Capital Factory

Why These Founders, Educators, and Executives Moved to Dallas‑Fort Worth—and Stayed

Startup culture, higher ed, advanced tech, and quality of life drew them in—but what kept them here is more personal. Meet the 10 transplants who now call North Texas home. As one newcomer put it: “We’re living our best life in Texas.”
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Dallas-Based Worlds’ Pioneering ‘Large World Model’ Platform Could Be the Next Leap Forward in AI’s Evolution
by | Oct 16, 2024
CEO Dave Copps says Worlds is delivering AI for the real world, in real time. Spotlighted by Gartner, Worlds’ breakthrough tech for enterprise creates a dynamic “index of everything” from any camera or sensor. The goal? To radically transform how organizations monitor, measure, and automate their operations.
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Venture Dallas Names First Round of Speakers for 2024 Summit
by | Oct 11, 2024
Featuring leaders like Jesse Draper of Halogen Ventures, Jim Lee of the Texas Stock Exchange, and Christopher Darby, former CEO of In-Q-Tel, the October 30 event at the Bush Center in Dallas will focus on emerging trends in sectors such as healthcare, national security, and the creator economy.
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Innovation Meets Investment: Venture Dallas 2024 Summit Returns With J.P. Morgan and Perot Jain Leading the Charge

by | Aug 19, 2024
With heavyweight backers like JPMorgan Chase and Perot Jain returning, the North Texas venture capital summit is gearing up for its fourth edition. Ahead of the event, the board offers insights on the region's tech boom and offers a glimpse of what’s to come.
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The first-ever AI 75 — the most innovative people in artificial intelligence in Dallas-Fort Worth — is revealed on May 2 at Convergence AI.
Presenting the First-Ever AI 75: Meet the Most Innovative Leaders in Artificial Intelligence in Dallas-Fort Worth
by | May 2, 2024
Dallas Innovates, the Dallas Regional Chamber, and Dallas AI have teamed up to launch the inaugural AI 75 list. The 2024 program honors the most significant people in AI in DFW in seven categories—the visionaries, creators, and influencers you need to know.
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The Last Word: Quincy Preston On the ‘Most Innovative People in Artificial Intelligence’ in Dallas-Fort Worth
by | Feb 22, 2024
At Capital Factory's "Future of AI" salon Tuesday, the AI 75 list—a new program recognizing the most innovative people in artificial intelligence in Dallas-Fort Worth—was officially announced by Dallas Innovates in partnership with the Dallas Regional Chamber, and Dallas AI.
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A ‘Moonshot’ for Strengthening the Brain: Founder Sandi Chapman on UTD’s Center for BrainHealth at 25
by | Feb 15, 2024
Now a quarter-century old, the Dallas-based cognitive neuroscience facility has grown from a "ragtag team" to a globally significant research institute dedicated uniquely to building better brain function. Here’s how it happened under chief director Sandra Bond Chapman, PhD.
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‘Innovation Meets Investment’: Venture Dallas Sets Sights on National Stage with New Branding, Expanded 2023 Summit

by | Sep 27, 2023
The rebrand "marks the start of our next chapter of growth," says Venture Dallas Chair Aaron Pierce. The nonprofit's 2023 summit, backed by JPMorgan Chase and Perot Jain, is set for October 25.
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How UTDesign Established Itself as a ‘Secret Weapon’ Turning Tech Hurdles Into Business Game-Changers
From vacuum cleaners that can climb stairs, to robots built for firefighting, students in UT Dallas's UTDesign Capstone program are solving modern tech challenges. Companies in need? They're tapping into this pool of innovation, getting fresh solutions in AI, AR, robotics, bioengineering, and more.
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Meet the Top VCs in Dallas-Fort Worth, According to Business Insider
by | Mar 3, 2023
If you've founded a North Texas startup, chances are you'd love to meet a venture capitalist. Here are a four to know in North Texas.
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How Dallas-Fort Worth Has Become a Hotbed of Artificial Intelligence Technology
by | Feb 16, 2023
"AI now is where the web was in the mid- to late-'90s," Sentiero Ventures' David Evans says. And North Texas is becoming central to the AI revolution, he and other local tech leaders contend. DFW's role as an AI hub has been burnished by its tech workforce, the breadth and diversity of its industries, its thriving startup community, and its wealth of AI-oriented universities and research institutions. Most important of all, though, is the region's status as a magnet for Fortune 500 companies, many of which are eager to partner with AI's local pioneers.

Here's what leading North Texas experts have to say.
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Dallas-Based Worlds Raises $21.2M to Help Build the Industrial Metaverse

Worlds' platform brings AI-based automation directly into the ground-floor operations of large industrial companies—with IoT sensors, people, and processes all coming together inside a live digital twin. Companies can then reimagine their operations in ways that were previously impossible, co-founder and CEO Dave Copps says. "We're fortunate because what we built is the right thing to have at the right time," Copps told us. "I think we're really in the catbird seat right now."
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Legendary Dallas Innovator John Carmack Raises $20M for Artificial General Intelligence Startup Keen Technologies
by | Dec 16, 2022
Carmack—the former CTO of VR giant Oculus—has taken goggle-gazing to the next level, programmed Doom and Quake, and founded a Mesquite-based space tourism startup. Now he's on a mission he says "could change the course of human history": artificial general intelligence. Keen's focus on AGI could lead to "something that behaves like a human being or like a living creature, and that can then be educated in whatever ways that we need to," he says.

Carmack believes AGI will hit the market in less than a decade. enabling AIs to interact socially with each other—or with actual people.  
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‘It’s a Different World Out There’: Investors Share Their Insights on the Changing Funding Landscape
by | Nov 14, 2022
At the recent Venture Dallas conference, a panel of leading investors talked market trends and shared insights to help those on both sides of the cap table. Here are key takeaways—from tips for fundraising founders to what startups need to offer to what makes Dallas an exciting place to invest. “As an entrepreneur, just hustle. Don't take ‘No’ for an answer. You're going to get a lot of ‘No’s,’ so just keep at it," said Pialy Aditya, chief strategy officer at Republic.
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Tech Talk and ‘Meaningful Connections’: 10 Takeaways From Venture Dallas 2022
by | Nov 7, 2022
At last week's Venture Dallas conference, more than 400 VCs, angel investors, startups, and business leaders gathered for a showcase of North Texas' entrepreneurial and venture ecosystem. Here's a look at the highlights—from Troy Aikman saying "There are no shortcuts" to Alto Founder Will Coleman on the power of doing "the opposite" to Mark Cuban's "ready, fire, aim" approach. “Regions like Texas and Dallas-Fort Worth, we’re the model for the rest of the nation on how to get things done," Ross Perot Jr. said at the conference kickoff.
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