The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced funding exceeding $35 million for 42 projects through its Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF). The initiative is intended to help bring emerging energy technologies in areas such as grid security, artificial intelligence, nuclear energy, and advanced manufacturing from DOE National Laboratories and sites to commercial markets. These projects will also benefit from more than $21 million in cost sharing by private and public partners, making the total investment over $57.5 million.
The TCF program operates under the Office of Technology Commercialization’s Core Laboratory Infrastructure for Market Readiness (CLIMR) Lab Call. Its purpose is to strengthen economic and national security by fostering public-private partnerships that support innovation and ensure global competitiveness.
“The Energy Department’s National Labs play an important role in ensuring the United States leads the world in innovation,” said Secretary Wright. “These projects have the potential to accelerate technological breakthroughs that will define the future of science and help secure America’s energy future.”
Projects selected this year come from 19 DOE National Labs, plants, and sites. Notable examples include:
– Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s America’s Cradle to Commerce (AC2C), which expands on an existing program supporting lab-to-market efforts. In 18 months, participating startups have raised over $15 million with five commercial pilots launched.
– Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s upgrade of its Visual Intellectual Property Search (VIPS) tool, aiming to make it easier for users to find innovations available for licensing or open-source use.
– Argonne National Laboratory’s advancement of the OpenMC Monte Carlo particle transport code through the Exascale Computing Project. This work supports nuclear safety analysis and aims to speed up design and licensing timelines for new U.S. nuclear reactors.
A complete list of selected projects can be found at the DOE website.
