Innovate Fort Worth

Abexxa Biologics is changing how we treat cancer. Using immunotherapy, Jon Weidanz is treating cancer through novel biotechnology that targets cancer cells and boosts immune systems of patients. Jon and Debra Weidanz are the co-founders of the biotech company Abexxa Biologics, that was acquired by Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) in 2021. Jon shares how he raised capital from BI venture funds, how Abexxa won their “golden ticket” competition and how they went from lab discovery to acquisition in just a few years.

What started off as a class project at TCU grew into a health food company that spans the nation. Austin Patry and Sophia Karbowski are the cofounders of Rollin’ n Bowlin’, the first acai bowl establishment in Fort Worth, who sought to provide nutritional food to their fellow university students. These two are taking over college campuses by providing healthy smoothies and acai bowls and have begun offering their products on grocery store shelves.

When it comes to renewable energy, Matthew Ciardiello is in rarified air. He is the CEO of Terrastor, a solution for dependable, carbon neutral energy storage in the ground. His team’s extensive knowledge of the energy sector is paving the way for a new form of energy storage and generation. He is harnessing the power of pressurized air, stored in porous rock, to create energy for high-demand use. He is one of many innovative entrepreneurs who are is making Fort Worth the “electrification capital” of the world.

Meet the new Managing Director of the Techstars Physical Health Accelerator in Fort Worth, Trey Bowles. Trey brings his knowledge as an entrepreneur, investor, advocate, and ecosystem builder to the this new program in our city. He dives into his rich past as an entrepreneur and how he built the local entrepreneurial ecosystem from his role as one of the founders of The DEC Network. He also explains what a Techstars accelerators is and why Fort Worth is the prime location for the world’s first accelerator focused on physical health.

SaferCare Texas is working to reduce medical errors and preventable harm in healthcare that affect 20 percent of the American population. John Simms and Lee Ann Cunningham are working to bring innovative solutions to market in Texas that can improve patient safety through patient advocacy, challenging conventional thinking and increasing collaboration in the medical field.

Luke Hejl and his team at Timely MD were building a telehealth company focused on college students when the pandemic of 2020 hit. They had the right solution at the right time that allowed students to see doctors digitally for their mental and physical health concerns. As schools began to shut down due to the pandemic, students’ needs for mental health services rose and TimelyMD was ready to scale, fueled by over $60 million in early-stage growth capital. Universities like Duke, John Hopkins, Notre Dame, and Abilene Christian partnered with TimelyMD to provide healthcare for students in uncertain times. Now, with over 150 partnerships, TimelyMD is transforming healthcare on college campuses around the United States.

Local, pre-clinical biotech company AyuVis is at the forefront of finding new ways to fight diseases through immunotherapy. Former Alcon employee, Dr. Suchi Archarya, has discovered a method to enhance the body’s immune system at the molecular level. AyuVis’ advisor, Ranjan Misra, explains how and why Dr. Archarya’s discovery is an innovative new way to fight both common and rare diseases.

In this episode, we literally flip the script and put our host in the hot seat. Marco Johnson, our very first guest on the show, serves as guest host as we interview our very own host Cameron Cushman about his work to build the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem in Fort Worth. He talks about his work in the George W. Bush Administration, his time at the Kauffman Foundation in Kansas City and about his failed startup, My Groom Room. And about that time he met Bono too.