Innovation and Entrepreneurship News
Read the latest updates from NREL's Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center.
April 2024
IN² at 10 Years: Cohort 1 Participant Turns Up Heat on Fire Prevention
The sensors in today's Whisker Labs Ting device trace their origins to the original sensors tested in NREL's Energy Systems Integration Facility during the IN2 program.
February 2024
IN² Demonstration: Electrification—One Building at a Time
Through its IN2 demonstration, NREL is helping BlocPower assess how its technical capabilities can perform in the field.
IN² Demonstration: Startup Transforms Transformers for Electric Vehicle Charging Efficiency
For its demonstration with IN², CorePower is partnering with Eaton, a power management company, to test a transformer designed for an electric vehicle charging application, especially mass EV charging for things like vehicle fleets.
December 2023
Why the New GCxN Cohort Is Just the Start
This fall, Shell and NREL agreed to extend the GCxN program for another five years, providing another 30 startup companies with access to $250,000 in nondilutive funding to conduct technical assistance projects.
September 2023
Solar Data Bounty Prize Stage 1 Finalists Selected
On Oct. 2, the DOE Solar Energy Technologies Office announced seven Stage 1 finalists for the American-Made Solar Data Bounty Prize, with each team receiving a $5,000 cash prize. The seven teams will now move on to Stage 2 to compete for part of $1.4 million in cash prizes.
First Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator Cohort Looks Back and Ahead
Three companies recently completed the inaugural cohort of the Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator (CECA): Sierra Nevada Corporation, Blue Ridge Networks, and Xage Security.
March 2023
FLOWIN Forward: Nine Teams Advance to Phase Two of the First Wind Energy Prize
The first NREL-administered, three-phase floating offshore wind energy prize has named nine Phase One winners, kicking off Phase Two.
February 2023
Leveraging NREL All-Electric HVAC Technology, Blue Frontier Earns $20 Million Development Boost
Bolstered by technologies developed at NREL, startup company Blue Frontier earned $20 million from the Bill Gates-funded Breakthrough Energy Ventures.
January 2023
IN² Demonstration: Getting V2G Good To Go
For its 10th cohort, the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN²) formed an all-demonstration group where each participant would scope and perform a demonstration of their technologies. The key part of NineDot Energy's success is understanding the time and place to improve the grid. During the past summer, NineDot Energy installed a demonstration of its vehicle-to-grid (V2G) charging system in Brooklyn, New York.
December 2022
News Release: First Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator Participants Begin Technical Assessment
The Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator's (CECA's) first cohort of solution providers—Blue Ridge Networks, Sierra Nevada Corporation, and Xage—recently began technical assessment of their technologies that offer strong authentication solutions for distributed energy resources.
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Last Updated April 28, 2025