Every Last Word

Dallas Innovates’ signature series capturing what leaders across North Texas are saying — in their own words — about innovation, impact, and what’s next.

The Last Word: Anton Pil of JPMorgan Chase on the Impact of Drugs Like Ozempic on People’s Spending Patterns

by | Jan 19, 2024
“GLP-1 drugs, medications like Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs that are actually diabetes drugs, provide me with retail insights,” said Pil, according to a takeaway featured in D CEO. “We can look through Chase’s anonymized data by individual—we bank more than 95 million individuals in this country—and I can identify people who are on Ozempic based on their spending patterns."
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The Last Word: Resilient Healthcare’s Jackleen Samuel on Hospital-at-Home Programs
by | Jan 17, 2024
Samuel is just one of several healthcare CEOs and executives interviewed about federally sanctioned hospital-at-home programs in a new article by Texas CEO Magazine.
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The Last Word: LG’s Alec Jang on Empowering Clean Energy and Local Jobs with New EV Charger Facility in Fort Worth
by | Jan 16, 2024
LG’s new 100,000-square-foot Fort Worth plant will have an annual capacity of 12,000 units, while operating with “100% green power,” the company said, adding that it will bring “dozens of new tech jobs” to North Texas—reinforcing LG’s commitment to the region as an innovation and manufacturing hub of the future.
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Dallas-based Mynd Immersive, in collaboration with AT&T, HTC VIVE, and the CTA Foundation, has launched the 'Great American Elderverse' at CES 2024 in Las Vegas, a groundbreaking campaign poised to revolutionize the lives of millions of older adults across the nation.
The Last Word: Mynd Immersive’s Chris Brickler on Launching the ‘Great American Elderverse’ at CES 2024
by | Jan 12, 2024
This week at CES 2024 in Las Vegas, Dallas-based Mynd Immersive launched the "Great American Elderverse," a virtual destination filled “with love, care, and compassion for older adults,” with exercises and experiences to promote mental, physical, emotional, and cognitive health.
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The Last Word: Billionaire Richard Branson Speaking in Dallas on Starting Your Own Business

by | Jan 10, 2024
He's been flown into space on his own Virgin Galactic space plane. He's crossed the Atlantic and Pacific in a hot air balloon, and set a speed record for crossing the Atlantic in a powerboat. But billionaire Richard Branson's biggest daredevil acts have arguably been founding businesses—from Virgin Records to Virgin Atlantic to Virgin Mobile to Virgin Hotels and many, many more.
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The Dallas skyline, led by the illuminated Reunion Tower, shone in gold on Monday, January 8, as a tribute to the late Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson.
The Last Word: President Biden on the Life and Legacy of Eddie Bernice Johnson
by | Jan 9, 2024
Former longtime Dallas Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson died on New Year's Eve at the age of 89, and President Biden was one of those who paid their respects at a prayer service honoring her Monday night.
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The Last Word: Plug and Play’s Sherif Saadawi on Opening Two North Texas Offices
by | Jan 8, 2024
“I think DFW represents such a strong market for Plug and Play,” Saadawi told Dallas Innovates. “it’s kind of remarkable that we haven’t been there this whole time.”
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The Last Word: Rob Upchurch on His Favorite ‘Innovate Fort Worth’ Podcast Guest of 2023
by | Dec 21, 2023
Cameron Cushman, Assistant VP of Innovation Ecosystems at HSC Fort Worth, is host of the "Innovate Fort Worth" podcast, Powered by UNT Health Science Center, the podcast shares the stories of the city’s leading innovators, entrepreneurs and investors—and highlights the resources available to bring ideas to market.
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The Last Word: Allen EDC’s Dan Bowman on Planned Katy Trail Ice House Development in Allen

by | Dec 19, 2023
Some people think it's a drag to go to the office. But what if right outside your workplace there's a $10 million new Katy Trail Ice House on wooded grounds with three barbecue smokers, a ranch theme, and seating for 1,200 people? 
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The Last Word: Frisco Mayor Jeff Cheney on Leading Texas in Number of Roundabouts
by | Dec 18, 2023
Frisco is the No. 1 city in the Lone Star State and the No. 7 city in the U.S. in its number of roundabout intersections. That's according to a story by Susan McFarland in the Dallas Morning News. Citing data from Kittelson & Associates, the DMN says Frisco has 61 roundabouts, with four more under construction and 16 in the design phase.
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The Last Word: Lars Williams on the First-Ever Doritos Nacho Cheese Spirit
by | Dec 15, 2023
Chip-loving spirit fans have spent their adult lives dividing their loyalties between bags of crunchy chips and bottles of spirited spirits—until now. This week, Plano-based Frito-Lay announced the launch of the first-ever Doritos Nacho Cheese spirit, in a collaboration with Copenhagen-based Empirical spirits. 
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The Last Word: Skiles Group CEO Keyan Zandy On Quality Over Quantity
by | Dec 12, 2023
Zandy, who won a "Pioneer" award for lean construction in October, developed a crisis management tool for construction that's earned him two patents as well as awards from Constructech Vision and AGC. He shares his thoughts on redefining success for 2024 in an option piece on D CEO.
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The Last Word: Gabe Madison on the Bonton Farms Wellness Center ‘Seed of Change’

by | Dec 8, 2023
Bonton Farms is "cultivating growth" in South Dallas with its urban farm, farmers market, and community-building efforts that include education, job training, housing, and more. Now the nonprofit has broken ground on a facility that will provide medical and wellness services to residents in the community.
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The Last Word: Allison Cook on How Farmers Branch Is Becoming a Restaurant Destination
by | Dec 6, 2023
Farmers Branch, the suburb on Dallas' northwest edge, has been many things since its founding as a community called Mustang Branch in the 1840s. One thing it hasn't been known for until now: a growing restaurant destination.
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The Last Word: Good Urban Development’s Shannon Brown-Key on the Mill City 50 Affordable Housing Project in Southern Dallas
by | Dec 5, 2023
Mill City 50, a 50-home affordable housing community planned for a neighborhood in Southern Dallas, is slated to have its first 10 homes hit the market in early 2024. It will be the result of the project leadership of Brown-Key, whose company is a joint venture between Matthews Southwest and Dallas nonprofit Urban Specialists Inc.
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The Last Word: BCG’s Liz Sparkman on How AI is Transforming Tasks—and People Can Adapt
by | Dec 4, 2023
BCG's Liz Sparkman spoke last month at the Dallas Regional Chamber's final Talent Attraction Talk of the year, focusing on the growing impact of technology—especially AI—on business and human resources.
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