Forging The Future with Chris Howard
Join Chris Howard, Founder and CEO of Softeq, as he interviews knowledgeable leaders in the innovation spectrum, including CEOs, CTOs, R&D professionals, and start-up founders. Real conversations, technology, and processes of bringing new ideas to market.
51
Additive Manufacturing & the Future of Engineer...
Timothy Neal, CEO of AmPd Labs, joins the pod to talk about the future of manufacturing and the industry side of 3D printing. Standing for “additive manufacturing product design,” AmPd Labs is a Houston-based additive manufacturing startup with...
26 min
52
Equipping Today’s Entrepreneurs for Tomorrow’s ...
Muriel Foster, Director at gBETA Houston, joins Forging the Future in a conversation about equipping entrepreneurs with skills, networks, and mentors for the challenges of the future. gBETA is a part of a growing community of accelerators under the...
28 min
53
Networks in Action: Driving Economic Growth Thr...
Forging the Future heads to Austin for the Texas Venture Forum & Gala to discuss community-driven innovation happening across the state and the impacts of the Texas triangle on the global economy. From Austin’s own backyard to Latin America,...
38 min
54
Capital Connections: Bridging Family, Finance &...
Denny Chared, Founder of DC Finance, joins Chris at the Texas Venture Gala & Forum in Austin to discuss the current trends and future potential of family office investments in tech and venture. With origins in Israel and a base in New York, DC...
22 min
55
The Billion-Dollar Path of People-Centric Leade...
Jay Steinfeld, Founder of Blinds.com and Entrepreneur in Residence at Rice Business School, presses rewind to take Chris to 2001 to discuss the founding, innovating, and selling his company. Originally started as Laura’s Draperies, Bedspreads, and...
36 min
56
Dell for Startups: From Cowboy Boots to Startup...
YJ Lin, Sr Program Manager at Dell for Startups, joins Chris at South by Southwest to celebrate 40 years of Dell and the company’s recent initiatives to make startups soar, both in Houston at The Cannon and around the world. Dell for Startups...
26 min
57
From Lone Star to Tech Star: Texas' Triangle Tr...
Thom Singer, CEO of Austin Technology Center (ATC), meets up with Chris at SXSW to celebrate the past of Austin’s amazing tech accomplishments and look to the future of a more innovative Texas. Made up of 280 companies and over 60,000...
27 min
58
Beyond Tomorrow: Futurism, Entrepreneurship, an...
Chris takes Forging the Future on the road to Austin for 2024’s South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference, held from March 8 - 16. Speaking with special guests and subject matter experts Mike Courtney, Ilya Tabakh, and Ehab Gabr, this episode tackles a...
27 min
59
Reimagining Leadership Development in the Age o...
Chris talks with Kim Bach, the SVP of Customer Success and CPO at for an episode on groundbreaking AI technology as a tool for fostering and sustaining human skills in organizations. Kim helped pilot Dailyhuman in the NFL Combine through a readiness...
25 min
60
Feeding Tomorrow: Revolutionizing the Future of...
Aaron Knape, CEO and Co-Founder of Rivalry Tech, joins the pod to talk about his journey to entrepreneurship and what it's like to scale a leading technology company in Houston. Rivalry Tech began with their mobile platform, sEATz, and has now...
33 min
61
Accenture's Approach to Corporate Innovation at...
Brian Richards, Managing Director at Accenture’s Houston Innovation Hub, joins the pod to talk about helping senior leaders at large corporations in greater innovation and spearheading projects in the Houston innovation community. Serving...
29 min
62
Corporations at the Forefront of Catalyzing Hou...
Scott Gale, Executive Director of Halliburton Labs, brings innovation and scale to center stage in this week’s episode. Founded in 2020, Halliburton Labs provides access to a unique industrial setting catered to the specific needs of tech startups...
29 min
63
Investing in Houston Healthcare: Making a Globa...
Jay Zeidman, Managing Partner of Altitude Ventures and Chairman of the Board for Houston First, talks about making impactful investments in the future of healthcare and the wellbeing of Houston. Based in Nashville, Altitude Ventures accelerates growth...
34 min
64
Activating Venture Capital Across Texas's $2.4 ...
CS Freeland, Founder of the Texas Venture Alliance and creator of the Texas Venture Crawl (now known as Texas Venture Fest), joins the pod to share her unique insights on the thriving innovation scene in Texas. Founded in 2022, the Texas Venture...
30 min
65
How Houston’s Impacting the Globe through Innov...
Steve Kean, President and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership (GHP), joins the pod to talk about the unique innovations and impact the city of Houston has already accomplished and can look forward to on the horizon. Formed in 1989, the Greater...
27 min
66
Launching and Scaling Softeq Venture Studio wit...
Chris Howard, Founder and CEO of Softeq, switches places from host chair to the hot seat in this part two episode guest hosted by entrepreneur, angel investor, and COO of Softeq, Craig Ceccanti. Continuing their previous conversation from part one,...
16 min
67
Insights from a 30-Year Tech Founder with Chris...
Chris Howard, Founder and CEO of Softeq, switches places from host chair to the hot seat in this episode guest hosted by entrepreneur and angel investor Craig Ceccanti. Inspired by feedback from his own interview on Forging the Future, Craig wants to...
25 min
68
Houston-Based SnapStream's Ascent to $7M in ARR...
In this episode of Forging the Future, Chris sits down with Rakesh Agrawal, founder and CEO of SnapStream, to discuss his journey of founding and scaling a technology business in Houston prior to the prevalence of the budding ecosystem that exists...
29 min
69
Scaling Innovation Across a University of 47,00...
Dr. Ramanan Krishnamoorti, Vice President of Energy and Innovation at University of Houston, takes the pod on a field trip to the UH Tech Bridge. With a unique blend of wet labs and office space, the UH Tech Bridge offers students and faculty the...
39 min
70
How Houston Startup Liongard Scaled & Secured $...
Joe Alapat, CTO & Founder of Liongard, takes a journey through customer feedback and company pivots in this episode about his cybersecurity platform, Liongard. From rough beginnings of selling too wide of a product to customers, Liongard has grown...
27 min
71
Universities Propelling Entrepreneurs with Pete...
Peter Rodriguez, Dean of Jones School of Business at Rice University, brings his education expertise to the pod to talk about the future of entrepreneurship and business learning in Houston. Rice has put Houston on the map for having some of the best...
27 min
72
Navigating the VC Landscape: Blair Garrou on Se...
Blair Garrou, Managing Director at Mercury, brings his leadership in Houston venture capital to the pod to discuss the origins of Mercury and the shift in investing perspectives from growth to profitability. Having just closed their fifth fund a...
36 min
73
Houston Startups Showcase a City on the Rise wi...
Forging the Future is on the road this week at the Houston Startup Showcase at the Ion. Joined by guests Gustavo Suarez, Founder & CEO of Trez, and Samra Nawaz, CEO & Co-Founder of WellWorth, Chris takes the hot seat and walks through his own...
24 min
74
Meet the Climate Tech Startup That Breaks the M...
Mike Francis, CEO and Co-Founder of Nanotech, joins the pod to talk about his cutting edge climate conscious technology and the all-Texas round recently raised by NanoTech. Through an innovative roof coating, NanoTech can reduce lost heat and limit...
32 min
75
Building a $1.2 Billion Valuation Startup at Ca...
Remington Tonar, Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer at Cart.com, brings his wide variety of skills and interests to the pod to chat about the extremely fast and incredibly impactful success of Cart.com. Having just closed a funding round of $60...
30 min