DOE is launching a new version of its successful American-Made EPIC Prize. The $4 million EPIC Round 3 competitive funding program will award cash prizes to the nation’s most innovative incubators supporting energy startups and entrepreneurs.
Office of Technology Transitions
September 26, 2023
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The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) is launching a new version of its successful American-Made EPIC Prize. The $4 million EPIC Round 3 competitive funding program will award cash prizes to the nation’s most innovative incubators supporting energy startups and entrepreneurs. In addition to cash prizes, incubators will compete for extended financial support of up to $1 million in the form of a three-year cooperative agreement with OTT. Additional cooperative agreements may be supported through this program, subject to FY24 appropriations.
“This year we are taking EPIC to the next level by encouraging bold and impactful ideas while providing incubators with the long-term funding needed to scale those ideas,” said Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan, Chief Commercialization Officer for OTT. “These EPIC funds will catalyze local collaboration to enable startups to commercialize impactful technologies, strengthening the small business ecosystem in the United States and advancing our clean energy future.”
Within one year, incubators will rapidly advance their energy technology commercialization strategies while connecting with their most promising and ambitious peers across the nation. In Phase 1, up to 20 competitors will win $150,000 each for successfully designing a plan to support energy startups and entrepreneurs and defining metrics for success. These competitors will advance to Phase 2, in which they will demonstrate significant progress toward putting their plans into action. Select Phase 2 winners will then be invited to negotiate a cooperative agreement with OTT worth up to $1 million.
Additionally, competing incubators will share the national spotlight with their startups in two pitch competitions in Phase 2. All past and present EPIC incubators can nominate the rising stars among their innovation-accelerating organizations to present their latest endeavors for a chance to win over $210,000 in pitch competition prizes.
Visit the EPIC Round 3 page to learn more.
The American-Made program fast-tracks innovation through prizes, training, teaming, and mentoring, connecting the nation's entrepreneurs and innovators to America's national labs and the private sector. Teams competing in EPIC Round 3 will have access to the American-Made Network, which provides mentoring, tools, resources, and support to accelerate the transition of ideas into real-world solutions to achieve clean energy goals.
EPIC Round 3 is administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and is part of OTT's broader Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC) which provides funds and support to place-based incubators to encourage the robust growth of regional energy innovation ecosystems across the United States.
Visit Energy.gov to learn more about OTT's overall mission to spur commercialization of impactful energy technologies and expand public benefit of the U.S. Department of Energy's research, development, demonstration, and deployment portfolio.