunities through Code for Houston," says Grace Rodriguez, CEO and executive director of Impact Hub Houston, in a news release. "From our response and recovery collaboration after Hurricane Harvey to our ongoing events that help diverse do-gooders and developers collaborate on and create impactful solutions for Houston, we have established a strong track record of effective #Tech4Good initiatives."

The two organizations have worked together to host Open Project Night and the Houston Hackathon over the past few years. Jeff Reichman, principal at Houston-based data science consulting firm January Advisors, founded Sketch City in 2016.

"We are so excited to join forces with Impact Hub Houston," Reichman says in the release. "Their mission is directly aligned with ours. Sketch City began as a way to connect people with shared interests in technology, data, and civic improvement. Within a few years, it has grown into a community of thousands of people who live all over the world."

The merger comes following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic — something Reichman says has led him to rethink how Sketch City operates.

"Merging Sketch City with Impact Hub Houston feels like a natural extension of the work we've done together; and it creates additional administrative capacity for programming and community growth," Reichman continues in the release. "Sketch City's efforts will continue under Impact Hub Houston's 'Code for Houston' initiative. I'm thrilled to be a part of that new chapter."

Sketch City and its initiatives will roll into Code for Houston, a new initiative under Impact Hub Houston that aligns with Code for America — a national organization that works with community organizations and governments to build digital tools, change policies, and improve public programs.

Code for Houston will streamline operations for Impact Hub Houston's annual hackathons, which includes the Houston Hackathon and Climathon Houston, as well as expand resources and support for Houston's changemakers and civic technologists who want to transform their ideas into viable triple-bottom-line businesses and impact ventures, per the release.

"We look forward to continuing Sketch City's legacy of strengthening and activating relationships between Houston's tech talent and diverse communities," Rodriguez continues.

Houston's seen the effect on climate change. Now, Impact Hub Houston is putting together a brainstorming event to find sustainable solutions. Getty Images

Houston organization to host a hackathon to find sustainable solutions to climate change

It's not easy being green

Houstonians are teaming up to put on a hackathon that will gather designers, developers, entrepreneurs, students, policymakers, and more to find sustainable solutions to climate change.

Impact Hub Houston is organizing Houston's fist Climathon for October 25. The local nonprofit is teaming up with global organizer EIT Climate-KIC, the City of Houston, Citizens' Environmental Coalition, Sketch City, January Advisors, Bunker Labs, WeWork Labs, Syzygy Plasmonics, and GoodFair.

"During Hurricane Harvey, we saw Houston's talent rise to these challenges and develop solutions that not only helped rescue, feed and shelter local Houstonians, but went on to help people in Florida and Puerto Rico," says Grace Rodriguez, CEO and executive director of Impact Hub Houston, in a news release. "We're excited to join the global Climathon challenge in order to give Houston's changemakers a platform to develop sustainable air, water, energy, etc., solutions and take them to the next level. In such a diverse city with so many resources, it seems only natural that Houston can help lead the way in developing local solutions that can scale to other contexts."

The city of Houston has seen its fair share of extreme weather as a result of climate change. The Energy Capital of the World among the highest per capita greenhouse gas emissions in the country, and mayor's office recently-announced Climate Action Plan to address the concerns of climate change.

"Houston has a lot to lose as the weather changes," says Jeff Reichman, founder of January Advisors and Sketch City, in the release. "We should be using our talents to elevate good ideas for our region, and to connect with one another for long-term collaborations."

The event will zero in on Houston's biggest emissions problems: transportation and commercial and residential buildings. The best ideas coming out of the Climathon will be sent to the international database for consideration for the global awards in Paris.

For more information and to register, view partnership opportunities, or sign up to volunteer, visit the website.

Ad Placement 300x100
Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Property Showcase

Global summit spotlights Houston's growing role in brain health, innovation

where to be

The Center for Houston’s Future and UTMB are bringing the Texas Brain Economy Summit back to Houston this summer to continue to position the region as a global leader in brain health.

The summit, held June 9-10 at the Texas Medical Center's Helix Park, will bring together more than 500 executives, researchers, policymakers and innovators from around the world to discuss the global brain economy.

Attendees can expect to hear from leaders of global institutions, including the World Economic Forum, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, McKinsey Health Institute, Global Brain Economy Initiative, Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative, Business Collaborative for Brain Health (UsAgainstAlzheimer’s), Rice University, Memorial Hermann, MD Anderson and many others.

Day 1 of the conference will focus on "Enabling Human Flourishing & Economic Growth." Day 2 will focus on "Scaling Innovation & AI Solutions in the Brain Economy."

Keynotes will be delivered by:

  • Lexi Branson, vice president of health policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
  • Kana Enomoto, director of the McKinsey Health Institute
  • Megan Henshall, founder of Google Experience Institute (Xi)
  • Ryan Howard, co-lead of Google Experience Institute (Xi)
  • Dr. Hani Jneid, John Sealy Distinguished Centennial Chair in Cardiology and vice president of cardiovascular operations at UTMB
  • Steve Kean, president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership
  • Dan Patrick, Lieutenant Governor of Texas
  • Jochen Reiser, president of UTMB
  • Thomas Seitz, senior partner of the McKinsey Health Institute

Other significant speakers include:

  • Rym Ayadi, founder and president of the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA) and co-founder of the Brain Capital Alliance
  • Arthur Evans, CEO and executive vice president of the American Psychological Association
  • David Gow, president and CEO of the Center for Houston’s Future (Gow is the founder and chairman of Gow Media, InnovationMap's parent company)
  • Bill McKeon, president and CEO of the Texas Medical Center
  • Jeff Merritt, head of urban transformation at the World Economic Forum
  • Joanne Pike, president and CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association
  • George Vradenburg, founding chairman of Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative and co-founder, chairman and CEO of Us Against Alzheimer’s

The event is supported through Project Metis, which was launched by the Center for Houston’s Future last year. Led by Rice Brain Institute, The University of Texas Medical Branch's Moody Brain Health Institute and Memorial Hermann’s comprehensive neurology care department, the initiative aims to advance the understanding, prevention and treatment of the brain. It was developed on the heels of Texas voters overwhelmingly approving a ballot measure to launch the $3 billion, state-funded Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT).

“Texas voters, by approving the state-funded Dementia Prevention Institute, have shown a strong commitment to brain health, as scientific advances continue daily. [Project Metis] aims to harness the Houston region’s unique strengths: its concentration of leading medical and academic institutions, a vibrant innovation ecosystem, and a history of entrepreneurial leadership in health and life sciences,” Gow said at the time.

Learn more about The Texas Brain Economy Summit and purchase tickets here.

Texas solar power poised to surpass coal for the first time in 2026

Powering Texas

Solar power promises to shine even brighter in Texas this year.

A new forecast from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) indicates that for the first time, annual power generation from utility-scale solar will surpass annual power generation from coal across the territory covered by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).

Solar generation is expected to reach 78 billion kilowatt-hours in 2026 in the ERCOT grid, compared with 60 billion kilowatt-hours for coal, the EIA forecast says. The ERCOT grid supplies power to about 90 percent of Texas, including the Houston area.

“Utility-scale solar generation has been increasing steadily in ERCOT as solar capacity additions help meet rapid electricity demand growth,” the forecast says.

Although natural gas remains the dominant source of electricity generation in ERCOT, accounting for an average 44 percent of electricity generation from 2021 to 2025, solar’s share of the generation mix rose from four percent to 12 percent. During the same period, coal’s share dropped from 19 percent to 13 percent.

EIA predicts about 40 percent of U.S. solar capacity, or 14 billion kilowatt-hours, added in 2026 will come from Texas.

Although EIA expects annual solar generation to exceed annual coal generation in 2026, solar surpassed coal in ERCOT on a monthly basis for the first time in March 2025, when solar generation totaled 4.33 billion kilowatt-hours and coal’s totaled 4.16 billion kilowatt-hours. Solar generation continued to exceed that of coal until August of that year.

“In 2026, we estimate that solar exceeded coal for the first time in March, and we forecast generation from solar installations in ERCOT will continue to exceed that from coal until December, when coal generation exceeds solar,” says EIA. “We expect solar generation to exceed that of coal for every month in 2027 except January and December.”

For 2027, EIA forecasts annual solar generation of 99 billion kilowatt-hours in the ERCOT grid, compared with 66 billion kilowatt-hours of annual coal generation.

In April, ERCOT projected almost 368 billion kilowatt-hours of demand in ERCOT’s territory by 2032. ERCOT’s all-time peak demand hit 85.5 billion kilowatt-hours in August 2023.

“Texas is experiencing exceptional growth and development, which is reshaping how large load demand is identified, verified, and incorporated into long-term planning,” ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas said. “As a result of a changing landscape, we believe this forecast to be higher than expected … load growth.”

---

This article first appeared on EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

Intuitive Machines strikes $49.3M deal to expand lunar communications network

space deal

Houston-based Intuitive Machines is bulking up its space-to-ground data network with the acquisition of United Kingdom-based Goonhilly Earth Station and its U.S. arm, COMSAT.

The $49.3 million cash-and-stock deal would add 44 antennas to Intuitive Machines’ network. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter.

Intuitive Machines, a space infrastructure and services company, designs, builds, and operates spacecraft and data networks for lunar and deep-space missions. Goonhilly operates a satellite Earth station in Cornwall, England.

Intuitive Machines says Goonhilly’s and COMSAT’s civil, commercial, and government customers will complement its current customer base and broaden its reach into related sectors.

“Customers have been clear that they want a single, integrated, and resilient solution for their communications and [position, navigation, and timing] needs as they accelerate missions at an unprecedented pace,” Steve Altemus, co‑founder and CEO of Intuitive Machines, said in a news release.

Kenn Herskind, executive chairman of Goonhilly, says the acquisition “will allow us to scale that capability globally and directly support the next era of lunar exploration. Together, we will be creating a commercial lunar communications network that is interoperable, resilient, and ready to support Artemis and international missions.”
View All Listings