New Mexico

Detecting odorless and invisible methane plumes has traditionally been time-consuming and ineffective. But Geolabe’s new methane monitoring system uses AI to help them spot leaks from abandoned oil wells, landfills, and other sources with incredible accuracy. “Satellite images tend to be very noisy, which makes methane emissions difficult to pinpoint,” says Geolabe CEO Claudia Hulbert. “Our algorithms take the same images and drastically lower the detection threshold.” That makes it faster and easier to identify even smaller methane plumes. Geolabe built and trained their own deep learning model to analyze satellite images from selected geographic areas, which they now deploy in Google Cloud. It gives them the power and flexibility they need to build and run their core technology, which processes multiple terabytes every month. “Google Cloud scales really well so we’re able to analyze large areas very fast,” Claudia says.

In 2024, Claudia and co-founder Bertrand Rouet-Leduc took part in Google for Startups AI Academy: American Infrastructure, a program for startups that use AI to improve public works across the U.S. “Meeting other founders in person was really rewarding and let us exchange tips and information,” Claudia recalls. Mentors helped them experiment with potential setups and optimize their current system. Company operations run smoothly with Google Workspace tools like Gmail and Drive, to which they export data from Google Earth Engine. They’re also using Gemini Notebook. “We have it summarize previous research to see if we missed any information,” Claudia says. “It’s much faster than reading all the articles–it accelerates everything.” The Geolabe team is excited about the variety of potential uses for their technology, from fixing a leaking pipeline to monitoring agriculture emissions. “There are so many possibilities,” Claudia says. “It’s just the beginning.”

With a full line of certified BBQ rubs and sauces highlighting the flavors of New Mexico, AlbuKirky Seasonings is all about co-founders Kirk Muncrief and Cheryl Valadez’s passion for fire and meat. “It was always a hobby, a creative outlet instead of just crunching spreadsheets at a corporate job,” says Kirk. But friends and family who ate from Kirk’s grill had other ideas, and they encouraged him to turn his hobby into a business in 2010. “For years, we were doing shows and farmers markets on the weekends, but I finally said, ‘I can’t just keep doing this on the side. We’ve got to try to make something of this!’” So Kirk left his job as a financial analyst in 2021 and has been all in with AlbuKirky Seasonings ever since. They got certified for using only chile products from the state, in accordance with the New Mexico Chile Act, and now serve at least 5,000 customers per year through their website and more than 50 retailers.

AlbuKirky Seasonings started using Google Ads in 2022, and sales have risen by 10 to 30 percent. “We’ve doubled our traffic–now half of our traffic is coming from Google Ads and Search,” Kirk explains. They’ve recently switched to AI-powered Performance Max campaigns, which have outperformed traditional ads. AlbuKirky Seasonings uses Google Analytics to optimize their advertising and understand website traffic and SEO performance, and make adjustments accordingly. They’ve also begun tapping into YouTube Ads with success; they’re planning to ramp up their channel with cooking videos to promote the brand and New Mexico cuisine. As AlbuKirky Seasonings grows, they’ll continue to lean on the local community for everything from co-packing to label design. “We keep everything right here, and it’s served us well,” Cheryl says. “We've formed really good relationships. They're willing to shout us out, and we try to shout them out. That camaraderie is priceless.”

Angelo McHorse–a member of the Taos Pueblo tribal community–and his wife, Jacquelene, were unhappy with the chemical-based soaps they found in stores. They saw a chance to create a greener alternative that could improve their family’s health and uplift the economic vitality of their rural New Mexican community. In 2018, they founded Bison Star Naturals, a full line of handmade soaps and cosmetic products crafted from all-natural ingredients grown and harvested on their own land. In addition to operating a brick and mortar location in Taos, they ship their products to all 50 states, and offer them for sale in museums, national parks, and airports across the American West. “It’s about sharing the essence of the land for people to take home and remember,” says Angelo.

They use their Google Business Profile to give Bison Star Naturals a polished, professional look. “When we opened our new store location, Google made it so easy to post pictures of our signage and our store so people know we’re here. It made our transition so much more successful,” Jacquelene says. They trust Google Ads to make sure that people searching for Taos-related keywords–and the parks that carry their products–can make plans to take home a little piece of New Mexico. “It’s a tool that gives us so many different ways to connect with people,” she says. And they use Google Analytics to inform their Google Ads strategy. “It significantly impacted the current ad we’re running, and we're still using that information as we develop new ads and try to reach additional people,” Angelo says. This year they’re excited to introduce a line of hair care products, and they hope to expand into even more national parks, museums, and tourism areas. “We’re planning not just for the future of our company, but for the future of our legacy and the spirit of the Southwest,” Angelo says.

As a Xicana/Indigenous woman raised in the rural Southwest, Cece Meadows is the first in her family to attend college. But a cancer diagnosis and her subsequent care at the age of 27 robbed Cece of her successful finance career and savings, leaving her family unhoused. It also led Cece down an entirely new path to success. “I fell in love with how makeup could make you look when you felt like death… the way [it] could tell a different story than what you were living,” Cece says. In remission, Cece became the first Native-American makeup artist to head a show for New York Fashion Week. There, her traditional regalia often sparked questions, inspiring her to launch Prados Beauty in 2019. “I wanted to create a beauty brand that would tell the story of my people through our eyes,” explains Cece. “There is so much false information, appropriation, and misgivings about Indigenous people, and I wanted to change that.” With a full range of inclusive cosmetics, Cece turned to Google Ads in 2020 to amplify her brand.

Prados Beauty noticed a return on ad spend within two months, seeing a 500 percent year-over-year (YoY) increase in web traffic and a 700 percent jump in sales. In 2021, sales increased by another 336 percent. “We realized the importance of having Google Ads running daily,” Cece says. Overall, she attributes 68 percent of their web traffic and 43 percent of revenue to Google Ads. The company also experienced the power of YouTube when drag queen Trixie Mattel posted a video using Prados Beauty products in 2021, turning the brand into a viral sensation. Right now, Cece is focused on meeting demand now that Prados Beauty is sold in one of the country’s major department stores. “I am being called the first Indigenous Xicana woman to be in a retailer of this size” says Cece, “and it's great to be the first, but what's more important to me is who comes after me.”