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Houston in the News

What are major media outlets saying about Houston? The conversation about H-Town has evolved in recent years as awareness of the city's tremendous quality of life, emerging tech and innovation scene and other attributes has grown. The Partnership is working to expand the conversation around these key attributes that will help advance the region's economic growth. Read some of the recent stories about the nation's most diverse major city and the Partnership's efforts to steer its prosperity.

Fossil fuels built Houston into an energy capital. Can it lead the clean energy transition?

There's a new kind of energy in town to advance the transition to an energy-abundant, low-carbon future.

Houston metro area among the nation's top destinations for new corporate projects, report says

When it comes to landing corporate developments, Houston is among the top destinations in the country.

Houston ranks in top 10 for best housing markets for stability and growth, new report shows

The greater Houston housing market ranks among nation’s the top metropolitan areas in terms of growth and stability, according to a recent report by SmartAsset.

HPE Houston campus.jpg

Houston tech ecosystem ranks as No. 5 in the world for emerging startup hubs

In a new report from Startup Genome and the Global Entrepreneurship Network, Houston ranks fifth among the world’s top 100 emerging ecosystems for startups. Last year, the groups’ report put Houston at No. 19 in the same category.

Houston could become ‘epicenter of global clean hydrogen hub,’ report says

The region contains all the ingredients for a clean hydrogen market — clean power access, electricity-guzzling industries, and the existing network of production and pipelines — on a scale large enough to make Houston “the epicenter of a global clean hydrogen hub” that extends across Texas and the U.S. Gulf Coast, the Center for Houston’s Future laid out in a report released May 23.

Report: How Houston could gain, lose jobs in a clean energy transition

As the "energy capital of the world," Houston's overall employment is significantly impacted by the energy industry. New research is shedding light on how Houston's economy could be impacted if the city doesn't lean into an energy transition to become the energy capital of the future.

Inflation Reduction Act accelerates clean energy transition in the Houston area

The energy transition has accelerated in the Houston area in the past year as companies expand their presence in the region and plan new projects for solar, wind, hydrogen and carbon capture technologies.

The flurry of activity can be attributed to the region's place as the center of the U.S. energy industry and the existing infrastructure for transporting, refining and storing energy. But also playing a part in the uptick in activity has been the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the incentives it created for clean energy projects.

Report: Houston ranks in the top 10 life sciences markets in the U.S.

In assessing Houston’s strength in life sciences, CommercialCafe says that “the resilient Texas powerhouse was lifted by the wave of emerging life sciences clusters across the U.S.” Two major projects are helping Houston maintain that powerhouse status. The Texas Medical Center (TMC) last year unveiled TMC3, a 37-acre, roughly 6 million-square-foot life sciences campus, and Houston-based Hines recently topped out the 270,000-square-foot first phase of the 53-acre Levit Green life sciences district next to TMC.

TMC3 Aerial July 2022

Exxon to Move HQ to Houston, Merge Refining and Chemicals

Exxon Mobil Corp. will relocate its corporate headquarters to the Houston area from suburban Dallas and combine its chemical and refining divisions in a major shake-up aimed at reducing costs.

The City of the Future: Walkable, mid-sized and built for flexible work

Houston is using their assets and sharing that expertise to attract more development. The secondary intent is to become less of a high-traffic metro and more walkable by connecting this development to downtown.

Dear Austinites, you have permission to move to an affordable, weird city: Houston

You want live music? How about the world-class Houston Grand Opera, the symphony at Jones Hall, and Opera in the Heights? And if you’d prefer something more familiar to Austin sensibilities—a schlubby guy doing Oasis covers on his acoustic guitar, for example—may I suggest Hopdoddy Burger Bar in Rice Village? Moreover, Houston can claim genres of music almost totally lacking in Austin—think DJ Screw, or Paul Wall and the Southern rap spawned by Swisha House. Also, Beyoncé. 

Downtown Houston

fDi’s Global Cities of the Future 2021/22 — overall winners

Houston came in at No. 19 on 2021/22 fDi list, which ranks major global cities based on foreign direct investment. That’s up from No. 24 when the ranking was published in 2018/19. Houston was only one of two U.S. cities among the top 20 on the latest list, with New York ranking seventh. 

Intuitive Machines opens $40M production center at Houston Spaceport ahead of moon mission

Houston-based Intuitive Machines has completed its Lunar Operations and Production Center and is preparing to send its first lunar lander product to Florida in support of a NASA mission.

Houston's economic fate no longer solely tied to oil and gas, Moody's report says

Houston remains the energy capital of the country, but a new Moody Analytics report indicates the Bayou City has diversified its industry portfolio enough to no longer rely solely on oil and gas.

Chevron's offer to pay for staff to move to Houston signals growing focus on Texas

Chevron isn’t requiring employees to move to Texas, but its offer to cover employees’ relocation is another sign that Houston is a primary center of operations for the oil major.

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Economic Development

Houston House Spotlights Major Advancements in Tech and Innovation at SXSW

3/18/24
The Greater Houston Partnership returned to Austin to host Houston House at the 2024 South by Southwest conference, highlighting the strides made in technology and innovation within the city. Throughout the one-day program, discussions delved into the essence of collaboration as a driving force behind success in startups and industry advancement within the Houston region. Startups face formidable odds, with up to 90 percent failing within the first few years. However, the consensus among successful Houston startup founders and investors is clear: collaboration is key for scaling effectively. Sunny Zhang, Founder and Chief of True Leap, stressed the importance of cultivating diverse perspectives and networks, emphasizing to “surround yourself with different minded people in every spectrum to maximize your collective intelligence and your network.” Amidst the evolving landscape of remote work and the rapidly changing tech industry, startup CEOs prioritize fostering positive work cultures that revolve around strong team dynamics. This emphasis on collaboration ensures cohesion and resilience as companies navigate the challenges of scaling up effectively. Co-Founder and CEO of Hello Alice Carolyn Rodz shared fostering teamwork through shared responsibilities, even tasks like taking out the trash, binds teams together towards a common goal. Throughout the discussion, panelists consistently underscored the magnitude of activity burgeoning within Houston. From Greentown Labs and the Ion to the Texas Medical Center and Generation Park, Houston’s vast portfolio of thriving industries and innovation hubs have paved the way for opportunity and collaboration across sectors, driving growth and success in the region. “Houston has a cornucopia of opportunities for people looking to switch industries,” said Trevor Best, CEO of Syzygy Plasmonics. “There is a lot of overlap across industries. At Syzygy, we got people who come from the oil industry and aerospace who bring in different skill sets.” Yet, with growth comes the imperative of nurturing talent pipelines. Education leaders emphasized the need for community collaboration in preparing students for evolving industries. “If you look at low-income students in Texas, only 23 percent of students are completing secondary education," said Raj Salhotra, Executive Director of Momentum Education. “Most jobs require experience and education past high school. We have to build a pipeline to get people there.”  Houston House at SXSW 2024 showcased the region’s unwavering dedication to propelling its tech ecosystem forward, spotlighting its collaboration efforts and the groundbreaking advancements driving growth and innovation in the Bayou City. “There is a revolution happening in Houston, said Best. “There are signs pointing to a lot of success in the future. We are on the cusp of something huge.” View Houston House at SXSW Panel Recordings. 
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Digital Technology

innovateHOU: Why Digital Tech Startups Choose Houston

3/13/24
Houston’s tech scene has made many strides in recent years to set a foundation for startups to thrive, from founding to late stage, across industries. With a wealth of incubators coming online and a sharp uptick in venture capital funding, startups now have more landing spots and opportunity for growth in Houston than ever before.   We spoke to three tech startups about their experiences in Houston, including two that launched last year and one that recently relocated to Houston.   Envana Software Solutions Envana, a software-as-a-service company built to organize, model and forecast oil and gas industry emissions, has experienced tremendous growth since its launch in January 2023. The startup is a joint venture by Halliburton and Siguler Guff.  Envana's growth is marked by clients including the world’s second-largest oilfield services provider, national oil companies in APAC and Europe, and leading U.S. service providers. As the company prepares for future goals, Envana says it is looking not only to respond to demands within oil and gas, but to other energy sectors to help corporations manage their emissions.  “There’s no better place in the world for an oil and gas SaaS company to be based than Houston, Texas.  Houston is the ideal birth city for an energy startup.  For Envana –a Halliburton JV with private equity firm Siguler Guff– the city’s features, including access to investment capital, industry experts, and thought leadership in the evolving energy space, make it a prime geography. The number of energy companies based in Houston looking for innovative industry solutions is unparalleled elsewhere in the world.”  - Sally Lechin, Global Marketing, Envana  Allthenticate  Allthenticate describes itself as a cybersecurity startup on a mission to create seamless and efficient security solutions for companies via a smartphone application. The company is primarily focused on security at tech companies, though they intend to expand more of their presence to medtech and energy.   Allthenticate’s story began in 2012 as co-founder Dr. Chad Spensky pursued his PhD, eventually earning a job as a security researcher at MIT working to find gaps in security. Spensky and co-founder Rita Mounir teamed up at a startup competition at UC-Santa Barbara, taking first place and getting traction with early investors. The company was headquartered in Santa Barbara until 2022, when Spensky and his wife relocated to Houston. Allthenticate officially relocated to downtown later that year following a short stint in The Ion and learning of the many advantages the region offers as a hub for headquarters.  Allthenticate is going through another fundraising round following a $3.9 million round in 2022. The team says it remains focused on perfecting the hardware, software and application amid a rapidly changing list of security challenges, including deepfakes.  “As we’re pushing so many world’s firsts in our industry, I think our goal is to become the premier identity and access management company in the world. A lot of giants are trying to catch up, but I think we have an advantage here in what we’re doing and what we’ve built so far. In five years, I believe we will be THE identity management solution.” – Rita Mounir, Co-founder, Allthenticate  Think Diffusion  In 2023, three-time startup founder Phu Ngo produced Think Diffusion, an advanced AI video production platform. Think Diffusion has already established itself with noteworthy names, producing animated content for Toyota, McDonald’s and even a music video for Toni Braxton. Think Diffusion leverages cutting-edge open-source AI technologies to offer a comprehensive and integrated platform for AI art and video generation. Its commitment to open-source has led three universities - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, PVCC-Melbourne, and the National University of Singapore - to adopt Think Diffusion for their innovation labs.  Think Diffusion was started by Ngo, a Vietnamese-born Houstonian whose family found opportunity in the Lone Star State as he was growing up. Following an education at UT-Austin and UC-Santa Barbara, Ngo established himself as a software developer, eventually launching three startups. Think Diffusion spun out of Kinetic Chain Labs following a special request for animated video content, which resulted in an ultra-sophisticated art generator. For Ngo, Houston serves as an ideal place to start a business and call home.  “Houston is home for me, it has great tax advantages and there’s a lot to like. I’m excited by the growing tech hub forming here – I think the startup community at the Ion is a great example of that. On top of that, the food is amazing, the weather is great, and you get a great ROI on your money – it’s amazing here in terms of quality of life.” – Phu Ngo, CEO, Think Diffusion  Currently, Think Diffusion states that it is working on launching new experimental open-source products, expanding into AI-generated text and music, and increasing its focus on the education industry. Looking ahead, the team is ready to embrace the challenges and advantages that the future of AI could bring.  Learn more about Houston’s tech and innovation ecosystem. 
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Economic Development

State of Education

The Greater Houston Partnership invites you to the State of Education on May 9 at the Royal Sonesta. The success of our region relies on a thriving public education system providing equitable…

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Executive Partners