Houston startup designing emergency response drones lands $5.2M in seed funding

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Paladin’s AI-enhanced autonomous drones help public safety agencies, such as police and fire departments, respond to 911 calls. Photo via paladindrones.io

Houston-based Paladin, whose remotely controlled drones help first responders react quickly to emergencies, has collected $5.2 million in seed funding.

Gradient, a seed fund that backs AI-oriented startups, led the round. Also participating were Toyota Ventures, the early-stage VC arm of Japanese automaker Toyota; venture capital firm Khosla Ventures; and VC fund 1517.

“We believe Paladin will drive meaningful change in public safety and redefine how communities are served,” Gradient said in an announcement about the seed round.

In 2019, Paladin received $1.3 million in seed funding from Khosla Ventures and Gmail creator Paul Buchheit, a group partner at Y Combinator. In 2018, the year it was co-founded by Divyaditya Shrivastava and Trevor Pennypacker, Paladin graduated from Y Combinator’s three-month boot camp.

Paladin’s AI-enhanced autonomous drones help public safety agencies, such as police and fire departments, respond to 911 calls. These drones provide aerial views of emergency scenes in an effort to decrease response times, improve “situational awareness,” and save lives, according to a Gradient blog post.

Among the agencies that have tried out Paladin’s technology is the Houston area’s Memorial Villages Police Department. The department participated in a three-month Paladin pilot project in 2019.

"(This is) one of the first departments in the country to be testing this technology," Shrivastava told InnovationMap in 2019. "We're very limited in the area that we cover, and that's just because we're taking baby steps and going as carefully and deliberately as possible."

Gradient says more than 12,000 drone missions have been performed using Paladin’s hardware and software platform. Agencies that have adopted the platform report average response times under 90 seconds. Furthermore, the technology has allowed them to resolve nearly one-third of 911 calls without dispatching first responders.

“Paladin keeps innovating, recently launching Payload Drop, a groundbreaking feature that enables drones to deliver lifesaving equipment — such as Narcan, life vests, and AEDs — directly to emergency scenes,” says Gradient.

On its website, Paladin says it envisions autonomous drones responding to every 911 call in the U.S. by 2027.

“The information is paramount, the technology exists and is rapidly improving, and the need is there. We want to help,” Paladin proclaims.

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This Houston company has rolled out its expansion plans following a $20 million series A. Photo via ridekolors.com

Houston smart bus platform raises $26M to expand operations in Mexico and beyond

money moves

A Houston-based company that's using tech and data to provide its intercity bus network has announced $26 million in funding.

Kolors has announced the close of its $20 million series A financing round led by UP.Partners with participation from Maniv Mobility, Toyota Ventures, K5 Global, Mazapil — plus contribution from existing investors Tuesday Capital, Garret Camp's Expa, Chris Sacca's Lowercase, Moving Capital, MGV, Brainstorm Ventures, Bling Capital and Amplifica. The round, which brings the company's total investment raised to $26 million, will allow Kolors to grow in Mexico, expand into new Latin American markets, and enable cross-border US travel.

The company has created a "smart-bus-platform," which is defined as being a combination of airline and ridesharing style technology. The service includes attendants superpowered by technology, according to a news release.

"Kolors is redefining the experience of intercity travel. We are thrilled to see Kolors advancing in Mexico and bringing its phenomenal service to other parts of Latin America in the coming months this year," says Ally Warson, partner of UP.Partners. "Kolors is thinking about the next phase for intercity bus travel and intends to design an ecosystem that prioritizes the passenger while providing more profitable and climate-friendly outcomes for bus operators."

The company's business model doesn't include owning its own fleet of vehicles, instead partnering with small and medium-sized bus operators. These partners are only responsible for driving the bus — Kolors does everything else, including route optimization, virtual stops, scheduling, pricing, marketing, sales, customer service, and more.

"Kolors is disrupting a mode of transportation that's often overlooked but relied upon by billions of people worldwide," says Jim Adler, founding managing director of Toyota Ventures, in the release. "There's a huge opportunity to advance intercity bus travel with higher efficiency, cleaner energy , and superior passenger experience. Kolors is at the forefront of this transformation."

Service is at the forefront for Kolors, says Rodrigo Martínez, founder and CEO of the company. Passengers can expect on-board WiFi services and snacks and drinks — plus a completely redesigned in-cabin experience is in the works, per the release.

"As a third-generation bus operator, I know intercity bus travel is the lifeblood of LATAM," says Martínez in the release. "The opportunity to provide our passengers with an elevated bus platform will bring a better and affordable travel experience. Our buses run on data and our learnings have already enabled us to devise an effective strategy to address and reduce emissions across the global intercity transportation industry."

Efficiency is also on the roadmap for Kolors, which was founded by Martinez and Anca Gardea in 2020 amid the pandemic. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, 85 percent of transportation sector emissions are related to the surface transportation system, the release states. Kolors is working toward a fleet of electric vehicles.

"We have followed Kolors since the beginning, and considering they started at the height of the pandemic, the growth they've had is astounding. Transporting millions of passengers in such a short period of time speaks volumes about their tenacity and potential as a team and company, says Jake Wieseneck, principal at Maniv Mobility, in the release.

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$5B Austin medical center, anchored by MD Anderson, to break ground this fall

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Construction on the $1 billion first phase of the AI-native University of Texas Dell Medical Center in Austin—which will feature a hospital operated by Houston’s UT MD Anderson Cancer Center—is set to start this fall.

The UT System Board of Regents approved funding for first-phase construction on Aug. 12.

The medical center—now expected to cost $5 billion, up from the initial $2.9 billion estimate—will span about 2.5 million square feet. It will include 300 to 500 patient beds, outpatient facilities, an emergency department and specialized care for cancer patients.

MD Anderson will bring its world-renowned oncology programs to the center’s integrated health care model, Dr. Claudia Lucchinetti, senior vice president of medical affairs at UT Austin and dean of the university’s Dell Medical School, tells Health Leaders.

Earlier this year, Austin tech billionaire Michael Dell and his wife, Susan, pledged $750 million for development of the medical center. The medical center, scheduled for completion in December 2030, will be a cornerstone of the new 300-acre UT Dell Campus for Advanced Research, a medical education and research hub.

“Through this new campus and medical center, Texas will lead America in health care innovation,” Gov. Greg Abbott said when the research campus was announced in April. “The next generation of medical breakthroughs will take place in Central Texas.”

The medical center will fold AI tools and other technology into the infrastructure, rather than having them added after it’s built. Among other capabilities, the technology will monitor real-time medical data, automate data entry, and help health care professionals quickly predict and identify risks to patients, according to Health Leaders.

“We are not just building a new medical center,” Lucchinetti says. “We are building a fundamentally new model of health. It’s not just a new facility. It’s not just a new collaboration. It is a convergence of capabilities that rarely come together at the same time.”

Houston hospital ranks among 20 best in U.S. & more top innovation news

Trending News

Editor's note: August is off to a strong start with these five big innovation headlines to know. From the annual U.S. News ranking of best hospitals to a big Series A raise, here are the most-read Houston innovation stories published July 31-August 14, 2026:

1. U.S. News declares Houston hospital No. 1 in Texas for the 15th year

Houston Methodist Hospital and over a dozen more Houston-area hospitals have earned bragging rights in U.S. Houston Methodist was also the only Texas institution named on U.S. News' Best Hospitals Honor Roll, a prestigious list of the 20 best medical centers in the country. Houston Methodist also reigns as Texas' best hospital for the 15th consecutive year. Continue reading.

2. Houston startup lands $10M to power up electrician staffing platform

Houston-based Buildforce, which provides a tech-enabled staff platform geared toward electricians and electrical contractors, has raised a $10 million Series A round led by Houston’s Saepio Capital. Other investors in the round include Blue Heron Capital, Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, S3 Ventures and Chicago Ventures. Buildforce says the funding will help fuel its national expansion and further development of its technology. Continue reading.

3. UTHealth Houston joins NASA initiative to protect border drinking water

Climate change means far more to public health than living with hotter days. Transformations in our weather are contributing to challenges in accessing safe drinking water in some communities. One of the most dire situations is along the US–Mexico border. NASA is seeking to address that issue with its Water Quality Applications program. An 11-researcher project led by a UTHealth Houston School of Public Health faculty member has been selected to participate. Continue reading.

4. KBR unveils name, branding for new government services spinoff

Houston-based KBR Inc.'s new Mission Technology Solutions unit officially has a name. The previously announced government services spinoff, which until now has been nicknamed SpinCo, will now be known as Trinzic. The company said in a news release that the name was inspired by the word intrinsic, "reflecting essential, built-in capabilities and deep expertise operating in some of the world’s most complex and mission-critical environments." Continue reading.

5. Who are Houston's top innovators? Nominate now for 2026 Houston Innovation Awards

Calling all Houston innovators: The 2026 Houston Innovation Awards, presented by InnovationMap, return this fall to celebrate the best and brightest in the Houston innovation ecosystem right now. We're asking you to nominate Houston's top innovators and startups for this year's awards. Nominations are open through August 27 and can be made on behalf of yourself, your organization, and other influential leaders in the local innovation scene. Continue reading.

Rice lands $15M U.S. Army award to launch next-gen wireless research center

defense funding

The U.S. Army Research Office has awarded Rice University $15 million to establish a new center for next-generation sensing and communications.

The five-year research center—dubbed the Center for Large Aperture Secure Sensing, Imaging and Communications (CLASSIC)—will unite researchers from universities and national laboratories to develop advanced antenna technologies for future wireless systems. Edward Knightly, the Sheafor-Lindsay Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rice, will lead the center that “combines expertise in wireless networking, antennas, radar, artificial intelligence, circuits and physics to address growing demands on wireless systems,” according to Rice.

“The challenges we’re tackling require advances that span physics, hardware, communications and computing," Knightly said in a news release. “By combining those strengths in a single center, we can accelerate the development and demonstration of technologies that would not be possible through individual efforts alone.”

Joining Knightly will be Ashutosh Sabharwal of Rice, Sensen Li of the University of Texas at Austin, Hou-Tong Chen of Los Alamos National Laboratory, Danijela Cabric of UCLA, Josep M. Jornet and Tommaso Melodia of Northeastern University, Daniel M. Mittleman of Brown University, and Willie Padilla of Duke University.

Industry partners include Booz Allen Hamilton, Intel, Keysight, Lockheed Martin, MITRE, Northrop Grumman, Qualcomm and Raytheon.

CLASSIC researchers will investigate how large-scale antenna arrays (ELSAAs) can expand the capabilities of wireless systems where technology is limited.

ELSAAs use thousands of coordinated antenna elements to direct radio waves. Researchers aim to develop ways to use the technology to help maintain steady communication when signals are blocked or disrupted and to detect and generate detailed images of concealed objects.

Along with ELSAAs, the center will work to develop sensing techniques for threat detection, study wireless jamming and build resilient high-speed wireless networks. Researchers will ultimately validate the technology in labs and via drone-based field trials.

CLASSIC will also work on developing an AI-driven modeling framework that will simulate complex electromagnetic environments in real time.

“This award demonstrates Rice’s leadership in tackling complex national research challenges through collaboration across disciplines and institutions,” David Sholl, executive vice president for research at Rice, added in the release.

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