One of DFW’s best kept secrets is Gore Range Capital. Ethan Rigel is the founding partner of Gore Range, a venture capital firm focusing on skin innovation. Ethan explains how he became an investor, why they moved Gore Range from New York to Southlake, and what he is looking for in companies before he invests.

Innovate Fort Worth

#45 Ethan Rigel: Healthcare Through the Lens of Skin

If you are an entrepreneur in DFW, then you know about Tech Fort Worth. And Hayden Blackburn is at the center of it all. TechFW supports entrepreneurs through various programs, like an accelerator, an incubator, mentorship, and through the Cowtown Angels investing network. With big exits like ZS Pharma, Encore Vision, and Exact Diagnostics in their past, TechFW is helping connect entrepreneurs to build a strong biotech entrepreneurial ecosystem in Fort Worth today and into the future.

#44 Hayden Blackburn: Putting the Tech in Fort Worth

Despite being an accomplished MD, DO and MBA, the President of the UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth is an entrepreneur at heart. Michael Williams is using his background and position to transform Fort Worth into a hub of entrepreneurial activity, not only through the work of HSC, but also through his work in the community to solve complex problems and bring new innovations to market. He is not only creating solutions for healthier communities, but is also creating economic opportunity for our region.

#43 Michael Williams, D.O., M.D., MBA: Serial Startup President

Only 25% of Americans with hearing loss use hearing aids.  But three TCU students are working to solve this problem through technology that is changing the way people with hearing loss can hear the world around them. Devan Peplow and Mavis Tang are co-founders of Sounde LLC, a phone application that utilizes the built-in microphone to amplify specific sounds and frequencies. Through cutting edge AI within the app, Sounde transforms how people with hearing loss manage their ear health. 

#42 Devan Peplow and Mavis Tang: Helping the World Hear Better

Artificial intelligence (AI) is re-making how we do just about everything. One local company, Smart Action, is trying to improve the quality of the customer experience every time you have to call a support line for help. After just moving the company from Los Angeles to Fort Worth,  Gary Davis, the President and CEO, shares how he is interpreting human language using machine learning for better customer care experiences. Davis also discusses how he is plugging into the Fort Worth community and how he plans to help the local tech industry grow.

#41 Gary Davis: Serving Customers with AI

Local journalism is changing. The explosion of social media and declining print advertising have hurt the industry that traditional created fair and factual reporting at the local level. That is where Chris Cobler, Publisher of the new Fort Worth Report comes in. Chris discusses the importance of serving the community by providing high quality, objective local journalism through a nonprofit. He also dives into the need of a free and independent press and why the Fourth Estate is critical to our democracy.

#40 Chris Cobler: Fourth Estate in Fort Worth

It can be difficult to stay in touch with family, friends, and other important relationships in your life. Chuck Bouligny talks about the latest app hitting the tech scene in Fort Worth. Juggle  helps people balance their relationships and  build authentic connections. Through gamification, Juggle makes connecting with people easier than ever in the city “where relationships matter.” 

#39 Chuck Bouligny: Juggling Your Friends

What started with an overwhelmed insurance office resulted in a productivity tool that changes how we get work done. Yanira Borges created an innovative digital platform called Sidekick Checkins that helps staff members handle simple tasks…all by asking a few simple questions. This fun and refreshing software builds positive workplace culture, encourages personal and professional development, and increases revenue for businesses. Yanira talks about the importance of checking in on your coworker, and about her experience as an #indiehacker in the tech space.

#38 Yanira Borges: Your Sidekick at Work

What do scientists and entrepreneurs have in common? They solve problems! Mike Mathis, PhD, EdD and Thomas Cunningham, Phd from the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) at the  HSC in Fort Worth join us to talk about their new Graduate Certificate in Biomedical Entrepreneurship.  Centered around individual passion, this virtual, four course certificate program provides additional skills for the next generation of innovative biotech leaders in Fort Worth.  To learn more, visit the link: www.unthsc.edu/graduate-school-of-biomedical-sciences/graduate-certificate-in-biomedical-entrepreneurship/

#37 Michael Mathis, PhD, EdD and Thomas Cunningham, PhD: Solving Problems with Science

Jonathan Morris is making Fort Worth funky by bringing his various visions for cool spaces to life. He is the owner of the Fort Worth Barbershop and Hotel Dryce, and now, he’s the host the brand new show on Magnolia Network’s Self-Employed. A serial entrepreneur, Jonathan talks about his earliest entrepreneurial ideas as a child, how he builds culture into his business ventures and what it is like to be a television host showcasing small businesses.

#36 Jonathan Morris: Self Employed Serial Entrepreneur

Texas is a leader in many industries, including energy production. But one local innovator wants to turn Fort Worth into the sustainability capital of the world. Joseph Horn is the driver behind the city-wide collaboration building EcoPlex in Fort Worth, with the vision of turning our city into the center of sustainability in the U.S. He discusses the intersection of innovation and entrepreneurship with sustainability and environmental advocacy through the development of invention showcases and eco-incubators for startups companies and new technologies.

#35 Joseph Horn: Sustainability in the Fort

Mia Moss is more than the owner of Black Coffee in Fort Worth, she is a driving force for revitalization on the eastside of Fort Worth.  She has taken her love of coffee, expertise and skills and poured them back into her community. From connecting with customers about different coffee beans to pivoting in the face of COVID-19, Mia is proving that coffee and culture go hand in hand and can be the key to bringing new life into a local neighborhood.

#34 Mia Moss: The Eastside is Brewing

From veteran to entrepreneur, Dylan Jones is working to monitor animal health through technology. Animal Cloud Device Connectivity is a cloud-based technology, licensed from the US Air Force that is monitoring the health of service animals that work on in the field. Animal Cloud tracks the health of dogs, horses and cows in real time, transferring information to a database available for caregivers and veterinarians to review digitally.  

#33 Dylan Jones: Military Tech for Animals

You've been served…coffee? The Legal Cafe is the brand new coworking space and cafe for lawyers just a few blocks from the Tarrant County courthouses in Downtown Fort Worth. Co-Founder Jeff Rattikin aims to provide essential legal services to attorneys who need a home base near the courthouse and a private location for lawyers and clients to meet. The Legal Cafe also provides services like marketing, web development and they even have a room for video and podcast recording! While serving the legal profession, Rattikin also wants to make law more accessible to people through his website getlegal.com and connect people to the right legal expert for their need.

#32 Jeff Rattikin: Serving Solutions for Attorneys

After a 10 year tenure as a public leader in Fort Worth, Mayor Betsy Price is passing the torch. But before she left office, Innovate Fort Worth had the honor to sit down and discuss all things entrepreneurial in our city. Reflecting upon the great innovators throughout the years that helped make Fort Worth what it is today, Mayor Price shares why Fort Worth is still a great city for startups and small businesses. As a final goodbye, the Innovate Fort Worth team thanks Mayor Price for her dedication to Fort Worth and wishes her well as she spends time with family.

#31 Mayor Betsy Price: The "Price" Perspective on Innovation

Innovation is changing Fort Worth. Start-ups and a spirit of entrepreneurship are transforming the city known for Cowboys and Culture into a hub for innovative ideas and businesses. Innovate Fort Worth shares the stories of the city’s leading innovators, entrepreneurs and investors —and highlights the resources available to bring ideas to market. Powered by UNT Health Science Center.

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Innovate Fort Worth

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