Houston Innovation Takes Center Stage at SXSW 2025 🚀

Houston made a strong impression at SXSW 2025, with two local startups winning top honors in the prestigious SXSW Pitch competition. Helix Earth, a clean-tech company born at Rice University and nurtured by Greentown Labs, took first place in the Smart Cities, Transportation & Sustainability category. Their NASA-co-developed air filtration system retrofits commercial HVAC units, cutting energy use by up to 50%. CEO Rawand Rasheed, recently named to Forbes 30 Under 30, called the win a validation of their mission to drive sustainable innovation. In the Security, GovTech & Space category, Little Place Labs secured a win with its AI-powered space analytics software, providing real-time insights for first responders and mission planners. Founded by Bosco Lai and Gaurav Bajaj, the startup previously joined the AWS Space Accelerator. Two more Houston companies, Trez and Tempesst Droneworx, were also finalists in this year’s competition. SXSW Pitch 2025 featured 45 finalists from 589 applicants, with over 93% of past participants receiving funding and acquisitions totaling $23.2 billion.

October 2026

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