Innovation in North Texas happens on corporate campuses and at startups, in tech labs and on factory floors—across industries being reimagined for the future.
This year’s finalists for The Innovation Awards 2026 capture that story. They’re proof that innovation has become one of the region’s most powerful economic forces.
Presented by D CEO in a collaboration with Dallas Innovates, the annual program celebrates the people and companies leading the way.
All finalists will be recognized in the January/February issue of D CEO magazine and online at DallasInnovates.com. Winners will be revealed at a private awards event in January.
Inaugural Legacy of Innovation honoree
The 2026 program introduces a new distinction—the Legacy of Innovation Award—honoring leaders who’ve changed the course of North Texas through innovation and impact. The first honoree: Ross Perot Jr.
As founder and chairman of Hillwood, Perot has spent decades shaping the region’s economy through forward-thinking projects like AllianceTexas, the 27,000-acre mixed-use development that evolved from the nation’s first purely industrial airport into a $130 billion economic engine for Dallas-Fort Worth over 35 years.
Today, AllianceTexas integrates industrial and commercial hubs with residential communities across nine municipalities in the region, anchored in northern Fort Worth.
“Every generation of technology”
Perot has said AllianceTexas has been able to “ride every generation of technology.” One relatively early milestone was the $2 billion Facebook data-center deal. In 2025, Dallas Innovates reported Wistron planning two AI supercomputing facilities, Torc Robotics establishing its new autonomous truck operation, and aerospace manufacturer Embraer committing up to $70 million for a regional jet facility—all within AllianceTexas.
A short list of other major companies and brands located at AllianceTexas includes Amazon, BNSF, FedEx, Meta, UPS, Fidelity Investments, Charles Schwab, Deloitte, with manufacturers like MP Materials, which produces rare-earth magnets for companies like Apple and General Motors.
A testbed for mobility tech
Perot aims to position North Texas as “the mobility innovation zone in the entire world.” Through Hillwood’s Mobility Innovation Zone (MIZ), AllianceTexas has become a testbed for emerging air and surface mobility technologies. Dallas Innovates has chronicled its rise as a hub for autonomous trucking, drone logistics, and next-generation air operations, including a recent simulation that saw autonomous helicopters and drones coordinate over Perot Field in a wildfire-response exercise.
The vision extends beyond technology and mobility. A recent Hillwood partnership with Taylor Sheridan brought Texas’s largest film-production campus, SGS Studios, to AllianceTexas.
Perot is also chairman of The Perot Group, co-founder of the venture capital firm Perot Jain, and co-founder of Perot Systems Corporation, which was acquired by Dell in 2009.
His influence extends well beyond the region. In June 2025, he was named board chair of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, where he helps set national policy priorities focused on growth and innovation.
Perot’s impact spans decades. The 80 finalists for The Innovation Awards 2026 show how that spirit of innovation continues across North Texas.
The Innovation Awards 2026 Finalists:
Legacy of Innovation Award
Ross Perot Jr., Hillwood and The Perot Group
Innovation in Manufacturing and Consumer Goods
Adom Industries, led by John Lauer
MP Materials, led by James Litinsky
SecureFoundry, led by Lex Keen
Trotter, led by Victor Trotter
Innovation in Real Estate and Hospitality
AllianceTexas x SGS Studios, led by Mike Berry
Billee.ai, led by John Hinckley
FlexEtc, led by Shawn Gault
Rogers O’Brien, led by Justin McAfee
Stonethrow, led by Nick Clark
Innovation in Transportation
Mozee, led by Shawn Taikratoke
MW Logistics, led by Mitchell Ward
Torc, led by John Marinaro
Toyota Connected North America, led by James George
