Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week begins Sept. 15 and exemplifies how Houston is developing and scaling real solutions for the challenge of meeting growing global energy demand while reducing carbon emissions.
Twin founders: How 2 sisters are building health innovations at Rice
Rice's OwlSpark accelerator's newest cohort included twin founders with projects aiming to solve overlooked problems in patient care.
Meant to inspire: New speaker series at the Ion District to build community through stories of space
Rice helped launch a new speaker series at the Ion spotlighting the human side of space exploration.
12 startups selected to join Class 5 of the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator
The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship has announced the 12 startups chosen for Class 5 of its Clean Energy Accelerator, a program designed to propel early stage ventures advancing the global energy transition. These companies from both the Houston-region and across the U.S. and Canada are addressing carbon management, energy storage, materials, energy efficiency, wind and hydrogen.
OwlSpark announces students, alumni and staff selected for its 13th cohort
OwlSpark, Rice’s startup and small business accelerator for Rice-affiliated ventures, brings together 11 companies in the program’s 13th year who represent a new wave of entrepreneurs tackling challenges across technology, consumer products, health care and more. Since 2013, the accelerator has supported 229 founders and launched 104 ventures with participants collectively raising more than $116 million in funding.
Intero Biosystems from University of Michigan wins Rice Business Plan Competition
Intero Biosystems — a life science company that has developed the first cell-derived human “minigut” replicating cell types, spatial structure and function of the human intestine — took home the grand prize at the 2025 Rice Business Plan Competition.
Energy Venture Day at CERAWeek selects 9 ‘most promising’ startups
Nine companies were named most promising at the annual Rice Alliance Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition at CERAWeek March 12, co-hosted with the Houston Energy Transition Initiative and TEX-E. The event showcases energy ventures driving efficiency and advancements toward the energy transition through fields such as carbon management, advanced manufacturing, hydrogen, grid technology and more. This year’s competition was a qualifying event for the Startup World Cup, powered by Pegasus Ventures. The top-scoring venture is invited to compete in the grand finale and a $1 million investment prize.
The 2025 Rice Business Plan Competition (RBPC) announced today the 42 startups invited to compete for more than $1 million in prizes April 10-12 at Rice University and the Ion in Houston.
Top university entrepreneurship centers announced at GCEC conference
The Global Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers (GCEC), headquartered at the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship in Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business, brought leading university entrepreneurship programs together to celebrate creativity and innovation in university-based entrepreneurship education for its annual conference Nov. 14-16. GCEC also announced the top programs in higher education at the event.
Rice Business tops Princeton Review entrepreneurship rankings for sixth year in a row
Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business has taken the No. 1 spot in The Princeton Review and Entrepreneurship magazines’ rankings of top schools for graduate entrepreneurship programs for the sixth year running.
Rice Alliance gathers industry leaders to drive clean energy innovation
Houston’s inaugural Energy and Climate Startup Week brought together leading venture capital investors, industry leaders and startups from around the world to showcase the most innovative companies and technologies that are transforming the energy industry. The citywide initiative held last month celebrated Houston’s role in driving the energy transition and was organized by a group of regional organizations, academic institutions and corporations in the Houston ecosystem, including the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, Halliburton Labs, Greentown Labs, Activate, Digital Wildcatters and the Houston Energy Transition Initiative.
The Energy Tech Venture Forum (ETVF), hosted by the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, will convene innovators and investors at a Sept. 12 conference to connect ventures with Houston’s energy ecosystem. The forum is an anchor event for the inaugural Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week, happening Sept. 9-13. This week is a city-wide initiative to bring together and celebrate the momentum in Houston driving the energy transition. Many events are hosted at the Ion, Houston’s innovation hub powered by Rice.
First look at the Rice Nexus, Rice University’s premier innovation factory at the Ion
Rice has unveiled the first architectural renderings of the Rice Nexus, a groundbreaking innovation factory within the Ion that will transform ideas from Rice faculty and students into market-ready technology.
Bayou Startup Showcase highlights university-affiliated student ventures at the Ion
The annual Bayou Startup Showcase presented by Rice’s OwlSpark and the University of Houston’s RED Labs took place Aug. 1 at the Ion – Houston’s innovation hub powered by Rice.
Rice Alliance announces 12 energy startups advancing energy transition technology
Twelve energy startups from six states and two countries that are innovating in advanced materials, carbon management, digital tech, energy efficiencies, hydrogen and solar power and corrosion detection will participate in Class 4 of the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator.