UTD Venture Development Center-Based Healthcare Startup Relocates HQ to McKinney

A grant from the McKinney Economic Development Corporation's Innovation Fund will fuel the expansion of Invene, a growing product-as-a-service company. The move could create up to 12 “highly specialized” software engineering jobs in the next three years.

From left, Invene CEO James Griffin, full stack developer Jonathan Sayre, backend developer Brian Kamra, and UX designer Sam Bajwa. [Photos: Invene]

Invene, a healthcare software development startup that’s based in UTD’s Venture Development Center, has a new home base.

The company will relocate its headquarters to McKinney from the University of Texas at Dallas. That move could create up to 12 “highly specialized” software engineering jobs with an average salary of $80,000 in the next three years, according to a statement.

CEO James Griffin says McKinney’s vision for boosting the tech ecosystem “has been positive,” and the company will benefit from the growth of its local industry.

Ivene recently received a grant from McKinney Economic Development Corporation’s (MEDC) Innovation Fund that launched in January. The fund will help the product as a service (PaaS) company with its expansion goals. 

“The Innovation Fund is definitely something that was intriguing to me. I’ve enjoyed learning about it since I first spoke with the MEDC team at a Capital Factory event,” said CEO Griffin, who is a mentor at Health Wildcatters and one of 10 national OZY Genius Award winners in 2018. 

“The MEDC team really knows how to talk to tech companies,” he said, noting that “the fund’s focus on scalability is unique.”

Invene signed a lease for its new HQ in the Yeager Building near Craig Ranch. The area is becoming a magnet for corporate investment “with the likes of Independent Financial and SRS Distribution recently opening headquarters” and other planned development, according to MEDC.

MEDC’s Innovation Fund was created to spur and accelerate the growth of innovation-focused at all stages of the startup life cycle.

The Invene move is a great example of what McKinney is trying to achieve, according to Danny Chavez, Senior Vice President at MEDC. “Companies at this stage are exciting to work with and help the city create a talent pipeline,” he said.

Get on the list.
Dallas Innovates, every day.

Sign up to keep your eye on what’s new and next in Dallas-Fort Worth, every day.

One quick signup, and you’re done.
View previous emails.

R E A D   N E X T