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News and Feature Stories
The following news stories take an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at how NREL is leading energy systems innovation and integration.
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August 2025
AI Could Help Bridge Valley of Death for New Materials
More than 50 experts gathered at NREL to consider how incorporating AI into materials synthesis, characterization, and modeling could unlock new insights and speed new technologies to market.
Heavy Metal Meets High Tides With New 3D Printer
New tool lets researchers and partners cut prototyping costs, wait times, and design barriers for ocean energy technologies and more.
Researchers Observe Evidence of Hyperbolic Exciton Polaritons
Promising new pathways for manipulating excitons and light can benefit optoelectronics.
Researchers Surf Magnon Wave To Control Particles in Next-Gen Electronics
A new study demonstrates how magnons, a type of wave found in magnetic systems, can manipulate interactions between excitons—uncharged “quasiparticles” that carry energy.
July 2025
Early-Career Spotlight: From Astrophysics to Applied Artificial Intelligence, Hilary Egan Charts a Creative Path Through Science
This month's Materials, Chemical, and Computational Science Early-Career Spotlight features Hilary Egan, who has been a data scientist at NREL since 2020.
NREL Transportation Researchers Recognized for Leadership, Innovativeness, and Collaboration at Vehicle Technologies Office Annual Merit Reviews
Transportation researchers from NREL received awards at the 2025 Annual Merit Review meeting for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office.
NREL Technical Support Empowers Local Governments and Tribes To Boost Energy Efficiency and Cut Costs
From Sugar Land, Texas, to Chenega, Alaska, NREL is advancing affordable, community-driven energy solutions across the nation through the DOE Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program.
West Gate’s 4th Cohort Innovators Pursue Advanced Energy Applications Throughout Energy Landscape
Innovators bring exciting ideas to the fourth cohort of West Gate—NREL’s Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program.
News Release: Jud Virden, Ph.D., Appointed Laboratory Director at NREL
The Alliance for Sustainable Energy announced the appointment of Jud Virden, Ph.D., as director of NREL and president of the Alliance, which manages the laboratory for the Department of Energy. Virden will officially join NREL in this role on Oct. 1, 2025.
NREL and Google Host Artificial Intelligence Hackathon To Tackle Data Center Energy Challenges
NREL and Google teamed up to host a hackathon, bringing together researchers from nine DOE national laboratories to explore and leverage Google's generative artificial intelligence and large language model tools to address an array of critical challenges related to energy limitations for U.S. data centers.
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Last Updated Aug. 20, 2025