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: Dallas Plastic Surgeon on His ‘cleaVage’ Breast Implant Musical

by | Sep 23, 2025
The Last Word above ran through Friedman's mind in 2019, when he was seeing "Hamilton" on Broadway. The Plano-based plastic surgeon didn't just muse about it—he put his own music talent to work, collaborating with Laura Goodenow to create "cleaVage," a comedic musical "inspired by the trailblazing surgeons and brave patients who shaped the spectacular rise, equally spectacular fall, and ultimate resurgence of silicone gel breast implants—which were invented in Texas in 1962."
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The Last Word: North Texas Bank CEO On the Fed’s First Rate Cut Since December
by | Sep 17, 2025
What does the Federal Reserve’s rate cut really mean? American National Bank of Texas CEO Robert Hulsey, who sits on the Dallas Fed board, weighs in.
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NYSE Texas Launch: Texas Governor Greg Abbott rings "The Closing Bell" at AT&T Stadium in Arlington with Lynn Martin, Jerry Jones, John Stankey, and Texas founding members on August 20, 2025. [Photo: NYSE]
The Last Word: NYSE Texas Kicks Off From the 50‑Yard Line of AT&T Stadium
by | Aug 20, 2025
NYSE president says Texas tops all states in listings with $4 trillion market cap, as Abbott rings the bell from "Y'all Street."
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Shane Scully behind the bar. [Courtesy: Caché]
The Last Word: On Dallas’ Newest Hidden Cocktail Lounge Above S&D Oyster Company, Coming Soon
by | Aug 19, 2025
Caché turns forgotten office space into a New Orleans-inspired sanctuary where every drink tells a story. Plus, take a look inside the Jones Baker-designed space.
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The Last Word: Dreamers of Day CTO On Small Website Misses That Lead to Big Problems

by | Aug 12, 2025
Your pretty website won't save you when technical missteps torpedo your revenue.
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The Last Word: On the New Brand Look of the 2025 BMW Dallas Marathon
by | Aug 6, 2025
The BMW Dallas Marathon is gearing up for its 2025 race weekend, to be held in a long, winding course around White Rock Lake December 12–14. One way it's doing that is by unveiling "a bold new logo" featuring a modern take on the Pegasus—Dallas' celebrated icon—stretching its neck out toward victory. Along with a refreshed merchandise collection, the updated visual identity "reflects the organization’s evolution as a premier running event and its deep connection to the Dallas community," organizers said.
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The Last Word: North Texas Financial Exec Breaks Down the AI Track at DFW Startup Week
Everyone’s talking about AI. But what do companies actually need to hear? Here’s what one veteran exec thinks startups and leaders really need to focus on—straight from the front lines at DSW25.
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The Last Word: Fort Worth Engineer On a ‘Mind-Blowing Robotics Trend Alert’
by | Jul 17, 2025
Columbia’s breakthrough points to a new kind of autonomy—because as one researcher puts it, “robots must ultimately learn to take care of themselves.”
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The Last Word: Tech FW on How Nanoscope’s ‘Watch Us’ Moment Could Help Blind Patients See Again

by | Jul 15, 2025
North Texas' Nanoscope just filed an FDA bid for its gene-agnostic therapy. If approved, it could help restore sight for people with inherited blindness, and potentially millions more with other retinal diseases.
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The Last Word: On the Growing Power of Women in Wealth Management
by | Jul 10, 2025
BFS Advisory Group President Debra Brennan Tagg is just one of several high-achieving female financial advisers quoted in D CEO's recent story "The Future of Wealth Management is Female." The article notes that by 2030, women in the U.S. will control nearly five times more wealth than they did 10 years ago. And increasingly, women are among the wealth managers who advise them on how to grow and protect their money.
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The Last Word: TestFit CEO on What’s Different About Founders
by | Jul 9, 2025
Eight years after his first day at TestFit—a Dallas-based real estate development feasibility platform that's helped clients speed up site planning by as much as 10 times—Harness took to LinkedIn to share "8 things about founders." His insights include "We will work 80 hours a week for fun"; "We will not accept defeat, even at a 97% casualty rate"; and "Motivation is our own. No carrot. No stick. Just manic intent."
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The Last Word: Entrepreneur and Investor Rogers Healy Says a Great Elevator Pitch Is ‘Sometimes Your Only Shot’
by | Jul 8, 2025
From knowing your "why" to nailing the follow-up, the Dallas-based investor who's backed over 100 brands took to LinkedIn to share tips for making those crucial 60 seconds count.
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The Last Word: On Preserving Turtle Creek’s Iconic Bridges Amid $2B in Development Projects

by | Jun 24, 2025
Dallas is known for its huge, skyscraping bridges over the Trinity River. But just a few miles north, eight small bridges along Turtle Creek have their own place in the history of the city and the hearts of its citizens. Now these low-key yet iconic bridges are being preserved and revitalized thanks to "The Bridges of Turtle Creek," an initiative launched by the Turtle Creek Association (TCA), Turtle Creek Conservancy (TCC), and the city of Dallas.
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The Last Word: Pegasus Film Festival’s Madeleine Beck on Giving Young Creatives a ‘Taste of Hollywood’
by | Jun 12, 2025
The student-led fest returns June 20–22 with 64 bold short films from DFW and around the world—including zombie substitute teachers, culture-clash comedies, and Kiwi tales of friendship. Plus: red carpet moments and real-world connections with film pros.
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The Last Word: Silent Ventures’ Jackson Moses on ‘Contrarian’ Defense Tech Bets
by | Jun 11, 2025
Jackson Moses was named to Business Insider’s Seed 100: The Best Early-Stage Investors of 2025 in May. Today, the Dallas-based venture capitalist shared Voyager Technologies’ IPO surge—with a message for defense tech holdouts, in a LinkedIn post.
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The Last Word: Dallas AI Experts Author New Executive Prompting Guide
by | Jun 10, 2025
Most people are getting AI all wrong—asking random questions and getting mediocre results, say Babar Bhatti and Masood Khan. Their new guide shows how to prompt like a pro and turn AI into your strategic team.
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