Editor's note:Another week has come and gone, and it's time to round up the top headlines from the past few days. Trending Houston tech and startup news on InnovationMap included innovators to know, fastest growing Houston tech companies, a new energy transition leader, and more.
3 Houston innovators to know this week
This week's roundup of Houston innovators includes Aaron Knape of sEATz, Ivery Boston III of Houston Exponential, and Jesse Martinez of the LatinX Startup Alliance. Courtesy photos
In this week's roundup of Houston innovators to know, I'm introducing you to three local innovators across industries — from sportstech to startup-focused nonprofit work — recently making headlines in Houston innovation. Click here to read more.
International energy conference names 12 Houston companies to pitch at inaugural innovation track
Twelve Houston startups will pitch at the World Petroleum Congress, which will be hosted in Houston this year. Photo via Getty Images
A dozen Houston companies will take the stage next month for a pitch competition during the World Petroleum Congress at the George R. Brown Convention Center.
In all, 32 innovators have been selected to make presentations at the World Petroleum Congress' first-ever Innovation Zone. Presented by ConocoPhillips, the Innovation Zone will let startups showcase their solutions to challenges facing the energy sector. The winner of the pitch competition will receive the inaugural Energy Innovator Award. Click here to continue reading.
Houston native brings LatinX startup support to the Ion with HQ move
Jesse Martinez, founder of the LatinX Startup Alliance, joins InnovationMap for a Q&A on why he's relocating his nonprofit to Houston. Photo courtesy of LSA
Jesse Martinez was working in Silicon Valley before it was Silicon Valley. He took his years of experience within that tech ecosystem and launched the LatinX Startup Alliance to support his fellow Hispanic entrepreneurs — and now he's bringing that support to his hometown.
The LatinX Startup Alliance will move its headquarters into The Ion in 2022, Martinez tells InnovationMap. He's excited to finally make his professional return to Houston and to help support the diverse ecosystem — one that has been created with diversity at the forefront, unlike Silicon Valley and other coastal tech hubs.
"We're on the ground floor. We're helping to build that foundation. It's not an afterthought. It's not something that now we're trying to go back and think of diversity," Martinez tells InnovationMap. "I think that's the beautiful thing about Houston and everyone that I've met is that it's been so diverse and inclusive. That spirit is already there. So, how do we just maximize that?"
Martinez joined InnovationMap for a Q&A about the new HQ announcement and what he's excited about in terms of DEI in Houston's tech scene. Click here to continue reading.
Greater Houston Partnership names former BP exec to lead energy transition
The former BP executive will lead Houston's role in the energy transition as the executive director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, a brand new position at the Greater Houston Partnership. Photo courtesy of GHP
Jane Stricker, a longtime Houston-based executive at oil and gas giant BP, has been tapped to lead the Greater Houston Partnership's new initiative designed to boost the Bayou City's profile in the shift toward low-carbon energy.
The partnership announced Stricker's hiring November 11. She'll join the organization effective January 1 as executive director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI) and senior vice president of energy transition.
The Greater Houston Partnership unveiled HETI in June. As the partnership explained then, HETI "aims to drive sustainable and equitable economic growth in the Greater Houston region through a portfolio of technology, policy, and market initiatives that scale and export solutions for realizing a low-carbon energy world." Click here to continue reading.
3 Houston companies make Deloitte's fastest-growing tech list
Three Houston tech companies are seeing big business growth, according to Deloitte's report. Graphic via Deloitte
Three Houston companies have earned spots on this year's edition of the North American Technology Fast 500.
The North America Technology Fast 500, sponsored by professional services firm Deloitte, is an annual ranking of the fastest-growing tech, media, telecom, life sciences, and energy tech companies in North America.
"The Houston companies on this year's Fast 500 list are transforming the way our city does business by combining technological innovation with entrepreneurial spirit," Amy Chronis, Houston managing partner at Deloitte, says in a news release. "I'm inspired by the ways these organizations have succeeded amid unprecedented times, and I look forward to seeing their progress in 2022."
The top-ranked company is Irvine, California-based medical device company Axonics, whose revenue soared 87,037 percent from 2017 to 2020. The top-ranked Texas company is Austin-based Shipwell, where revenue climbed 32,670 percent from 2017 to 2020. Shipwell provides a shipment-tracking platform. Overall, 5 percent of the Fast 500 companies are based in Texas. Click here to continue reading.