Archive for the 'Events' Category

Sep10th2008

The Technology Center of West Houston & Katy Dock to Open Doors September 17th

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on September 10, 2008
in Events
. 0 Comments


Houston continues to demonstrate its focus on early stage technology startups with the launch of two additional supporting cast members: The Technology Center of West Houston and The Katy Dock.

The Technology Center of West Houston (TCWH), a Katy Area Business Incubator and Accelerator, has created an exciting new opportunity for early-stage technology companies in the Katy/West Houston area. The mission of the TCWH is to enable, launch and accelerate technology companies in Katy/West Houston and thereby create jobs and economic growth.

TCWH matches entrepreneurs and inventors with seasoned business professionals experienced in commercialization in several fields, including engineering, internet technology, hardware and software development, energy, medical related technology. Assistance is offered in strategy development, planning, capital funding, and professional areas. The TCWH is a joint initiative of the Katy Area Economic Development Council, HCC-Katy, Houston Technology Center, Smalley Institute at Rice University, JBMA, Inc., and the IP law firm of Patterson and Sheridan.

Along with the TCWH, West Houston will also be getting its first coworking facility with the Katy Dock. The Katy Dock allows Katy/West Houston area entrepreneurs, inventors, consultants, developers, and designers to work in a creative business atmosphere and successfully grow a company. The new Katy Dock facilities are available through the Katy Commerce Center. Professional advice, business mentoring and other consulting services are available through the onsite TCWH office. Pricing for Katy Dock starts at ‘free’ for once-a-week drop-ins to pricing levels for private desk space and dedicated offices. Warehouse, fulfillment and light manufacturing space is also available onsite, all at a fraction of the cost of traditional office leasing arrangements.

The grand opening for the TCWH and Katy Dock will be held at the new facility next Wednesday, September 17, 2008. Here are the details:

When
Wednesday, September 17th

Where
Katy Commerce Center
1773 Westborough Drive
Katy, Texas 77449 [map]

Pre-Registration
Jean Stout, Katy Commerce Center 281-206-0162

Program Agenda
4:00pm Site Tour - Katy Commerce Center / Katy Dock Coworking Site
5:00pm Networking - Exhibitors and Refreshments
6:15pm Panel Discussion - Funding and Financing Options for Small Business Growth
7:30pm Q & A + Closing Remarks
8:30pm Door Prize Drawing

Make a point of clearing your day to be at this grand occasion. You don’t want to miss being part of the incredible transformation that the greater Houston area is undergoing. I will see you there.

Sep10th2008

REBarCamp coming to Houston

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on September 10, 2008
in BarCamp
. 1 Comment
Real Estate BarCamp Houston, TX

Real Estate BarCamp Houston, TX

If you know me well, you’ll know that I have a passion for collaboration and events like BarCamp. Mike Price of MLBroadcast.com has coordinated Real Estate BarCamp in Houston next month on October 22, 2008.

Taking directly from the site, REBarCamp is:

REBarCamp Houston is a gathering of minds and open format event where real estate and technology professionals can learn and share discoveries and trends happening in the business, and discuss the future of the industry.

BarCamp is open to anyone. And anyone who wants to can attend and host sessions.

I am a huge advocate of these specialized events. That is why I have been working with various groups around town to have a BioCamp and GreenCamp in Houston this year. Do you have an idea for a Barcamp-esqe event? Let me know if I can help.

Aug24th2008

Save The Dates: BioCamp and GreenCamp Houston

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on August 24, 2008
in BarCamp
. 0 Comments

BarCamp

Building off of the sucessful showing we had at BarCamp Houston 2008, we are announcing two additional “Bar-Camp” themed events: BioCamp Houston and GreenCamp Houston.

BioCamp Houston will be held October 11, 2008 at the Houston Technology Center from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. BioCamp Houston is an informal, participatory, unconference BarCamp event to bring college/graduate students, postgraduate trainees, junior academic faculty, entrepreneurs, would be entrepreneurs and inventors as well as, technology champions from the Greater Houston area together to learn and network.

The conference will be focused on life sciences - biotechnology, medical devices, biomedical solutions, bioproducts and related topics. During the day there will be WiFi available, a catered lunch and great networking opportunities.

GreenCamp Houston will be held December 13, 2008 at a location still to be determined. GreenCamp Houston will be focused on all aspects of Green and Clean Technology and related topics. GreenCamp will discuss best practices for making a Global difference in energy conservation, material reuse and recycling and reduction of both personal and business waste.

You can sign up on both wiki sites under the attendees section. The wiki password is c4mp for both events. See you there. You can also follow news on both events via Twitter: BioCamp & GreenCamp. Facebook pages are coming soon.

Aug20th2008

Rice Alliance Event Calendar 2008-2009

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on August 20, 2008
in Education and Rice Alliance
. 0 Comments

Rice Alliance for Technology and EntrepreneurshipThe Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship is a flagship Houston program designed to showcase both technologies and entrepreneurs from the Greater Houston Region through educational workshops, venture forums and the national recognized Business Plan Competition. Every event is well attended and manages to attract the best and brightest minds year after year.

I recognize that I am a little late on getting this out, but wanted to provide everyone with the upcoming schedule of events for the Rice Alliance:

  • 9th Annual Rice Alliance Kick-Off Celebration: Thursday, August 28, 2008, 5:30 - 8:30 p.m.
  • 6th Annual Energy & Clean Technology Venture Forum: Thursday, September 25, 2008, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
  • 6th Annual IT & Web 2.0 Venture Forum: Thursday, December 11, 2008, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
  • 8th Annual Nanotechnology Venture Forum: Thursday, February 12, 2009, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
  • 2009 Rice University Business Plan Competition: Thursday - Saturday, April 16-18, 2009
  • 7th Annual Life Science Technology Venture Forum: Thursday, June 11, 2009, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

The best way to make a point of being at each event is to become a Rice Alliance member, like me. I like all of the events, personally, but would rank the clean tech and nanotech as ones not to miss. See you there!

Aug10th2008

BarCamp Houston 2008: I Am Still Exhausted

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on August 10, 2008
in BarCamp and General
. 14 Comments

The Schedule

If you did not get a chance to attend the happy hour at Caroline Collective Friday night or BarCamp Houston on Saturday at the Houston Technology Center, you missed out on two fantastic opportunities to socialize, collaborate and gain an education on why Forbes magazine calls Houston a, “bubbling entrepreneurial tech scene.” Here are some things that I walked away with after the event:

  • Never underestimate the value of strong sponsor support. Many of the sponsors for the weekend had a strong showing at the event through their financial support (C-TREC, BlogCatalog and BizTools), their attendance (Ryma, DFJ Mercury and TopSpot Internet Marketing) and their presentations (Spur Interactive’s Business and Social Media Workshop, BeagleBoard.org’s demo and Clearpoint Technology’s session). Our biggest debt of gratitude goes out to Marc Nathan (as well as his wife and family) and the Houston Technology Center for letting us take over both buildings for a day.
  • Bringing lunch in was the best idea I ever had. Last year, we all broke away for lunch and the event fizzled out after that. This year, we brought in Pappas BBQ and I believe it was a huge hit. Thanks to Ed Schipul for taking charge during feeding time to speed up the process. Most everyone was surprised that lunch was catered and it helped us recharge for the afternoon sessions.
  • Houston needs more events like this. Our early survey showed that over half of the early attendees had not been to a BarCamp before and left with a nice buzz. Based on several conversations throughout the day, I have already started coordinating two more BarCamp events for Houston: GreenBarCamp Houston and BioBarCamp Houston. If you are interested in being part of the planning for these events, sign up on the wikis. In addition, REBarCamp Houston is already scheduled.

If you want to read other perspectives of BarCamp Houston III, check out some of these attendees’ posts:

The photos that Michael Cummings took are available on his Flickr page.

BarCamp Houston Crew

Thanks to everyone for making this a great event.

Jul2nd2008

StartupHouston interviews Tara Hunt and Alex Hillman about Caroline Collective opening

Published
by
kurt
on July 2, 2008
in Conversations, Events, General and IT and Web 2.0
. 1 Comment

Continuing on our coverage about the Caroline Collective Opening and its impact on Houston’s technology startup and art scenes, we are posting interviews from various people who were at the opening party.

Part of the reason that we felt that this opening was different and signified that something special was happening in Houston, was the attention it drew not just from within the city, but from others outside.  Two pioneers in the CoWorking space flew in from both the west coast and the east coast to attend the opening party.  We’re talking about Tara Hunt with Citizen Space in San Francisco and Alex Hillman with Independents Hall in Philadelphia. 

Tara Hunt of Citizen Space and Alex Hillman of Independents Hall

Tara - Meeting Tara at this event was just a joy.  She carries so much genuine enthusiasm for CoWorking in general and Caroline Collective specifically that its hard not to be caught up in it.  It was Tara Hunt that infomed us that the Caroline Collective is the largest coworking space in the world based on square footage (yeah, the world) and is the first coworking space to also incorporate art space.  Overall a great interview and we look forward to hearing more great things that Tara is doing at Citizen Space.  You can also read her blog at http://www.horsepigcow.com .

Listen to the Interview with Tara Hunt

Alex - Alex Hillman also brought a lot of energy to the Caroline Collective opening.  (You can hear in my interview with him, how I mistakenly introduce him as one of the originators of the CoWorking concept ((not to be confused with Jelly)), and how he sets me straight on how Tara has pioneered the coworking space, how Independents Hall has contributed, and ultimately what he thinks Caroline Collective will mean for Houston’s Startup community).  A great interview not to be missed.  You can also read his blog at http://www.dangerouslyawesome.com/ .

Listen to the Interview with Alex Hillman

 

You can also see our whole set of shots of the opening party on Flickr here and all of the photos taken by a host of photographers at the event at the Caroline Collective Flickr group.

Jul2nd2008

HiMA Interactive Strategies ‘08

Published
by
Josh Tabin
on July 2, 2008
in Events and IT and Web 2.0
. 0 Comments

Houston Interactive Marketing Association

The Houston Interactive Marketing Association (HiMA) announced September 18, 2008 as the date for the second annual Interactive Strategies Conference 2008 titled “Secrets Exposed.” Interactive marketing veterans and newcomers alike will come together at the Angelika Film Center in Houston, TX, to learn the latest developments and strategies for successful interactive marketing.

The event will kick-off with a keynote by Tara Hunt (Twitter: @missrogue), co-founder of Citizen Agency and author of “The Whuffie Factor: The 5 Keys for Maxing Social Capital and Winning with Online Communities.” As a recognized leader in building brands, relationships and communities online, Hunt brings expertise, humor and perspective on the value of relationship marketing in the ever-changing interactive space and should make for a packed event.

“I’m really looking forward to speaking at and attending Interactive Strategies. Having spent some time getting to watch the Houston interactive community grow lately, I’ve been totally blown away,” says Tara Hunt. “The community is incredibly vibrant and supportive and projects like HIMA and Caroline Collective are making huge strides in creating the type of city that will attract all sorts of creative people and projects for years to come,” continued Hunt.

This exciting, one-day conference features three educational tracks-digital media, social media and search engine optimization-with intensive sessions conducted by some of the most sought after industry pioneers and veterans who will reveal their secrets and useful techniques for successfully harnessing the power of interactive marketing.

HiMA, practicing what it preaches, will also host a Twitter meet-up in the morning and will  conclude with an onsite casual mixer. In between sessions, attendees will enjoy an unique twist in typical conference food and refreshments that will include popcorn and other concessions from the theater while they exchange notes and ideas.

Jul1st2008

Next Houston Startup Happy Hour is this Thursday, July 3rd

Published
by
kurt
on July 1, 2008
in Events, General, Houston Startup Happy Hour, IT and Web 2.0 and VC and Angel Funding
. 0 Comments

houston_startup_happy_hour_minilogo_1.png

Startup Houston and the Houston Technology Center are proud to present

Start JULY off with a BANG at the Houston Startup Happy Hour!!!

Here is your chance to meet Houston’s growing network of emerging startups, entreprenuers, investors, and technology enthusiasts to share drinks, tips and beta invites. Swap business cards and war stories and learn something new about Houston’s Tech Scene!

This month we will feature a demo from one of Houston’s hottest startup companies: SnapStream Media !!

 

Join Us For:

  • ->   Free drinks for the first 25 people
  • ->   Wine-by-the-glass drink specials from 6 pm to 8 pm
  • ->   Complimentary hors d’oeuvres
  • ->   A live demo of SnapStream’s new TV search software!
  • ->   Open mic for all startups to make announcements and provide sneak peeks of their latest sites and services
  • ->  Meet Houston’s hottest innovative startups and entrepreneurs

 

The July Houston Startup Happy Hour features a live presentation of SnapStream’s latest release of their TV search software. SnapStream’s consumer product was showcased by Bill Gates in his keynote at the Windows XP Launch in 2001 and since then it’s received lots of industry awards and recognition, including PC Magazine Editor’s Choice. Snapstream’s newest product, SnapStream Enterprise, allows organizations to record and search within thousands of hours of TV recordings. It’s used by 1) presidential campaigns, 2) city/state/federal governments, 3) TV shows (like E!’s The Soup), 4) K-12 schools and universities, and many more. Come meet the founders and see a demo of their TV search software in action at Thursday’s Houston Startup Happy Hour!

Thanks again to SnapStream for also being the sponsor of the July Houston Startup Happy Hour!

 

The Tasting Room

When:
Thursday, July 3rd
6pm - 9pm

Where:
The Tasting Room @ River Oaks
2409 W. Alabama
(713) 526-2242
(Click here for map)

RSVP (here)
 Continue reading ‘Next Houston Startup Happy Hour is this Thursday, July 3rd’

Jun6th2008

Don’t Miss the Caroline Collective Opening Party this Saturday (tomorrow)

Published
by
kurt
on June 6, 2008
in Events, General and IT and Web 2.0
. 0 Comments

Houston, TX (June 05, 2008) Houston’s first coworking venue, Caroline Collective, opens its doors with a celebration on Saturday, June 7th. The facility provides Houston’s creative and technical communities with the collaborative and networking environment of a traditional office space, in a nontraditional cafe-like community collaboration space.  The inaugural event is co-hosted by ArtStorm featuring collage artist Patrick Turk, and the tenants of Caroline.  The public party is from 7-10pm.

With support of local businesses, Caroline Collective will have a variety of eats, beats, and beverages throughout the night. Libations will be supplied by Houston’s own Saint Arnold Brewery, Texas-bred Tito’s Vodka and Green Drinks, a weekly collaboration between Monica Pope’s Beaver’s and New Living.   Tasty bites will be provided by local Chef David Grossman, Rice Village’s Kahn’s Deli and Author/Chef Clive Berkman, sponsored by Blogcatalog.   Icy treats provided by Trentino Gelato and collaborative cutting edge sounds by Boondock’s successful monthly, Don’t Fight It, featuring DJ Dave Wrangler, Piss Heavy, and Young Squaddy. Copy dot com will serve as the official printing provider of Caroline Collective.

Special guests include author and social media expert, Tara Hunt, co-founder of San Francisco’s coworking venue, Citizen Space, and Alex Hillman, founder of Philadelphia’s Independents Hall.  Caroline Collective is honored that these two coworking mavens will be present for the ceremonial opening of Houston’s first coworking space.

As the global marketplace continues to free the worker from a physical location, more and more independent professionals work as either “digital nomads” or based out of home office. Successful coworking operations already exist in worldwide cities such as San Francisco, Philadelphia, Paris, Vancouver, Milan, and Buenos Aires.

Co-founders of Caroline Collective, and Rice University graduate students, Ned Dodington and Matthew Wettergreen conceived the coworking space in Houston after experiencing coworking environments in San Francisco’s Citizen Space and Philadelphia’s Independents Hall.

“The coworking movement strives to combine the relaxed working environment of the home office with a dynamic social atmosphere,” explains Doddington. “The model encourages the free flow of projects and ideas and is founded on the belief that working together is working smarter.”

Continue reading ‘Don’t Miss the Caroline Collective Opening Party this Saturday (tomorrow)’

Jun3rd2008

Next Houston Startup Happy Hour is this Thursday, June 5th

Published
by
kurt
on June 3, 2008
in Events, Houston Startup Happy Hour, Houston Venture Capitalists, IT and Web 2.0 and VC and Angel Funding
. 0 Comments

houston_startup_happy_hour_minilogo_1.png

Startup Houston and the Houston Technology Center are proud to present
The June Houston Startup Happy Hour.

Open Call for Demos! Show up and Show Off!

The June Houston Startup Happy Hour features an open call for any startups who want to demo their sites to just show up and demo. We will have an area in the back to set up for laptops with power and wireless access. We will be putting together a video of all demos and promoting them on our site. Come one, come all and show Houston what you’ve got!  There will also be an open mic opportunity for all startups to share recent announcements with the rest of Houston’s startup community.

Email us if interested: events “@” startuphouston.com  

New Location! New Format!

Here is your chance to meet Houston’s growing network of emerging startups, entreprenuers, investors, and technology enthusiasts to share drinks, tips and beta invites. Swap business cards and war stories and learn something new about Houston’s Tech Scene!

Join Us For:

  • Free drinks for the first 25 people
  • Wine-by-the-glass drink specials from 6 pm to 8 pm
  • Complimentary hors d’oeuvres
  • An open call for startups to demo
  • Open mic for all startups to make announcements and provide sneak peeks of their latest sites and services
  • Meet Houston’s hottest innovative startups and entrepreneurs

The Tasting Room

When:
Thursday, June 5th
6pm - 9pm

Where:
The Tasting Room @ River Oaks
2409 W. Alabama
(713) 526-2242
(Click here for map)

RSVP (here)
 Continue reading ‘Next Houston Startup Happy Hour is this Thursday, June 5th’