UH to groom future investors, Cart.com's new hire and more Houston innovation news

Editor’s Note:Let’s round up the most-read Houston innovation news of the week. InnovationMap’s Houston tech trends and startup stories and daily newsletter included Houston companies named best places to work, a new leader for a fast-growing startup, and more.

16 Houston-Based Companies Hailed as Best Places to Work by U.S. News

Houston is tied with Dallas-Fort Worth for producing the most top-rated employers in Texas. Photo by Thaddious Thomas on Unsplash

More than a dozen Houston-based companies share the spotlight U.S. News and World Reports collection of “Best Companies to Work For” in 2024-2025.

The annual report examines publicly traded companies around the world to determine the best employers based on six metrics, including work-life balance and flexibility, quality of compensation and benefits, job and company stability, career opportunities and professional development, and more. Companies were not ranked, but included based on reader surveys and publicly available data about each workplace.

New in the 2024-2025 report, US News analysis 549 companies across 29 different lists, including the global Best Companies list (which includes the top 300 companies from the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Bermuda), 24 industry lists and four regional lists. Continue reading.

$1 million gift to Rice creates pioneering neuro-politics center in Houston

Harry Yan and Weiman Gao have awarded $1 million to the Baker Institute of Public Policy to establish the interdisciplinary Neuropolitics Program. Photo via rice.edu

A major gift to Rice University will soon help researchers better understand how the human brain works.

Harry Yan and Weiman Gao awarded $1 million to the Baker Institute of Public Policy to establish the Interdisciplinary Neuro-Politics Program.

Neuropolitics is a newer field that explores how brain health and function can help fuel economic growth.

“The Neuro-Policy program is at the forefront of data analysis, empirical research and policy application,” says Harris Eyre, program manager and senior researcher in brain health at the Baker Institute. Continue reading.

University of Houston Partners with Angel Investor Group to Reach and Develop Future Investors

The partnership between UH and HAN will strengthen accredited early-stage investors and accelerate opportunities for aspiring early-stage investors. Photo via Getty Images

Through a new partnership with the Houston Angel Network and Houston Exponential, the University of Houston will help cultivate early-stage investors among UH alumni.

The partnership will strengthen accredited early-stage investors and accelerate opportunities for aspiring early-stage investors, the university says in a news release.

“Investors play a vital role in the startup ecosystem and this initiative provides our alumni with a quick path to becoming business angels. Our vision is to activate more investors with strong ties to UH who support world-class innovation in our community and beyond,” says Ramanan Krishnamoorti, the university’s vice president for energy and innovation. Continue reading.

Nonprofit focused on educational equity harnesses robotics and AI to better serve Houston children

Collaborative for Children focuses on the use of social-emotional learning robots and coding technology toys. Photo courtesy of Collaborative for Children

Typically, when children are under five, educators believe they are most able and interested in learning, because these are the years in which there is the greatest opportunity to build a broad and strong foundation for lifelong literacy and well-being.

This sentiment is deeply shared by Collaborative for Children, the Houston-based nonprofit whose mission is to significantly improve the quality of early childhood education and provide access to cutting-edge technology through its Centers of Excellence to all children, especially those from low-income and marginalized communities.

“The reason the organization was started about 40 years ago is that a group of philanthropists in the greater Houston area suggested that this was so important because 90 percent of the brain develops or grows between the ages of zero and five,” Melanie Johnson, president and CEO of Collaborative for Children, told InnovationMap. Continue reading.

Former Shopify executive joins growing Houston e-commerce software company

Growing Cart.com has appointed its new human resources director. Photo courtesy of Cart.com

Houston-based e-commerce software and services company Cart.com has hired a former Shopify executive as its chief human resources officer.

Prior to joining Cart.com, Lani Doyle was the Chief Human Resources Officer at Strategic Solutions Group, a healthcare software provider. Prior to that, she was the Vice President of Human Resources and People Operations at 6 River Systems, a warehouse software and robotics provider. Prior to that, Doyle was the Head of Talent Development and Operations at Shopify, an enterprise e-commerce platform that reported $7.1 billion in revenue in 2023.

“Cart.com is one of the fastest-growing commerce companies in the world today, and I’m excited to partner with our teams to help drive growth and scale,” Doyle said in a press release. “I look forward to helping shape our culture and develop programs that support and elevate high-performing teams, ensuring we achieve our ambitious goals.” Continue reading.