It’s been a big year so far for North Texas, especially when it comes to innovation.

As we wrap up August, we reflect on the stories behind the people and places that had been grabbing our readers’ attention. From major corporate projects (Toyota) to new hubs (Uber) to event recaps (CodeLaunch), our most popular stories certainly highlighted what’s new and next in Dallas-Fort Worth.

Here’s a roundup of our top 10 most-read stories on dallasinnovates.com for the month of August.

10. Toyota’s CEO on its New Experience Center: ‘It’s Really the Exclamation Point of Our Move Here to Texas’

The 44,000-square-foot Toyota Experience Center at the auto manufacturer’s Plano headquarters is now open, complete with actual cars, virtual reality, an innovation gallery, and even human support robots. It’s a representation of teamwork, company culture, talent, and the spirit of “One Toyota.” For now, it’s for employees and their guests, but get an inside look here.

[Photo: Courtesy Toyota]

9. ‘There’s No More Mall, Y’all’: How Two DFW Developers Are Reimagining Aging Retail Centers

From Southern Dallas’ Redbird Mall to Plano’s Collin Creek, traditional retail malls are being reinvented. The Urban Land Institute North Texas poses the question, “What’s in store for aging retail?” Here’s what these two developers had to say.

From left: Peter Brodsky and Mehrdad Moayedi [Courtesy photos]

8. Meet the Innovators: Xiaolin Lu, R&D Manager of Texas Instruments

The majority of Lu’s career has been at TI. Now, she spends her time at Kilby Labs—which touches every area of TI—to turn projects into products.

Xiaolin Lu in Ti’s Kilby Labs. [Photo: Courtesy TI]

7. Say Goodbye to Tents: This Carrollton Company Takes Pop-Ups To The Next Level

From sleeping pods to luxury showrooms, Event Architecture has done it all when it comes to portable event structures. Get a look at the mobile, easy-to-assemble modular components—and see where you might’ve spotted one in North Texas.

Event Architecture provided structures for this year’s MLB All Star Game in Cleveland. [Photo: Courtesy Event Architecture]

6. Photo Recap: Online Educational Series Wins This Year’s CodeLaunch

As the 2019 CodeLaunch 7 winners, 3GStrong will receive over $44K in product design, general startup consultation, legal services, and more. See what startups it went up against to take the top spot.

3GStrong’s Kelly Starnes and Jamie Peden hold up their CodeLaunch seed accelerator competition winner’s belt.

5. UNT Opens $12.6M Cutting-Edge Biomedical Engineering Building

The 26,500-square-foot facility has labs for research in exoskeleton technology, optics, and a bio 3D printer for printing cells that mimic human tissue.

The new Biomedical Engineering Building at UNT. [Photo: Courtesy UNT]

4. First Look: Take a Photo Tour of the Toyota Experience Center

From interactive kiosks and a motorsports gallery to virtual test drives and robots, get an inside look at the new Experience Center at Toyota’s Plano headquarters.

[Photo: Courtesy Toyota]

3. Uber Taps Dallas for Major Hub at The Epic in Deep Ellum, Bringing 3,000 Jobs

Dallas was the first city in Texas where the Uber app was available in 2012. Now, the city will host the second largest Uber hub outside of its headquarters in San Francisco.

Uber will take most of this planned office tower at The Epic. [Rendering: Courtesy Perkins + Will]

2. Role Play: “Indoor City” KidZania Announces Lineup of Industry Partners for First U.S. Location in Frisco

KidZania will give kids a chance to experience more than 100 careers sponsored by nationally recognized locals like MOOYAH, SMU, Texas Health Resources, WFAA, and more. The 75,000-square-foot kid-sized city is designed to educate and entertain children ages 4-14, “bridging the gap between school and their future.”

KidZania offers kids the opportunity to explore a variety of possible career opportunities. [Photo: Courtesy KidZania]

1. Here’s How KFC’s Global HQ in Plano is Driving Its High-Flying Success

From shrimp donuts to Cheetos sandwiches, Kentucky Fried Chicken doesn’t cook inside the lines. That’s largely due to the Food Innovation Team at its global headquarters in North Texas, who are responsible for maintaining the other teams (and their menu concoctions) across the world.

[Image: Michael Samples]

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