Rice Alliance, Station Houston to host first Texas Digital Summit for startups

More than 50 high-potential startups to present at Dec. 6 event

The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship and Station Houston announced July 24 the inaugural Texas Digital Summit to connect emerging technology startups to Fortune 500 corporate innovation leaders. More than 50 startups with high potential for commercialization will present their concepts to a group of more than 400 investors and corporate innovators at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business Dec. 6.

Credit: 123RF.com/Rice University

“There is no better place than Houston for startups at all stages — from ideation and research to launched and scaling — to work with Fortune 500 corporations,” said John Reale, co-founder and CEO of Station Houston. “For startup founders at Station, access to data, shared resources, the potential for a pilot or a first customer from a large, established industry leader can accelerate and increase the opportunity for long-term success.”

The Rice Alliance is the university’s nationally recognized initiative to support the creation of technology-based companies and the commercialization of new technologies, and Station Houston is the region’s hub for innovation technology and entrepreneurship. They developed the Texas Digital Summit to build upon the strong foundation set by major local industries and to capitalize on Houston’s strength as a leader in industrial innovation, according to organizers.

“Houston has a diverse and strong entrepreneurship ecosystem dedicated to positioning it as a prominent tech city,” said Brad Burke, managing director of the Rice Alliance. “We are a recognized leader in several key sectors, including energy, life science and manufacturing. With extensive university research, sector diversity and high density of Fortune 500 companies in our city, we have the inherent capabilities to be the region that leads industrial innovation.”

The summit will feature an invitation-only session Dec. 5 for startup founders to pitch to innovation executives from across the country. The program will also include panel discussions with experts at leading corporations on the real-world applications of artificial intelligence, automation, blockchain and the connected worker.

Programs like the Texas Digital Summit and the recently announced innovation district in Midtown are a testament to Rice’s and Station Houston’s shared commitment to making Houston the premier city for corporate innovation within the next decade, organizers said.

For startups interested in presenting, additional information can be found at texasdigitalsummit.com/startups.html. Applications to present open Aug. 1.