Invest: Houston 2nd Edition Leadership Summit

Opening Keynote Presentation

John Whitmire, Houston's 63rd Mayor, was sworn in on Jan. 2, 2024, following a 50-year career in the Texas Legislature. A Democrat and former Dean of the Texas Senate, he campaigned on prioritizing public safety and infrastructure. Throughout his career Mayor Whitmire has fought for district representation across Houston. He has also been a champion of LGBTQ and women’s rights. Key successes early in his term include a $1.5 billion settlement with the Houston firefighters’ union, ending an eight-year contract dispute, and calling for an independent review of the city’s large backlog of suspended police cases.

Panel 1

Inspiring the Next Generation: How Houston’s K–12 system is cultivating future innovators

Special Address

Fostering cutting-edge science innovation at UTMB

Dr. Vineet Gupta serves as UTMB’s inaugural Vice President for Innovation, Technology Development and Transfer. In this role, he is committed to elevating UTMB’s fourth mission area, innovation, by ensuring the research ecosystem continuously promotes, facilitates, and evaluates inventions and discoveries to be spun off in the commercial sector. Prior to joining UTMB, Dr. Gupta most recently served as Professor and Vice Chair for Innovation in the Department of Internal Medicine at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. A highly accomplished scientist-innovator, Dr. Gupta runs a successful translational research program focused on bringing new therapeutics and diagnostics to patients. As an innovator-entrepreneur, he has co-founded multiple startups to translate research discoveries into therapeutics.

Panel 2

Laying the Groundwork: How technology is reshaping sustainability to fuel Houston’s next chapter