This November marked the completion of the 19th Energy I-Corps cohort, bringing the total number of graduated teams to 242! To celebrate the successful completion of the program, Cohort 19 teams convened in Washington, D.C. and shared their work with key stakeholders.
Office of Technology Transitions
December 9, 2024
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This November marked the completion of the 19th Energy I-Corps (EIC) cohort, bringing the total number of graduated teams to 242. EIC, now in its tenth year, hosts a suite of efforts for National Laboratory researchers to meaningfully apply commercialization and entrepreneurial skills to DOE technologies.
At the core of its 3-topic structure is EIC’s Topic 2 Training Cohort, an entrepreneurial bootcamp that provides an immersive two-month curriculum training for DOE National Lab, plant, and site researchers to assess viable pathways to bring their DOE technology to the market.
Chief Commercialization Officer and OTT Director Dr. Vanessa Chan and her program team with National Lab researchers at their Energy I-Corps graduation ceremony in November 2024. Photo by Donica Payne, DOE
Cohort 19 comprised 13 teams from the eight National Labs listed below. Teams represented technologies ranging from carbon dioxide removal to AI-driven energy distribution to digital safety for nuclear systems.
- Argonne National Laboratory
- Idaho National Laboratory
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Los Alamos National Laboratory
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
- Sandia National Laboratories
Cohort 19 was supported by 11 DOE technology offices and the National Nuclear Security Administration:
- EERE – Bioenergy Technologies Office
- EERE – Geothermal Technologies Office
- EERE – Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office
- EERE – Solar Energy Technologies Office
- EERE – Vehicles Technology Office
- EERE – Water Power Technologies Office
- EERE – Wind Energy Technologies Office
- Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response
- Office of Electricity
- Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management
- Office of Nuclear Energy.
“Congratulations Cohort 19 for outstanding dedication and performance throughout this intensive and rewarding program,” said Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan, Chief Commercialization Officer and Director of OTT. “I look forward to seeing how these graduates use their newfound commercialization skills at our National Laboratories to successfully drive new technologies to market.”
Graduates of Energy I-Corps return to their National Lab with a clear roadmap for industry engagement that will shape their future research endeavors. Photo by Donica Payne, DOE
Over the course of ten weeks, teams collectively conducted 1,087 interviews with potential customers and other stakeholders in their ecosystem. The process validated some technologies— two teams identified interested future cost-share partners through their stakeholder interviews. They now have plans to further develop their technologies, with both public and private funding. All teams successfully conducted at least 75 stakeholder interviews, with some teams conducting more than 100.
To mark the successful completion of the program, Cohort 19 teams gathered in Washington, D.C. The graduates visited DOE’s headquarters to present their findings and insights directly to their respective funding offices. Two teams also had the opportunity to share their experience and technology with their local congressional representatives.
For the first time, the EIC teams hosted a poster session to showcase their projects and findings. This activity spotlights their ability to communicate complex scientific and market topics through digestible presentations. It also provides DOE leadership with valuable market insight the teams collected from their stakeholder interviews.
For the first time, EIC hosted a poster session to share Cohort 19’s projects and findings, providing DOE leadership with valuable market insight collected from the teams’ discovery interviews. Photo by Donica Payne, DOE
As tradition, the researchers also gave capstone presentations to their peers, instructors, and DOE stakeholders, including OTT Director Dr. Chan and representatives from all sponsoring program offices, as well as technology transfer experts from the National Labs. These presentations showcased the impact of the discovery interview process on their technology’s path to commercialization.
Cohort 19 joins an elite group of EIC graduates. Since 2015, the group has attracted more than $192 million in post-program funding and executed 85 licenses. These achievements stand as a testament to the program’s effectiveness in driving innovation, fostering entrepreneurship, and accelerating the transition to a clean energy future.
We applaud the dedication of Cohort 19, celebrate a successful decade of EIC programming, and look forward to witnessing the continued impact of EIC as it empowers the next generation of clean energy leaders.