Business

Trulieve Secures Alien Labs and Connected Rights in Florida and Texas

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Trulieve Cannabis Corp. announced on September 28, 2026, a master licensing agreement with Connected that gives Trulieve exclusive rights to genetics, trademarks, and proprietary know-how to produce and sell Alien Labs and Connected branded cannabis products in Florida and Texas.

The company described the arrangement in its September 28, 2026 announcement as a perpetual, royalty-free license covering the Alien Labs and Connected brands. Under the terms of the master licensing agreement, Trulieve secures exclusive rights to cultivate, manufacture, and commercialize Alien Labs and Connected branded products in the two states while maintaining Connected’s quality standards, curated genetic offerings, and brand protocols. The agreement also provides Trulieve with the opportunity to negotiate licensing rights in additional expansion markets. Trulieve is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TRLV.

Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said the company has been an exclusive provider of Alien Labs and Connected premium cannabis products in Florida since 2022. Rivers said Trulieve plans to expand its premium product portfolio in Florida with new categories and form factors, and that the companies will expand the partnership through collaborative marketing campaigns supporting both brands.

Connected founder and CEO Caleb Counts called the relationship “one of the most successful brand licensing relationships in cannabis.” Counts said Trulieve’s platform has given Florida patients access to Alien Labs and Connected genetics developed through Connected’s proprietary breeding program, and that Connected is excited to build on the Florida partnership and bring the products to patients in Texas as the next phase of the relationship.

Earlier Partnership Agreements

The master licensing agreement extends a relationship the companies first announced for Florida in 2022. On January 18, 2022, Trulieve announced an expanded partnership with Connected Cannabis Co. under which Trulieve would be the exclusive producer, processor, and retailer of Connected branded products throughout Florida. The January 18, 2022 announcement said Connected branded products would be available later in 2022 exclusively at Trulieve’s 111 Florida dispensaries and noted that Trulieve already partnered with Connected in Arizona. It stated that Connected had been building a proprietary genetics portfolio of premium strains and cultivating cannabis at scale since 2009.

Rivers said in that announcement that Connected maintained a portfolio of proprietary top-shelf strains that customers and patients desired in other markets and that Trulieve anticipated a similar response in Florida. Counts, identified then as a co-founder of Connected, said the company was proud to expand the partnership to bring Connected and Alien Labs products to the East Coast. Sam Ghods, identified in the release as Connected’s CEO, said the company valued Trulieve’s leadership as the top operator in the state and shared its commitment to providing customers with the best products possible.

On December 15, 2022, Trulieve announced it was the exclusive provider of Connected branded products throughout Florida, with Connected and AlienLabs products reaching Trulieve’s Florida dispensaries beginning that month. According to the December 15, 2022 announcement, AlienLabs strains Xeno and Kryptochronic were to be available at select Trulieve Florida locations beginning December 15, 2022, and Connected strains El Jefe, Gelonade, and Nightshade were to follow beginning December 20, 2022. That release described AlienLabs, one of the first California cannabis brands, as focused on top-shelf, exotic, indoor cannabis flower, and Connected Cannabis as a brand known for developing cultivation techniques behind its strains in the California market. Rivers said then that Connected and AlienLabs represented a portfolio of top-shelf strains that had benefited medical patients in other states.

Texas Licensing Background

The planned Texas introduction follows a December 3, 2025 announcement that the Texas Department of Public Safety had granted Trulieve TX, Inc. conditional approval for a Dispensing Organization license under the Texas Compassionate Use Program. That license remains subject to final approval by the Texas Department of Public Safety. Trulieve said in the December 2025 announcement that, as a licensed Dispensing Organization, it will cultivate, manufacture, and distribute medical cannabis products to Texas patients. Rivers said at the time that Trulieve looked forward to working with regulators to complete the licensing process and that, pending necessary approvals, the company planned to provide patients compassionate care and expanded access to high-quality medical cannabis products.

In the September 28, 2026 announcement, Rivers said, “Pending final licensure and regulatory approvals, we plan to introduce Alien Labs and Connected branded products in Texas.”

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Ava Morales is an AI-generated analyst at MyCannabis.com, covering U.S. cannabis regulation with a focus on state-by-state legalization, medical programs, and consumer compliance. Her work helps readers navigate the fragmented legal landscape governing cannabis access, possession, and use across the United States.

With a structured and explanatory approach, Ava tracks legislative changes, ballot initiatives, and regulatory guidance affecting both medical and recreational cannabis markets. She emphasizes clarity over speculation, distinguishing clearly between enacted law, proposed reforms, and local enforcement realities so readers understand what is permitted in their jurisdiction today.

Articles authored by Ava Morales are AI-generated and reviewed by MyCannabis.com’s editorial team to ensure accuracy, neutrality, and responsible reporting on cannabis laws in regulated U.S. markets.