Editor's note: As 2021 comes to a close, InnovationMap is looking back at the year's top stories in Houston innovation. When it came to energy innovation and technology — from overheard energy execs to the grand opening of Greentown Houston — in Houston, five stories trended among readers.
Overheard: Houston innovators discuss ESG, energy transition, cleantech and more at SXSW
The city's top power players within Houston's energy innovation ecosystem joined virtual SXSW to weigh in on hot topics — from ESG to the future of the industry's workforce. Photos courtesy
The first day of SXSW 2021 — a virtual edition of the Austin-based conference — is on the books, and Houston innovators were no strangers to attendees' screens thanks to Houston House put on by the Greater Houston Partnership.
Day one of the two days of programming focused on all things energy — power storage, corporate venture, ESG, the future of the workforce, and so much more — with interviews hosted by me, Natalie Harms, editor of InnovationMap. Click here to read the full article.
Houston CEO talks augmented reality, diversity, how it will all play a role in the energy transition
Stephanie Hertzog, CEO of Houston-based Sodexo, shares how she's embracing diversity and innovation within the energy industry. Photo courtesy of Sodexo
When Stephanie Hertzog first started her role as CEO of Houston-based Sodexo Energy & Resources North America in the fall of 2019, she was on the road every week visiting some of the facility management company's 100 million customers.
"I actually had a conversation with my assistant in early March, and said, 'Okay, our goal is that by April, I not be on the road every week. Let's try to get this to at least every other week,'" she recalls. Shortly after, the world changed, and by March 10 she halted all travel and was forced to lead her company to innovate in more ways than one.
"When we think about innovation, we often think about technology, but we've had to innovate so much in the last 12 months, in how we do everything," she says. "We've really asked a lot of our teams over the last year in regard to having to rethink how they do things and be innovative and adapt."
To Hertzog, it's this adaptation and innovation she's seen in the last year that will allow her industry to support an energy transition and, as she says, "preserve" beyond the pandemic and inevitable future downturns. Click here to read the full article.
Photos: Greentown Labs opens its doors in Houston
Mayor Sylvester Turner, Greentown Labs CEO Emily Reichert, and other guests celebrated the grand opening of Greentown Houston on Earth Day. Photo by Lee Bond/Greentown Labs
On a day that was years in the making, Greentown Labs opened the doors to its new Houston outpost in Midtown yesterday on Earth Day.
The Greentown Houston grand opening event, which was steamed online with limited in-person and outdoor attendance, celebrated the organization's first location outside Somerville, Massachusetts.
"This is a tremendous, tangible milestone not only for Greentown Labs but also for the City of Houston and the energy transition," says Dr. Emily Reichert, CEO of Greentown Labs, in a news release. "Five years ago, climate change wasn't a topic among many conversations in Houston. Things have changed.
"Today, we are so proud to open our second-ever location in the energy capital of the world and we're eager to accelerate the energy transition over the next 10 years," she continues. "Houston is buzzing with incredible climatetech startups, world-leading energy organizations, and a thriving investment community. At Greentown Houston, we aim to bring the ecosystem together and collaborate toward our decarbonized future."Click here to read the full article.
Click here to read another trending article this year:
Overheard: Houston's energy sector welcomes Greentown Labs
Houston investor launches fund to fuel early-stage energy transition startups
Ahmad Atwan founded VC Fuel in Houston to fund the future of the energy transition. Photo courtesy of VC Fuel
When Ahmad Atwan decided he was going to launch a venture capital fund focused on early-stage energy transition startups, Houston was a no brainer. But while there are similar funds on each of the coasts, Atwan learned that VC Fuel's concept was going to be kind of niche for Houston.
"We're the only early stage climate tech or energy transition firm in Houston right now, which is really surprising," Atwan tells InnovationMap, explaining that the Bay Area is home to dozens of these funds and there are even more on the East Coast. "I'm hoping there'll be more (similar funds in Houston), but it's also kind of a nice position to be in."
Atwan shares more about VC Fuel and the $100 million fund, which he's still raising for while also investing in a few startups at the same time, in an interview with InnovationMap. He also discusses how his expertise as a former founder and former private equity investor with Morgan Stanley and BlackRock makes him an opportune value-add investor. Click here to read the full article.
Houston energy startup acquired by growing tech company
Trent Crow, founder and president (left), and Paul Paras, founder and vice president, and the rest of the Real Simple Energy team have moved over to Arcardia with the acquisition. Photo courtesy of Real Simple Energy
February's massive winter weather disaster underscored the fragile availability and volatile cost of electricity in the Houston area and throughout Texas. Just a month after the calamity, a Washington, D.C.-based company has scooped up Houston-based Real Simple Energy to help put power back in the hands of electricity consumers in Texas.
Arcadia, a tech company that connects U.S. homeowners and renters to renewable energy, said March 17 that it had purchased Real Simple Energy. Terms of the deal for the three-year-old startup weren't disclosed.
Real Simple Energy's automated platform matches power usage with the lowest rates in the Texas marketplace to reduce electric bills. The company manages all facets of a customer's monthly power bills.
Trent Crow, co-founder and CEO of Real Simply Energy, says all eight of the company's employees have moved over to Arcadia and more workers will be hired soon. The company has maintained a mix of office and remote workers. Arcadia will look for Houston office space later this year, Crow says.
"Expansion plans include doing more of what we're doing now and offering more features for customers," says Crow, who now is Arcadia's general manager of energy services in Texas. Click here to read the full article.