the dec network

Black Girl Magic Takes Top Prize at Pitch Competition

by | Nov 10, 2022

From experiences for people to products for bulldogs, six founders in The DEC’s “Your Level Up” cohort competed for the top three spots, which came with cash prizes—and a chance to make an impression on other founders and potential investors. 

Each founder had five minutes and could use up to 10 slides to achieve three objectives: talk about themselves, give an overview of their team, and share their financial projections.  ...

MORE►
Check Out the Emerging Tech Trends This Dell Technologies Leader Is Tracking
by | Aug 10, 2022
Rakesh Apte, Dell's director of product management and innovation strategy, lays out the emerging trends driving the future of innovation in the technology space that companies big and small should have their eyes on.
MORE►
Dallas Medical Device Company Wins Top Prize at Dell for Startups Pitch Competition
by | Aug 9, 2022
“Opioids are diabolical, because they actually change the structure and function of your brain; they change the way your reward system works,” said Daniel Powell, CEO at Spark Biomedical.

Meet Powell and six other startup leaders.
MORE►
#DSW22 Schedule: Your Definitive Guide to Dallas Startup Week’s 100+ Events
by | Aug 8, 2022
Dallas Startup Week—The DEC Network’s annual flagship event, sponsored by Capital One—had its kickoff party Sunday at The Star in Frisco. You'll find 100+ events and sessions running Monday through Thursday, August 8-11, both online and in person at SMU’s Cox School of Business. Here you'll find Dallas Innovates' handy, one-sheet guide to each day of DSW.
MORE►

Left to right: Jim Adler, founding managing director of Toyota Ventures; Mandy Price, CEO of Kanarys; and Steven Levy, editor at large at Wired.

See What’s in Store at Dallas Startup Week’s Corporate Startup Innovation Summit

by | Jul 27, 2022
The DEC Network’s flagship event—Dallas Startup Week—will be held August 7 through August 11 both virtually and in person at SMU's Cox School of Business.

Bringing together the local ecosystem’s “breadth and diversity” of corporations and startups, the Corporate Startup Innovation summit will feature Jim Adler, founding managing director of Toyota Ventures, and Steven Levy, editor at large at Wired—plus a deep dive in the funding landscape, an accelerator pitch competition, and more.
MORE►
See What’s on Tap for Dallas Startup Week’s Disrupt Dallas Summit
by | Jul 20, 2022
The Disrupt Dallas summit will highlight "champions who are disrupting the entrepreneurial ecosystem and talent pipeline,” says The DEC Network. The summit on August 8—part of Dallas Startup Week's multi-day event—offers education and programming from local entrepreneurs of color on how to help support and grow a business. Dear Fathers, a media platform for Black fatherhood, was co-founded by Jesse Alex and Lamar Johnson Jr., who "turned their pain of not having real father experiences growing up" into a positive mission. [Image: Dear Fathers] Dear Fathers is a platform “dedicated to telling stories of black fathers from all angles while also empowering our community with tangible resources that inspire, heal, and strengthen the Black man.” Odell Beckham, Sr. Lamar Quinn Dessie Brown, Jr. LaDarius Campbell
MORE►
Women of Innovation Dallas Startup Week 2022
Here’s What’s Happening at Dallas Startup Week’s Women of Innovation Summit
by | Jul 13, 2022
The Women's Innovation Summit during Dallas Startup Week celebrates women who transform their ideas and ambitions into a reality.

The summit, powered by Toyota Financial Services, features a dynamic group of leading visionaries to give all women in business greater insights and knowledge into the trends and possibilities of the future. The goal? To set women leaders up for success, says Toyota's Stacey Gee-Miller. Here's what you can look forward to on August 10.
MORE►
DI People: PGA of America, The DEC Network, Blackshaw Partners, Exela Technologies, And More Make Leadership Moves
by | Jun 17, 2022
In this week’s roundup of hires, promotions, and accolades in North Texas, you’ll also find news from Avodah, Skylark Equity Partners, Stream Realty Partners, Sesami Cash Management Technologies, and others.
MORE►

Chelsy Gray, founder of Adaya Beauty, took home the top prize at last year's BIG iDEA pitch competition. [Photo: The DEC Network]

The DEC Network Launches Second BIG iDEA DALLAS Entrepreneurial Program

by | May 12, 2022
The DEC Network, in partnership with Charles Schwab, is putting out a call for founders of color to apply for its BIG IDEA DALLAS cohort by May 16. It calls the seven-week program a "pre-step" in a founder's journey.
MORE►
Center of Gravity: Capital Factory Kicks Off New Dallas Digs With Startup Crawl and Health Supernova Event
by | May 6, 2022
Earlier this week, the Austin-based accelerator and investor announced its plans to launch a Center for Health Innovation at Pegasus Park in Dallas.
MORE►
Capital Factory Opening Center for Health Innovation at Pegasus Park in Dallas
by | May 5, 2022
The Austin-based accelerator and investor plans to launch its Center for Health Innovation at Pegasus Park in Dallas by end of 2023. Its goal: connecting startups locally and across the state with each other, as well as other corporate and research players in the space.

“We're in the business of erasing boundaries in Texas—full stop,” President and Co-Founder Bryan Chambers told Dallas Innovates.
MORE►
Impact Ventures Raising $20M Dallas Inclusive Capital Fund to Make the Region a Hub for Diverse Entrepreneurs
by | Apr 14, 2022
“Entrepreneurs of color are over-mentored and undercapitalized. While others are saying, ‘Here’s a program or mentorship,’ we’ve been one of the first groups to say, ‘Here’s that, plus capital, to get you there,’” says Benjamin Vann, founder and CEO at Impact Ventures.
MORE►
The Techstar team briefed the Fort Worth City Council on the new accelerator program Tuesday. [Courtesy photo]

The Techstar team briefed the Fort Worth City Council on the new accelerator program in February. [Courtesy photo]

Public-Private Partners Bring Global Investment Platform Techstars to Fort Worth, Name Managing Director

by | Feb 22, 2022
Trey Bowles, a longtime startup champion in DFW, will helm Fort Worth's Techstars physical therapy-focused accelerator.  "It's a big win for the region," Bowles says. "Customers and capital are the things that help startups grow." 

Techstars Physical Health Fort Worth is the first accelerator for Techstars in North Texas—and the "first true accelerator in Fort Worth," says HSC's Cameron Cushman, a key player in attracting the program.
MORE►
DEC Network to Host Inaugural, Virtual Women X Tech Conference Thursday
by | Feb 2, 2022
Women entrepreneurs—especially those in the tech world—have something to keep them warm at home Thursday during tomorrow's winter storm: The DEC Network’s inaugural, all-virtual Women X Tech event, from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is designed to help women founders from all tech industries connect, learn, and grow their businesses.
MORE►
Dallas Startup Week Slated for August with 5 days, 100+ Events, and 200+ Speakers
by | Jan 13, 2022
Hosted by The DEC Network and powered by Capital One, the five-day showcase is North Texas’ largest event focused on driving entrepreneurial success, economic impact, and innovation.
MORE►
A Special Thank you to our sponsors

A collaboration of the Dallas Regional Chamber and Dallas Next, Dallas Innovates is an online news platform covering what's new + next in Dallas - Fort Worth innovation.

© Copyright 2025 | All rights reserved.

Business

Creative

Education

Impact

Invention

Startup

Our Sponsors

Our Partners