As a hub for medical device manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and health research, Houston has more than 1,760 life sciences companies, cutting-edge health care facilities and research institutions. The healthcare and life sciences industries collectively employ 320,500 workers, making these larger than Houston’s energy sector.
The Houston region is home to more than 18,000 biotech specialists and 25,700 of the world’s top medical researchers. Nearly 4,200 clinical trials were active in the Houston region in ’17, representing 13.4 percent of all trials in the country. Nearly $180 million in venture capital has been routed to life science and health-related tech companies in Houston in ’19. Houston-area universities conducted $1.9 billion in life sciences research in ’18, according to the National Science Foundation.
In the field of health and medical technology, the Texas Medical Center’s Innovation Institute coordinates the efforts of several life science-focused incubator and accelerator programs. The organization aims to help startup companies commercialize new medical technologies by providing access to the vast resources of the world’s largest medical center.
The Innovation Institute’s accelerator program, TMCx, focuses on early-stage companies making breakthroughs in medical devices, digital health care services, diagnostics and therapeutics. A related program, TMCx+, is an incubator that targets seed-stage companies in the same sectors. The Texas Medical Center launched the TMC Venture Fund in ’17, which aims to invest $25 million in early stage health care tech companies in Houston.
TMC Innovation partners with two industry-backed programs supporting health innovation. Johnson & Johnson’s JLABs @TMC provides lab space and support to companies developing promising technologies in consumer health, medical devices and pharmaceuticals, while the AT&T Foundry supports companies developing digital health services.
Josh Pherigo
Manager, Research
713-844-3617
jpherigo@houston.org
Patrick Jankowski, CERP
Senior Vice President, Research
713-844-3616
pjankowski@houston.org
Number of local clinical trials in '17, 13.4 percent of the U.S.
Funding available from TMC for early stage health care tech companies
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