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HETI's new executive director takes the helm

new leader

Sophia Cunningham is the new executive director of HETI. Photo via htxenergytransition.org

The Houston Energy Transition Initiative has a new executive director.

Sophia Cunningham assumed the position this month, succeeding the organization's founding executive director, Jane Stricker.

"Four years ago, I could never have imagined the opportunities, experiences and relationships this role has enabled," Strickler wrote in an address earlier this year. "I am truly grateful for the support and engagement of Houston’s business and community leaders, the visionary leadership of Bobby Tudor, Scott Nyquist, HETI Members, and the Greater Houston Partnership in creating this initiative at exactly the right moment in time. I am incredibly proud of the HETI and the Partnership team members who have delivered with purpose and passion, and I greatly appreciate Houston’s energy and climate leaders and champions who have supported my agenda, challenged my thinking, broadened my perspectives, and worked with HETI to demonstrate the power of partnership in developing, innovating and advancing the ideas and technologies needed to meet this challenge for our region and the world."

Stricker shared on LinkedIn that she has joined the advisory board of FluxPoint Energy, which launched last month during CERAWeek, in addition to her other roles at Greentown Labs, Prana Low Carbon Economy Investments and UNC Kenan-Flagler Energy Center.

Cunningham previously served as vice president at HETI, where she was responsible for efforts related to carbon capture, use and storage; methane management; community engagement and stakeholder activation. Before joining HETI, she was director of public policy at The Greater Houston Partnership.

She earned her master's in Energy Management and Systems Technology from Texas A&M University and holds a bachelor's degree from Davidson College.

“I’m honored to step into the role of Executive Director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative at such a pivotal moment for our industry," Cunningham said over email. "Houston has the talent, infrastructure, and leadership to meet growing global energy demand while reducing emissions, and I’m excited to work alongside our members and partners to accelerate solutions that are reliable, affordable, and scalable.”

The Greater Houston Partnership launched HETI in June 2021 to "meet a Dual Challenge of producing more energy that the world needs with less emissions," according to its website.

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The Gulf Coast is one of the most critical energy hubs in the world. Photo via Getty Images.

3 strategies to strengthen the Gulf Coast as a global energy hub

The View from HETI

The Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast is the backbone of America’s energy and chemical economy. Texas produces roughly 43% of U.S. crude oil and 28% of natural gas, while Texas and Louisiana together account for about half of the nation’s refining capacity, processing 9.3 million barrels of crude per day across 50 refineries. The region also produces approximately 80% of the nation’s primary petrochemicals and ships more than $117 billion in chemical products annually from Texas alone.

This unmatched concentration of refining, petrochemical manufacturing, pipelines, ports, and technical talent makes the Gulf Coast one of the most critical energy hubs in the world. But maintaining that leadership in a rapidly evolving global market will require intentional collaboration, faster technology commercialization, and strengthened supply chain resilience.

In fall 2025, the Greater Houston Partnership’s Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI) convened national laboratories, Gulf Coast universities, and industry leaders to examine how to reinforce the region’s long-term competitiveness. Participants included Argonne, Oak Ridge, Lawrence Berkeley, the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), and the National Laboratory of the Rockies, alongside Gulf Coast academic institutions and energy and chemical companies. Here are the key findings and takeaways from the workshop.

1. Supply Chain Resilience Requires Structured Industry–Lab Collaboration

Resilience—diversity of supply, operational flexibility, and rapid recovery—was a recurring theme. Recent disruptions exposed vulnerabilities in tightly interconnected energy and manufacturing systems.

National laboratories provide capabilities that complement Gulf Coast industrial scale, particularly at early and mid technology readiness levels (TRLs 1–7), before full commercial deployment. Examples include:

  • Advanced manufacturing and AI-enabled validation of critical components (Oak Ridge).
  • Materials scale-up and techno-economic modeling to move from lab discovery to industrial relevance (Argonne).
  • Pilot-scale testing for severe-service alloys, chemical conversion, and process innovation (NETL).
  • Integrated energy systems modeling to assess grid resilience and system disruptions (National Laboratory of the Rockies).

Recommendation: Organize targeted Gulf Coast industry missions to national laboratories focused on critical supply chains—power equipment, high-heat industrial processes, novel catalysts, refining, and grid infrastructure—to identify joint development opportunities and reduce time to commercialization.

2. Modeling, AI, and Open-Access Platforms Can Bridge the Technology Gap

A persistent barrier to innovation is the gap between scientific discovery, applied development, and commercial deployment. Universities often operate at TRLs 1–3, national labs at 1–7, and industry at 7–9. Bridging these silos requires shared modeling tools, high-performance computing, and structured feedback loops.

National labs maintain open-access platforms capable of:

  • Simulating grid expansion, investment, and dispatch decisions.
  • Modeling cradle-to-gate industrial material flows.
  • Optimizing complex energy and chemical systems.
  • De-risking carbon capture, critical mineral recovery, and advanced manufacturing integration.

Recommendation: HETI should convene structured training and feedback sessions on these public modeling platforms—ensuring Gulf Coast industry can apply, improve, and help guide further development of tools critical to regional competitiveness. Federal initiatives such as the Genesis Mission, focused on AI-accelerated scientific discovery, further expand opportunities for Gulf Coast participation.

3. Time to Commercialization Is the Ultimate Competitive Metric

The lithium-ion battery is a cautionary example: while pioneered in U.S. labs, large-scale manufacturing leadership shifted overseas. Without strategic intervention, U.S. firms are projected to capture less than 30% of domestic lithium battery cell value by 2030.

Successful DOE-backed consortium models show that mission-aligned, multi-partner collaboration reduces development timelines and strengthens domestic manufacturing know-how. However, public–private partnership mechanisms such as CRADAs and Strategic Partnership Projects can be time-intensive.

Recommendation: The Gulf Coast should actively engage DOE and national laboratories to streamline public–private partnership pathways, improve intellectual property clarity, and expand industry access to laboratory infrastructure.

The Path Forward: A Gulf Coast Consortium Model
The workshop’s central conclusion was clear: the Gulf Coast should formalize collaboration through a regional industry–academia–laboratory consortium.

Such a model could:

  • Co-locate national lab researchers within the region.
  • Share modeling data and analytical capabilities.
  • Establish open-access pilot facilities that complement lab infrastructure.
  • Harmonize IP frameworks to accelerate licensing and deployment.

With its dense industrial ecosystem, technical workforce, and decision-making concentration, the Gulf Coast is uniquely positioned to serve as a national demonstration hub for advanced energy and chemical manufacturing.

If industry, universities, and national laboratories align around a shared regional strategy, the Gulf Coast can:

  • Accelerate commercialization timelines.
  • Strengthen critical supply chains.
  • Unleash a world-class technical workforce.
  • Reinforce U.S. leadership in strategic energy and chemical sectors.

———

This article originally appeared on the Greater Houston Partnership's Houston Energy Transition Initiative blog. A full report on the key learnings and recommendations from the workshop can be found here: https://bit.ly/4uEDEqk.

Quantum Power Systems took home the top TEX-E prize at this year's Energy Venture Day pitch competition during CERAWeek. Photo via LinkedIn

CERAWeek crowns winners of 2026 clean tech pitch competition

top teams

Twelve teams from around the country, including several from Houston, took home top honors at this year's Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition at CERAWeek.

The fast-paced event, held March 25, put on by Rice Alliance, Houston Energy Transition Initiative and TEX-E, invited 36 industry startups and five Texas-based student teams focused on driving efficiency and advancements in the energy transition to present 3.5-minute pitches before investors and industry partners during CERAWeek's Agora program.

The competition is a qualifying event for the Startup World Cup, where teams compete for a $1 million investment prize.

PolyJoule won in the Track C competition and was named the overall winner of the pitch event. The Boston-based company will go on to compete in the Startup World Cup held this fall in San Francisco.

PolyJoule was spun out of MIT and is developing conductive polymer battery technology for energy storage.

Rice University's Resonant Thermal Systems won the second-place prize and $15,000 in the student track, known as TEX-E. The team's STREED solution converts high-salinity water into fresh water while recovering valuable minerals.

Teams from the University of Texas won first and second place in the TEX-E competition, bringing home $25,000 and $10,000, respectively. The student winners were:

Companies that pitched in the three industry tracts competed for non-monetary awards. Here are the companies named "most-promising" by the judges:

Track A | Industrial Efficiency & Decarbonization

Track B | Advanced Manufacturing, Materials, & Other Advanced Technologies

  • First: Licube, based in Houston
  • Second: ZettaJoule, based in Houston and Maryland
  • Third: Oleo

Track C | Innovations for Traditional Energy, Electricity, & the Grid

The teams at this year's Energy Venture Day have collectively raised $707 million in funding, according to Rice. They represent six countries and 12 states. See the full list of companies and investor groups that participated here.

Houston Energy Transition Initiative members will be featured at CERAWeek. Courtesy photo

HETI members to take the stage at CERAWeek 2026 in Houston

The View from HETI

CERAWeek returns to Houston March 23–27, convening global industry leaders to explore the trends shaping the future of energy.

The Greater Houston Partnership’s Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI) members will play a key role in this year’s program, contributing to discussions spanning digital innovation, power systems, decarbonization and workforce. Below are the sessions featuring HETI members throughout the week:

AI in Energy: Managing the Transformation
Monday, March 23 | 9:30-10:00 a.m.
Speakers: Hector Rocha, Accenture; Rebecca Hofmann, Blockchain For Energy; Paul Markwell, S&P Global

Scaling Innovation: Building the Ecosystem for the Next Energy Breakthroughs
Monday, March 23 | 10:30-11:10 a.m.
Speakers: Graham Gordon, Accenture; Carolyn Seto, S&P Global; Bernie Bulkin, Global Energy Infrastructure Plc; Georgina Campbell Flatter, Greentown Labs
Examines how partnerships across capital, policy and infrastructure can accelerate commercialization and scaling of breakthrough energy technologies.

Oil Strategies for a World in Transition
Monday, March 23 | 11:15-11:55 a.m.
Speakers: Olivier Le Peuch, SLB; Anders Opedal, Equinor; Vicki Hollub, Occidental; Atul Arya, S&P Global
Discusses how producers are adapting portfolio strategies to balance resilience, demand outlooks and transition pressures.

Gas: Growing Markets and New Players
Monday, March 23 | 12:00-12:40 p.m.
Speakers: Liz Westcott, Woodside Energy; Toby Rice, EQT Corporation; Shankari Srinivasan, S&P Global; Ryosuke Tsugaru, JERA CO., INC.

Advances in Exploration Technologies for Oil & Gas and Mining
Monday, March 23 | 1:30-2:10 p.m.
Speakers: Amy Callahan, Accenture; Hussein Shel, Amazon Web Services; Oscar Abbink, S&P Global
Highlights sensing, imaging and AI tools improving discovery efficiency and sustainability in exploration.

AI in Action: From Pilot to Profit
Monday, March 23 | 1:30-2:00 p.m.
Speakers: Shridevi Bale, Accenture; Paul Gruenwald, S&P Global
Shares lessons from scaling AI deployments beyond pilots into measurable operational value.

Power Networks: Collaborating to Meet Demand
Monday, March 23 | 2:15-2:55 p.m.
Speakers: Lawrence Coben, NRG Energy; Jim Murphy, Invenergy; Eduard Sala de Vedruna, S&P Global
Examines grid readiness and collaboration models needed to manage surging electricity demand.

New Phase of Gas: From Regional Security to Global Market Integration
Monday, March 23 | 3:00-3:40 p.m.
Speakers: Cederic Cremers, Shell; Balaji Krishnamurthy, Chevron; Kevin Gallagher, Santos; Mansoor Al Hamed, Mubadala Energy; Dave Ernsberger, S&P Global
Discusses LNG’s evolving role in global integration, energy security and future pricing structures.

Transforming Upstream: Pathways to Scaling New Technologies
Monday, March 23 | 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Speakers: Rami El Debs, Accenture; Trey Lowe, Devon Energy; Bader Al-Attar, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation
Explores adoption of advanced digital and automation technologies in upstream operations.

Leadership Dialogue
Tuesday, March 24 | 9:00-9:20 a.m.
Speakers: Wael Sawan, Shell; Daniel Yergin, S&P Global

One Grid, One ASEAN: Building a Shared Clean Energy Future
Tuesday, March 24 | 10:30-11:10 a.m.
Speakers: Akihiro Ondo, Mitsubishi Power; Gauri Jauhar, S&P Global

Harmonizing Carbon Accounting: Charting a Path Forward
Tuesday, March 24 | 10:40-11:20 a.m.
Speakers: Edward Stones, Dow; Sasha Mackler, ExxonMobil; Musaab Al-Mulla, Saudi Aramco; Kevin Birn, S&P Global
Examines efforts to standardize emissions accounting to improve comparability and market transparency.

Global Exploration Revival: Lessons and New Strategies
Tuesday, March 24 | 11:30-12:10 p.m.
Speakers: John Ardill, ExxonMobil; Dan Pratt, S&P Global; Guido Brusco, Eni

How Will AI Change the Game for Energy Profitability?
Tuesday, March 24 | 12:20-1:00 p.m.
Speakers: Rakesh Jaggi, SLB; Jim Masso, Honeywell; Atul Arya, S&P Global; Darryl Willis, Microsoft; Renata Baruzzi, Petrobras
Examines how AI and cloud technologies could reshape cost structures and performance across energy systems.

Balancing Act: Price, Reliability and the Global Call on U.S. Energy
Tuesday, March 24 | 2:35-3:15 p.m.
Speakers: Stéphane Michel, TotalEnergies; Eleonor Kramarz, S&P Global; Matt Schatzman, NextDecade; Brian Falik, Mercuria Energy America
Explores tensions between domestic supply reliability and global export opportunities.

The Future of Upstream: Matching Capital Discipline with Opportunity
Tuesday, March 24 | 2:35-3:15 p.m.
Speakers: Richard Jackson, Occidental; Philippe Mathieu, Equinor; Niloufar Molavi, PwC; Bob Fryklund, S&P Global

Transforming the Energy Industry: How Will Technology Change Business Models?
Tuesday, March 24 | 2:35- 3:15 p.m.
Speakers: Ryder Booth, Chevron; Peter Terwiesch, ABB; Atul Arya, S&P Global
Examines digital transformation and new partnership models reshaping energy value chains.

Sustainable Solutions: Partnership, Technology and Innovative Paths
Tuesday, March 24 | 3:25-4:05 p.m.
Speakers: Barry Engle, ExxonMobil; Luis Cabra, Repsol; Leanne Todd, S&P Global; Roeland Baan, Topsoe
Highlights collaborative approaches to deploying scalable decarbonization solutions.

The Future of Refining: Resilience, Innovation and Low-Carbon Pathways
Tuesday, March 24 | 3:25-4:05 p.m.
Speakers: Amber Russell, bp; Kurt Barrow, S&P Global; Martijn van Koten, OMV; Atsuhiko Hirano, Idemitsu; Magnus Heimburg, VAROPreem
Explores how refining and supply chains are adapting to policy, demand and emissions pressures.

Reinventing Business Strategies: Thriving in the New Energy Economy
Tuesday, March 24 | 4:15-4:55 p.m.
Speakers: Muqsit Ashraf, Accenture; Philippe Frangules, S&P Global; Sushil Purohit, Gentari Sdn Bhd
Discusses evolving strategies integrating new technologies and markets.

Creating AI-Ready Organizations
Tuesday, March 24 | 4:20-5:05 p.m.
Speakers: David Rabley, Accenture; Gwenaelle Avice-Huet, Schneider Electric; Dave Ernsberger, S&P Global; Rob Schapiro, Microsoft; Geoffrey Parker, Arthur L. Irving Institute for Energy and Society at Dartmouth
Focuses on workforce, leadership and infrastructure required for effective AI adoption.

Meeting Power Demand for Data Centers
Wednesday, March 25 | 10:30-11:20 a.m.
Speakers: Karim Amin, Siemens Energy; Ed Baine, Dominion Energy; Douglas Giuffre, S&P Global; Ingmar Ritzenhofen, RWE Supply & Trading and RWE Clean Energy; Amanda Peterson Corio, Google; Jim Shield, Invenergy
Discusses strategies for aligning infrastructure, policy and markets to meet data-center load growth.

Where Agentic AI Is Now and What Comes Next
Wednesday, March 25 | 10:30-11:00 a.m.
Speakers: Tathagata Basu, Honeywell; Ben Wilson, Amazon Web Services, Bhavesh Dayalji, S&P Global

People Power: Strategic Human Capital in a New Energy Era
Wednesday, March 25 | 10:40-11:20 a.m.
Speakers: Jessica Van Singel, Accenture
Examines workforce strategy alignment with innovation and competitiveness goals.

Global Energy Pathways in the Age of Abundance
Wednesday, March 25 | 11:45-12:35 p.m.
Speakers: Gareth Ramsay, bp; Atul Arya, S&P Global; Olu Verheijen, Office of the President of the Federal Public of Nigeria

Agentic AI: Embracing Autonomy
Thursday, March 26 | 10:00-10:30 a.m.
Speakers: Trygve Randen, SLB; Uwa Airhiavbere, Microsoft; Eric Hanselman, S&P Global
Examines governance and reliability considerations as autonomous AI systems expand in energy.

The Changing Mix of U.S. Power Generation: Gas, Renewables, Coal, Nuclear and Beyond
Thursday, March 26 | 10:30-11:20 a.m.
Speakers: Bill Newsom, Mitsubishi Power; Douglas Giuffre, S&P Global; John-Paul Jones, Urenco Enrichment Company; Leslie Duke, Burns & McDonnell; Mike DeBock, NextEra Energy Resources
Explores how policy and technology shifts are reshaping generation portfolios.

Large Load Growth: Reshaping the Future of Power
Thursday, March 26 | 11:10-11:50 a.m.
Speakers: Robert Gaudette, NRG Energy; Petter Skantze, NextEra Energy Resources; Douglas Giuffre, S&P Global; Peter Lake, National Energy Dominance Council
Discusses planning and market responses to large-scale electricity demand.

Interconnecting America: The Grid’s Last Mile
Thursday, March 26 | 12:00-12:40 p.m.
Speakers: Tim Holt, Siemens Energy; Philippe Frangules, S&P Global; David Brast, TC Energy; David Rosner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

AI: Driving Performance in the Power Sector
Thursday, March 26 | 3:05-3:45 p.m.
Speakers: Dak Liyanearachchi, NRG Energy; Hanna Grene, Microsoft; Douglas Giuffre, S&P Global
Explores AI use cases improving grid management and forecasting.

Digital Twins: The AI Enabler for Multiple Sectors
Thursday, March 26 | 4:30-5:10 p.m.
Speakers: Sacha Abinader, Accenture; Oscar Abbink, S&P Global
Examines digital twins enabling predictive maintenance and AI training environments.

View the full CERAWeek agenda.

———

This article originally appeared on the Greater Houston Partnership's Houston Energy Transition Initiative blog. HETI exists to support Houston's future as an energy leader. For more information about the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, EnergyCapitalHTX's presenting sponsor, visit htxenergytransition.org.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright will return to CERAWeek this month, along with dozens of energy executives and innovators. Photos courtesy CERAWeek.

CERAWeek 2026 to bring energy leaders to Houston to discuss tech and geopolitics

where to be

CERAWeek returns this month, March 23-27, and will once again bring leading energy executives and government officials to Houston.

The 44th annual event will again host U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum.

Wright will participate in a plenary session focused on energy policy with Daniel Yergin, conference chair and vice chairman of S&P Global, on March 23. The following day, he will be featured in the Celebrating 10 Years of U.S. LNG reception with Jack Fusso, president and CEO, of Cheniere Energy. Both events are part of the Executive Conference track.

Burgum will participate in a leadership dialogue plenary session with Yergin on March 25. It is also part of the Executive Conference track. Burgum is also chairman of the National Energy Dominance Council, established by President Trump in 2025.

Top energy executives, many of whom are based in Houston, will also be featured prominently at the week-long event. Other speakers include:

  • Bill Blevins, director of grid coordination for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT)
  • Trevor Best, CEO of Syzygy Plasmonics
  • Marie Contour Carrere, executive director of the Rice Sustainability Institute
  • Ryan DuChanois, co-founder and CEO of Solidec
  • Reginald DesRoches, president of Rice University
  • Georgina Campbell Flatter, CEO of Greentown Labs
  • Jim Fitterling, chair and CEO of Dow Inc.
  • Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental Petroleum Corp.
  • Renu Katon, chancellor and president of the University of Houston
  • Ryan Lance, chairman and CEO of ConocoPhillips
  • Olivier Le Peuch, CEO of SLB
  • Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies SE
  • Adrian Tromel, chief innovation officer and interim VP for Innovation at Rice University
  • Bobby Tudor, founder and CEO of Artemis Energy Partners and chairman of HETI
  • Wael Sawan, CEO of Shell plc
  • Lorenzo Simonelli, chairman and CEO of Baker Hughes Co.
  • Mike Wirth, chairman and CEO of Chevron Corp.
  • Jeremy Pitts, managing director of Activate Houston
  • And many others

This year, CERAWeek will center around the theme of Convergence and Competition: Energy, Technology and Geopolitics.

"Change is inescapable," Yergin said in a news release. "The global energy landscape—and to a large extent the entire global economy—is being fundamentally reshaped by the dual forces of convergence and competition. The race for AI is fusing the energy and technology industries like never before, bringing into sharp relief the need to align energy expansion with sustainable economic growth."

"Yet, the potential for collaboration and innovation is increasingly matched by the risk for collision and conflict in a world marked by geopolitical rivalry, tariffs and fragmented supply chains," he continued. "Reconciling an increasingly complex world with the growing demand for energy that is stable, secure and affordable is a complex reality that CERAWeek 2026 will tackle when global energy leaders meet in Houston."

Key topics of discussion will include:

  • Politics, Economics, Trade and Supply Chains
  • Policy, Regulations and Stakeholders
  • Oil Value Chain
  • Power, Renewables, Generation and Grid
  • AI and Digital
  • Minerals and Mining
  • Electrification Technologies
  • Investment and Financing
  • Chemicals and Materials
  • Business Strategies
  • The Innovation Ecosystem
  • Managing Emissions
  • Low-Carbon Fuels and Mobility
  • Climate and Sustainability
  • Workforce Strategy

The CERAWeek Innovation Agora track, which is the program's deeper dive into technology and innovation, will feature thought leadership on "AI, decarbonization, low carbon fuels, cybersecurity, hydrogen, nuclear, mining and minerals, mobility, automation and more," according to the release.

Agora Hubs will return this year and be divided into three zones: new energies, carbon and climate, and AI. The hubs will feature amphitheater-style sessions and panels. Agora Pods will allow energy startups to showcase their ideas in 20- to 30-minute presentations.

Additionally, CERAWeek will introduce a new program this year on Friday, March 27. Known as Look Forward, it will focus on economics, politics and technology.

See the full agenda for the week here. Find more information and register for the event here.

Houston-based HEXASpec took home the top TEX-E prize and $25,000 at last year's Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition. Photo courtesy TEX-E.

40+ teams to pitch at annual CERAWeek clean energy competition

energy venture day

The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, the Houston Energy Transition Initiative (HETI), the Texas Entrepreneurship Exchange for Energy (TEX-E) and the Ion have named the 30-plus energy ventures and teams that will pitch at the 2026 Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition during CERAWeek this month.

The selected ventures are "driving efficiency and advancements toward the energy transition," according to the Rice Alliance. Each will each present a 3.5-minute pitch before a network of investors and industry partners during CERAWeek's Agora program on Wednesday, March 25, from noon-5:30 p.m.

The competition is divided up into the TEX-E university track, in which Texas student-led energy startups compete for $50,000 in cash prizes, and the industry ventures track.

Teams competing in the TEX-E Prize track include:

  • GOES
  • Quantum Power System
  • Quas
  • Resonant Thermal Systems
  • Srijan

The industry track is subdivided into three additional tracks, spanning materials to clean energy and will feature 37 companies. A group of expert judges will name the top three companies from each industry track. The winner of the CERAWeek competition will also have the chance to advance and compete for the $1 million investment prize at the Startup World Cup in November 2026.

Teams come from around the world, including several Houston-based ventures, such as Agellus Tank Robotics, Capwell Services and Corrolytics.

The full list of companies pitching at CERAWeek includes:

  • Agellus Tank Robotics
  • Airovation Technologies
  • Anax Power
  • Armeta
  • ATS Energy
  • Capwell Services
  • CarbonLume
  • Cogniprise
  • Corrolytics
  • Daphne Technology
  • Gemini Energy
  • Grid8
  • H Quest Vanguard
  • intcom
  • Ionada Canada
  • Junipix
  • Kunin Technologies
  • LAVA Power
  • Licube
  • LNK Energies
  • Maverick X
  • Membravo
  • Mirico
  • Mocean Energy
  • Monitorai
  • OCOchem
  • Oleo
  • Pix Force
  • PolyJoule
  • Power to Hydrogen
  • Sotaog
  • Spotlight
  • Tierra Climate
  • Verdagy
  • Via Separations
  • Vycarb
  • ZettaJoule

Those not attending CERAWeek can catch these companies and more than a dozen others at a pitch preview at the Ion. The free Pitch Preview will be held Tuesday, March 24, from 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Click here to register.

Additional companies pitching during the free preview include:

  • Ammobia
  • Arolytics
  • Ayrton Energy
  • ChainWeave
  • Cybereum
  • Energytech
  • ENP Technologies
  • KP Labs
  • Mcatalysis
  • Mitico
  • Mote
  • Nanos
  • New Horizon Oil and Gas
  • Predyct
  • Salem Robotics
  • Toluai

Two Rice University student teams took home top prizes during last year's TEX-E competition, while ventures from New Jersey, Wyoming and Virgina won in their respective industry tracks. See the full list of last year's winners here.

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American Airlines and Google ink record-breaking deal for cleaner jet fuel

SAF DEAL

Fort Worth-based American Airlines has sealed a record-breaking deal with tech giant Google to bolster the use of cleaner jet fuel.

The deal involves Google’s purchase of sustainable aviation fuel certificates tied to fuel that American will use at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, one of the airline’s hubs. These certificates enable companies like Google to pay for the environmental benefits of sustainable jet fuel without actually using the fuel.

American and Google say this is the largest publicly announced certificate deal between an airline and a corporate customer.

Google says environmental gains from the certificates will help it cut emissions from employees’ business travel.

The agreement covers 35 million gallons of sustainable aviation fuel over three years, resulting in a nearly 300,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. American has agreed to buy the fuel from San Antonio-based Valero.

“Our industry-leading agreement with Google is a critical step forward in reducing emissions from our operations,” Jill Blickstein, American’s chief sustainability officer, said in a news release. “By working with leaders like Google who share our commitment to innovation, we’re helping to grow demand for [cleaner jet fuel] and support the development of a stronger, more resilient market.”

Sustainable aviation fuel can reduce emissions by up to 80 percent compared with traditional jet fuel. It is made from feedstocks, like waste oil and fats, or it can be produced synthetically using captured carbon dioxide and renewable electricity.

The aviation industry accounts for about 2.5 percent of carbon dioxide emissions around the world, according to the International Energy Agency.

CenterPoint reports grid resilience updates as hurricane season begins

hurricane readiness

As hurricane season descends upon the region, CenterPoint Energy has shared the latest update on its Greater Houston Resiliency Initiative (GHRI) that’s been working to make grid upgrades and introduce weather-related tech since 2024.

As of April 2026, CenterPoint had:

  • Replaced more than 65,000 poles with stronger storm-resistant infrastructure
  • Trimmed or cleared more than 10,000 miles of vegetation
  • Undergrounded more than 500 miles of power lines
  • Installed more than 600 automation devices
  • Installed more than 150 weather stations

In May, CenterPoint announced its new Community Progress Tracker, which helps residents track electronic infrastructure improvements. In terms of other technology, CenterPoint has announced its partnership with weather, wildfire and flood modeling software Technosylva. The software is expected to help CenterPoint track weather conditions in advance to better prepare crews.

CenterPoint has also added 150 weather stations to improve weather monitoring, conducted a full-scale hurricane response exercise involving more than 400 employees and completed more than 25,000 hours of FEMA training across more than 800 employees. The company opened a new year-round Emergency Operations Center to help coordinate with emergency response partners, local and state officials, and media during major weather events.

“We are proud of the progress made in 2025, which helped deliver more than 100 million fewer outage minutes when compared to 2024, and we are determined to make even more progress in 2026 as we work toward our defining goal: building the nation's most resilient coastal grid,” Nathan Brownell, CenterPoint's vice president of resilience and capital delivery, previously said in a news release.

According to the company, the GHRI aims to improve overall grid resiliency and reliability and to reduce outages for customers. CenterPoint projects its efforts can reduce customer outages by 150 million by the end of 2026.

Energy expert: Why Houston's 100-degree days matter more than 5 years ago

guest column

If you are a Houston native or have lived in the city since the 1980s, you likely remember when a 100-degree day was so rare it made the local news. There were heat advisory warnings, with special attention to the midday hours, because the heat exposure carried with it risks like dehydration, heat stroke and extreme exposure to UV rays.

In this new era for our city and state, 100-degree days are becoming more common. Our local weather forecasters still report on the occurrence, but we are no longer able to restrict our activities as heavily.

The climate has changed rapidly, and Texans are navigating our collective response to the increased heat that has serious implications for our health, energy supply, economy and regional life.

Houston Has Always Been Hot, But This Heat is Different

Houston has expanded exponentially in the last few decades, doubling its population from roughly 1.4 million in 1976 to 2.4 million today. When we account for the growth in the surrounding suburbs, the population boom nearly quintuples.

Houston and the surrounding suburbs now total nearly 7 million people, a huge population increase that brings greater demand for energy. This demand impacts our infrastructure, energy availability, consumer costs, workforce productivity and water supply significantly. With these additions comes more asphalt and fewer trees. With less tree cover and green space, heat gets trapped, increasing temperatures in the city.

We are not just inheriting rising temperatures; we are also building hotter cities.

100-Degree Days and The Texas Grid

I have written before about our grid capacity, changes facing Texas, and the strain that we have seen on the grid. While redundancies in the Texas grid are improving, the pace of this change continues to pose challenges for our area.

The extreme heat has now made air conditioning mandatory for a greater percentage of days during the calendar year. AC units (large and small) are no longer cycling on and off as they are designed to run; instead, most systems are running continuously to meet the needs of Texans.

Daily activities and devices, including remote work, the AI boom, physical exercise, children’s playtime, charging multiple devices, and streaming entertainment, require much more cooling than in previous generations, producing a much larger demand on the grid.

Additionally, the way Houstonians live at home has also changed. Homes across America are much larger on average than they were in the 1980’s. Also, with the rise of remote work, there is a greater need for all-day electricity in each individual household. These factors, combined with the exponential increase in the number of devices and appliances used in households, significantly affect energy demand in our region.

Of course, we’re also seeing massive usage of electricity from large business users (warehouses, data centers, and more), including empty office buildings as return-to-office is slower than expected post-pandemic.

Heat is Not the Only Culprit

As Houston is a coastal city, we not only have to contend with 100-degree temperatures, but humidity also adds an extra layer of complexity to our climate. Thanks to the humidity, temperatures stay elevated for longer periods, meaning everything is retaining heat at a higher rate and for longer than ever before.

The heat never really leaves us anymore, as we don’t have cooler nights to help balance these very hot days. The compounding effect of extreme temperatures and high humidity makes energy demand higher in our region than in places like the New Mexico desert.

Economic Impact on Our Region

Extreme heat hits Texans’ wallets long before a weather alert ever pops up. When temperatures stay above 100 degrees for days at a time, air conditioners are basically working overtime, which sends electricity bills climbing.

And the harder those systems run, the more wear and tear homeowners end up dealing with, usually at the worst possible time, like the middle of July when a boom of AC units decide to quit at once. Meanwhile, roads, transformers and other infrastructure are all under more stress than they were originally built for.

There’s also a much bigger ripple effect that people don’t always think about. When it’s dangerously hot outside, construction crews, energy workers, landscapers, and other outdoor industries simply can’t operate the same way, which slows productivity and raises safety concerns.

Cities are also spending more money on cooling centers and heat-related emergency response, and over time, all of those rising costs have a way of showing up somewhere, whether that’s insurance rates, utility costs or the price communities pay to keep up with extreme weather.

The Opportunity for Houston

Texas is becoming a real-time test case for what happens when extreme heat, rapid growth, and massive energy demand all hit at once. While problematic, it also creates a huge opportunity for Houston and the Texas energy sector to lead. If there’s any place equipped to determine what the future of energy resilience looks like, it’s the city that already powers so much of the world’s energy conversation.

And the solution isn’t just “create more electricity.” It’s about building a smarter, more flexible system overall with better grid technology, battery storage, stronger infrastructure, more efficient building, and energy systems that can handle these extreme weather swings without everything feeling stressed at once. The reality is that a lot of what Texas figures out over the next few years could become the blueprint for other cities and states across the country.

Houston is already testing some of these smarter resilience strategies, such as microgrids, stronger substations, and more flexible energy systems designed to keep critical facilities running during major storms or outages. The goal is simple: build a grid that can take a hit without everything feeling strained all at once.

Going Forward

Hotter days are here to stay. We can’t stop our lives amid the extreme heat, so we have to find ways to adapt and we have to do it quickly. If there’s one thing Texas has always done well, however, it’s innovate under pressure. The communities, companies and energy leaders that move fastest now won’t just be responding to the future, they’ll be helping define it.

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Sam Luna is director at BKV Energy, where he oversees brand and go-to-market strategy, customer experience, marketing execution, and more.

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