Houston, Dallas, and Austin, to become a Biotech Triangle

Texas business leaders seek to establish a Biotech Triangle — a three-sided magnet for innovators and investors in industries ranging from medical devices and clinical trials to pharmaceuticals and agriculture. For the health and medicine news website STAT, Maddie Bender writes about the endeavour. She told Texas Standard that the three Texas cities seek to capitalise on existing biotechnology efforts while also luring new businesses to the region.

“Some of these things, Texas has already been very successful at,” Bender explained, “so establishing themselves as a Triangle is really simply a method to boost the prevalence in… sectors other than agriculture and medical devices, where they already have a strong grasp.” Other places have established themselves as biotech hubs, according to Bender, and the collaborative approach is more than simply marketing for these areas, as well as for Texas.

It is truly building a positive feedback ecology, in which if one company fails, the individuals who work there, the talent, will not leave to go to these other hubs. According to Bender, the Texas effort arose naturally. When the idea of a hub was first floated, projects like Pegasus Park in Dallas and TMC3 in Houston were already in the works. Advocates for the Triangle argue that Texas already has a wealth of resources that make it a perfect location.

“You need knowledgeable capital – not just money, but money that knows a thing or two about biotech,” Bender says. Advocates for the biotech Triangle are now asking for validation and support from well-established corporations and universities on the coastlines, where the field has a strong footing. This kind of support will demonstrate to those on the coasts that Texas is a serious contender.