Fiscal Year 2022Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center
In 2022, NREL’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) doubled technology incubation programs and saw incredible growth in the ecosystem we convene and support—from massive startup raises and public offerings to new partners and strong emission reduction commitments. Join us in celebrating 2022 when, together with our partners and the entire ecosystem, we advanced the commercialization of economically viable, clean technologies.
Director, NREL Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center
Programs and Events
IEC's programs provide resources to bring new technologies to market throughout the stages of companies' growth: entrepreneurial development, technical incubation and acceleration, and investment and market deployment.
- Stage 1: Entrepreneurial Development
- Stage 2: Tech Incubation & Acceleration
- Stage 3: Investment & Market Deployment
New Programs
Working alongside our partners, IEC launched three new programs in 2022.
2022 Portfolio Companies
Twenty-one companies and innovators joined IEC programs this year.
Filter by:
Program
Technology
Stage
No portfolio companies match your filters.
BlocPower
BlocPower helps low- and moderate-income building owners and tenants in cities harness energy-efficiency tools and complete renewable energy retrofits.
Community Energy Labs
Community Energy Labs provides an innovative platform for carbon-free, affordable, and reliable building control.
Corepower Magnetics
Corepower Magnetics designs, optimizes, and manufactures high-performance, smaller, and more efficient electric motors, inductors, and transformers.
Cytophage Technologies
Cytophage Technologies targets bacteria that becomes increasingly resistant to antibiotics by using evolved viruses that kill bacteria.
Edison Agrosciences
Edison Agrosciences increases rubber produced by sunflower plants to mitigate the endangered natural rubber supply.
Kit Switch
Kit Switch works with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles to install and analyze its prefabricated kitchen modules.
NineDot Energy
NineDot Energy works with Fermata Energy and Revel Transit Inc. to use the batteries in electric fleet vehicles to supply energy to the grid.
Peptyde Bio
Peptyde Bio provides a safe alternative to combat fungal diseases with biofungicides.
Robigo
Unlike pesticides that indiscriminately kill microbes, Robigo's technology targets pathogenic bacteria.
Induction Food Systems
Induction Food Systems creates a scalable, precise, and efficient inline heating solution for food and beverage manufacturers.
Alumina Energy
Alumina Energy develops modular energy storage systems to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
Resonant Link
Resonant Link manufactures high-performance wireless chargers for electric vehicle fleets.
BattGenie
BattGenie offers battery management software that enables safer and faster charging batteries for electric vehicles.
Electrified Thermal Solutions
Electrified Thermal Solutions develops energy storage built on a system that converts zero-carbon electricity into heat.
BrightSpot Automation
BrightSpot Automation finds defects in solar cells and solar panels to detect inactive areas.
ZERO
To reduce emissions in single-family homes, ZERO creates comprehensive energy-use reports for contractors.
Tereform
Tereform takes waste textiles, such as carpet, and uses chemical recycling to break it down for reuse.
Renewell Energy
Renewell Energy aims to convert hundreds of thousands inactive oil and gas wells into gravity storage sites.
Blue Ridge Networks
Blue Ridge Networks' LinkGuard system "cloaks" critical information technology network operations from destructive and costly cyberattacks.
Sierra Nevada Corp.
Sierra Nevada Corp.'s Binary Armo is used by the U.S. Department of Defense and utilities to protect critical assets.
Xage
Xage uses identity-based access control to protect users, machines, apps, and data, at the edge and in the core/cloud.
Startup Portfolio Highlights
CoverCress is acquired by Bayer AG.
Blue Frontier raises a $20 million Series A equity investment led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures.
ESS becomes publicly traded in combination with Acon S2.
75F and J2 collaborate to improve the energy efficiency of mid-sized commercial buildings.
NineDot launches the Vehicle-to-Grid system at Revel's Red Hook warehouse in New York City.
SPAN raises $90 million in the Series B round and is named one of "the 10 most innovative energy companies in 2022" by Fast Company.
Electro-Active Technologies is making hydrogen from food waste and electricity.
Air Company launches Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and is featured in Fast Company.
Antora is featured on Times Square on the Impact100 list (100 Ideas That Can Change 1 Billion Lives) as one of the world's most promising impact startups.
Portfolio by Stage
The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center's programs support startups that span every stage of development from R&D to commercialization. One of the many impacts of our programs is helping startups develop technology through research support, allowing them to raise capital and scale up.
The majority of the 28% of commercial-ready portfolio companies are alumni—many of whom have found success through acquisitions, initial public offerings, and profitability.
2022 Highlights
(from program start through Fiscal Year 2022 end)
Program Highlights
The Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator
Added 10 portfolio companies in Fiscal Year 2022, for a total of 65 companies
Introduced its first demonstration cohort
Contributed 9,428 researcher hours in Fiscal Year 2022 for a total of 39,805 research hours since 2014
The Shell Gamechanger Accelerator Powered by NREL
Recipient of a 2022 Technology Transfer Innovation Award by the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology
19 participating companies since 2018
Energy I-Corps
Trained 59 lab researchers in Fiscal Year 2022, and engaged nearly 200 industry mentors since inception for a total of 400 lab researchers trained since program began
Created 20+ new businesses since inception
NREL Technical Assistance Program (NTAP)
- Provided 40 hours of support to each startup and strategic partner to overcome technical barriers
- Started six projects in Fiscal Year 2022 for a total of 115 projects since 2010
NREL Small Business Program
- Hosted first Construction Industry Day in August 2022
- Exceeded Fiscal Year 2022 goals under the socioeconomic categories of women-owned small businesses; small, disadvantaged businesses; and small businesses located in HUBZones
- Met Fiscal Year 2022 veteran-owned small business goal
NREL Researchers Leading 2022 Projects
Meet the NREL researchers who led projects with startups in our portfolio in Fiscal Year 2022.
- Shaun Alia, Ionomr, GCxN
- Shaun Alia, Versogen, GCxN
- Amy Allen, BlocPower, IN²
- Amy Allen, Darcy Solutions, IN²
- Gregg Beckham, Mars Materials, NTAP
- Andrey Bernstein, MapleWell Energy, NTAP
- Eric Bonnema, Feedback Solutions, Canadian Technology Assistance Program (CTAP)
- Chuck Booten, Cypris Materials, IN²
- Chuck Booten, Radiator Labs, IN²
- Alexander Bulk, ZEUS Motor, NTAP
- Tanushree Charan, Ladybug Tools, IN²
- Venkatesh Chinde, Hygge Power Inc, GCxN
- Shuang Cui, EnKoat, IN²
- Ryan Davis, CERT Systems, CTAP
- Marc Day, Induction Food Systems, GCxN
- Tao Dong, Polaris Renewables, NTAP
- Rawad El Kontar, Tallarna, IN²
- Chaiwat Engtrakul, Aeroshield, IN²
- Ramin Faramarzi, Turntide (SMC), IN²
- Omkar Ghatpande, ZEUS Motor, NTAP
- Shibani Ghosh, Span (Span.IO), GCxN
- Kevin Harrison, Air Company, GCxN
- Willy Bernal Heredia, Yotta Energy, IN²
- Leiming Hu, Membrion, NTAP
- Michael Ingram, Fibos, CTAP
- Rishabh Jain, Intertie, GCxN
- Myungsoo Jun, BattGenie, GCxN
- Faisal Khan, Induction Food Systems, GCxN
- Eric Kozubal, Blue Frontier, IN²
- Eric Kozubal, Stash, IN²
- Jacob Kruger, Evoco, CTAP
- Parthiv Kurup, Alumina Energy, GCxN
- Parthiv Kurup, Solar Steam, CTAP
- Matt Leach, BlocPower, IN²
- Monte Lunacek, RUNWITHIT Synthetics, CTAP
- Joey Luther, QD Solar, CTAP
- Dan Macumber, Ladybug Tools, IN²
- Rasel Mahmud, Resonant Link, GCxN
- Allison Mahvi, Stash, IN²
- Thibault Marzullo, Community Energy Labs, IN²
- Barry Mather, CorePower Magnetics, IN²
- Killian McKenna, Jolt Energy Storage Technologies LLC, GCxN
- Ryan Meyer, Darcy Solutions, IN²
- Partha Mishra, NineDot Energy, IN²
- David Moore, BlueDot Photonics, GCxN
- Naveen Muthumanickam, Kit Switch, IN²
- Adarsh Nagarajan, Electrified Thermal Solutions, GCxN
- Mark Nimlos, Evoco, CTAP
- Wale Odukomaiya, EnKoat, IN²
- Andrew Parker, Lumen Energy, NTAP
- Priti Paudyal, Electrical Grid Monitoring (EGM), GCxN
- Michael Penev, Electro-Active Technologies, NTAP
- Ahmad Pesaran, Moment Energy, CTAP
- Bryan Pivovar, Membrion, NTAP
- Shanti Pless, Blokable, IN²
- Shanti Pless, eSIX Development, NTAP
- Shanti Pless, Kit Switch, IN²
- Shanti Pless, Pre Framing Corp, IN²
- Ankur Podder, Pre Framing Corp, IN²
- Stacey Rothgeb, Blokable, IN²
- Stacey Rothgeb, Kit Switch, IN²
- Aron Saxon, Feasible Inc, GCxN
- Aron Saxon, Moment Energy, CTAP
- Bethany Sparn, NeoCharge, IN²
- Bethany Sparn, Shifted Energy, IN²
- Bethany Sparn, Span, IN²
- Josh Sperling, RUNWITHIT Synthetics, CTAP
- Eric Tan, CERT Systems, CTAP
- Rob Tenent, UbiQD, IN²
- Robert Tenent, 3E Nano, CTAP
- Isaac Tolbert, Resonant Link, GCxN
- Grant Wheeler, Turntide (SMC), IN²
- Matt Wiatrowski, Polaris Renewables, NTAP
- Korbaga Woldekidan, Community Energy Labs, IN²
- Korbaga Woldekidan, Tallarna, IN²
- Jason Woods, Icarus RT Inc, GCxN
- Santosh Veda, EGM, GCxN
- Chuanbo Yang, All Cell Technologies, GCxN
- Yimin Zhang, Electro-Active Technologies, NTAP
Our Programs Support NREL Research Areas
IEC programs map to NREL's research and development.
Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator
- Building Technologies and Science Center
- Chemistry and Nanoscience
- Power Systems Engineering
- Center for Integrated Mobility Sciences
- Materials Science
Shell Gamechanger Powered by NREL
- Building Technologies and Science Center
- Chemistry and Nanoscience
- Power Systems Engineering
- Center for Integrated Mobility Sciences
- Center for Energy Conversion and Storage Systems
- Energy Systems Integration Facility
- Computational Science
- Integrated Applications Center
Canadian Technology Accelerator
- Building Technologies and Science Center
- Chemistry and Nanoscience
- Power Systems Engineering
- Center for Integrated Mobility Sciences
- Center for Energy Conversion and Storage Systems
- Materials Science
- Catalytic Carbon Transformation and Scale-Up Center
- Computational Science
- Integrated Applications Center
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center
NREL Commercialization Assistance Program
- Building Technologies and Science Center
- Chemistry and Nanoscience
- Power Systems Engineering
- Center for Integrated Mobility Sciences
- Catalytic Carbon Transformation and Scale-Up Center
- Renewable Resources and Enabling Sciences Center
- Bioenergy Science and Technology
- Strategic Energy Analysis Center
Energy I-Corps
- Chemistry and Nanoscience
- Center for Energy Conversion and Storage Systems
- Materials Science
- Computational Science
- Integrated Applications Center
- National Wind Technology Center
Our Cleantech Network
IEC's tech incubation portfolio in Fiscal Year 2022 includes more than 150 startups and innovators.
- 7AC, Beverly, Massachusetts
- 75F, Burnsville, Minnesota
- Adept Materials, Somerville, Massachusetts
- AeroShield, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- AgroSpheres, Charlottesville, Virginia
- Air Company, New York, New York
- Aker Technologies, Chicago, Illinois
- All Cell Technologies, Broadview, Illinois
- Alumina Energy, Santa Monica, California
- Antora Energy, Sunnyvale, California
- Apana, Bellingham, Washington
- Atlas Sensor Technologies, El Paso, Texas
- Babur Ozden, Houston, Texas
- BattGenie, Seattle, Washington
- BlocPower, Brooklyn, New York
- Blokable, Sacramento, California
- Blue Frontier, Parkland, Florida
- Blue Ridge Networks, Chantilly, Virginia
- BlueDot Photonics, Seattle, Washington
- Bright Spot Automation, Boulder, Colorado
- Buildee (Simuwatt), Boulder, Colorado
- CarbonBook (Motorleaf), Montreal, Quebec
- Community Energy Labs, Portland, Oregon
- CorePower Magnetics, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- CoverCress, St. Louis, Missouri
- Cypris Materials, Berkeley, California
- Cytophage Technologies, Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Darcy Solutions, Excelsior, Minnesota
- EarthSense, Champaign, Illinois
- EdgePower, Aspen, Colorado
- Edison Agrosciences, St. Louis, Missouri
- Electrical Grid Monitoring Ltd, Los Angeles, California
- Electrified Thermal Solutions, Medford, Massachusetts
- EnKoat, Phoenix, Arizona
- ESS Inc, Portland, Oregon
- Geli, San Francisco, California
- Glass Dyenamics (Polyceed), Tucson, Arizona
- Go Electric, Anderson, Indiana
- GrowFlux, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Heliotrope, Berkeley, California
- Hyundai CRADLE, Mountain View, California
- Hygge Power Inc, Boulder, Colorado
- Icarus RT Inc, Carlsbad, California
- Induction Food Systems, Durham, North Carolina
- Intertie, Sausalito, California
- Intrinsyx Bio, Cupertino, California
- Ionomr, Vancouver, British Columbia
- J2 Innovations, Chino, California
- John Witchel, Durango, Colorado
- Jolt Energy Storage Technologies LLC, Holland, Michigan
- Karen Baert, Stanford, California
- Kit Switch, San Francisco, California
- Ladybug Tools, Baltimore, Maryland
- Larry Lawyer, Houston, Texas
- Liminal (Feasible Inc), Emeryville, California
- LiquidCool Solutions, Rochester, Minnesota
- Maalka, Brooklyn, New York
- MicroGrid Labs (MGL), Boulder, Colorado
- Mobius, Lenoir City, Tennessee
- NeoCharge, San Luis Obispo, California
- NETenergy, Chicago, Illinois
- New West Genetics, Fort Collins, Colorado
- NEXT Energy Technologies, Santa Barbara, California
- NineDot Energy, Brooklyn, New York
- PeptydeBio, St. Louis, Missouri
- Plastomics, St. Louis, Missouri
- Pluton Biosciences, St. Louis, Missouri
- PowerFlex Systems, Los Altos, California
- Pre Framing Corp, Berkeley, California
- Radiator Labs, Brooklyn, New York
- Renewell, Golden, Colorado
- Resonant Link, Burlington, Vermont
- Retrofit Zero, Golden, Colorado
- RNAissance Ag, St. Louis, Missouri
- Robigo, Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Shifted Energy, Honolulu, Hawaii
- Sierra Nevada Corp., Sparks, Nevada
- SolGro, Arlington, Texas
- SPAN, San Francisco, California
- Stash Energy, Fredericton, New Brunswick
- STRATIS IoT, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- SunPath, Louisville, Colorado
- Synthetic Vector Design/Susterco, St. Louis, Missouri
- Tallarna, New York, New York
- Terraform, Golden, Colorado
- TerViva, Oakland, California
- Thermolift, Stony Brook, New York
- Transformative Wave, South Kent, Washington
- Turntide Technologies (SMC), Sunnyvale, California
- UbiQD, Los Alamos, New Mexico
- Versogen, Wilmington, Delaware
- VG SmartGlass, Chicago, Illinois
- WattIQ (Ibis Networks), Honolulu, Hawaii
- Whisker Labs, Oakland, California
- Yotta Energy, Austin, Texas
- Xage, Palo Alto, California
- ZOMA LAB, Denver, Colorado
Industry Growth Forum – Better Together
The Industry Growth Forum is the longest-running event of its type. The 27th event took place April 13–14, 2022, in Denver, Colorado, and convened cleantech entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts to build relationships, showcase innovative technologies, and explore disruptive business solutions. In addition to the cleantech innovation pitch competition, it featured one-on-one meetings between entrepreneurs and investors.
Highlights
Winners
Best Venture Award
UCAP Power
Outstanding Venture Award
- Early stage: Helicoid Industries
- Growth stage: Biosynthetic Technologies
- Commercialization stage: Syzygy Plasmonics
- Emerging markets: UCAP Power
People's Choice Award
South 8 Technologies
Trends in Industry Growth Forum-Attending Startups' Technology Types
This graph shows a snapshot of the continuing evolution of startups in the cleantech space. In 2022, we saw a significant jump in hydrogen and fuel cell technology startups. Energy storage and thermal energy technologies continue to be a major focus of maturing cleantech startups, which aligns with the critical need to support large-scale deployment of renewables.
Innovation on the International Stage
The Global Power System Transformation Consortium
Through a pilot program, the Global Power System Transformation Consortium placed women in power system transformation in fellowships and internships at NREL, the Electric Power Research Institute, and the California Independent System Operator.
United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow
In November 2021, the U.N. convened global leaders in Glasgow, Scotland to collaborate on the fight against climate change. IEC Director Trish Cozart spoke on Accelerating Equitable Climate Action Global Support for Startup Innovation alongside the deputy secretary of energy and our partners Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator and Elemental Excelerator.
Global Clean Energy Incubator Network
IEC hosted a workshop convening 60 stakeholders from more than a dozen countries to collaborate on a global clean energy incubator network and mapped the global ecosystem in 2022 to understand gaps and opportunities in this space.
The Canadian Technology Assistance Program
Through the Canadian Technology Assistance Program, early-stage companies pitch their technologies to NREL experts. Startups can take advantage of validation, analysis, product design support, and more. Fifty-three Canadian companies have worked with NREL through the program; six companies did so in Fiscal Year 2022.
Visits From International Delegates
The IEC hosted visitors from several international organizations throughout 2022 that included the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, and Fortescue Future Industries.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Awards Drive Opportunities for Partners
Four Channel Partner organizations used their IN² strategic awards to deploy programs and opportunities to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion through:
- Revolving loans
- Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) specific cohorts, executive coaching, and training for BIPOC founders
- Overall support for underrepresented or underserved investors and founders.
These funds supported six historically Black colleges and universities, 134 BIPOC students, 70 BIPOC farmers, 11 BIPOC startups, six BIPOC community partner organizations, and 1,820 BIPOC businesses.
The Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center Team
Trish Cozart
Director
Katie Richardson
Group Manager
Ryan Brubaker
Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator Program Manager
Shelly Curtiss
Energy I-Corps Program Manager
Rexann Dunn
NREL Small Business Program Manager
Sheila Ebbitt
Event Coordinator
Kristin Field-Macumber
IN² Technical Project Manager
Danielle France
Industry Growth Forum and Investor Network Lead
Wendy Gutcher
Administrative Associate
Rachelle Ihly
West Gate Program Manager and GCxN Technical Project Manager
Johanna Jamison
GCxN Program Manager
Monica Kurtz
Communications Lead
Kate LaMair
Industry Growth Forum Intern
Lauren Magin
Portfolio Manager and Energy I-Corps Project Manager
Tonya McCabe
GCxN and IN² Program Operations
Kate Moore
Strategic Partnerships and Investor Advisory Board Lead
Monali Mujumdar
Startup Engagement Lead and Program Operations
Kimberlee Ott
Incubator, Accelerator, and University Partner Engagement Lead
Heather Proc
Program Operations
Ben Rakov
Industry Growth Forum Intern
Karin Wadsack
Global Power System Transformation Director and Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership Project and USAID Project Manager
Katie Woslager
Chevron Studio and Canadian Technology Assistance Program Manager
In Fiscal Year 2022, Kimberlee Ott was awarded a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award by the Denver Business Journal.
In November 2021, National Veteran Small Business Coalition awarded NREL's Small Business Program with its Champion of Veteran Enterprise Award.
Our Thanks
Many thanks to our funding partners, technical partners, cleantech incubator ecosystem, community of investors, dedicated researchers, NREL and DOE leadership, and the incredible startups we serve. Together, we have driven outstanding growth in 2022. We look forward to all that the future brings.
Share