Centers of Excellence

The Innovation center is our key driver for growth: It is focused on global challenges and using local skill sets. The Texas Innovates Campus houses young companies that are innovating within energy, energy-efficiency, and the water-energy nexus. There is laboratory space, specialized equipment, and a pilot plant setup in addition to co-working office space. We focus on creating deep vertical centers of excellence where our corporate partners will innovate and collaborate with global technology leaders. There is no other incubator in the United States that focuses on solving key early-stage Carbon, H2 and Water issues for oil and gas and power utilities, and that there is no better-suited city for such a center than Houston.

Micro Housing

Overlooking the Buffalo Bayou is the mixed-use 18 story tower comprising of retail space and over 400 micro-apartment units able to house around 500 residents, as well as a gym, lounge, roof terrace, community kitchen, and garden. The residential micro and family apartment building provides housing for the innovation campus residents and the city’s growing number of small households. Apartments are made to be affordable on an absolute basis for both entrepreneurs and local residents seeking high quality and affordable rentals. Flexible housing brings people into Houston and helps anchor the community. Texas Innovates creates a community that fosters cross-company innovation, grows more successful start-ups, and delivers significant collaboration and savings opportunities for corporate members.

Commercial Space

Texas Innovates is striving to maximize the value of the Campus to the community. Emphasis is on clean/green/safe neighborhoods, job creation, and housing. We are responding to commercial needs of residents and currently see bringing in green produce, medical services, and childcare as top priorities. Most of the site is intended for public circulation and gathering. The street in front of the retail podium can be closed for temporary pedestrian use, such as festivals or markets. The roof of the commercial/retail podium will form a landscaped public plaza. Fitness equipment, jogging trails, and other activity space will be provided here, encouraging public use and providing prime views of downtown and the bayou. By providing this space, the Innovation Center becomes a hub for neighborhood interaction and cooperation. Food grown here (in the hydroponic farm) can be sold to local restaurants and grocers as a healthy, local source of produce.