Earlier this month, Cohort 6 of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy I-Corps program concluded with an energy-filled pitch event at the National Union Building in Washington, D.C. This was a special evening, as Energy I-Corps alumni from several national laboratories joined the Cohort 6 teams to showcase their technologies and the progress made since graduating from the program. DOE hosted special guests, including technology scouts, strategic partners, industry professionals, and early stage investors. This is a pivotal moment for the Energy I-Corps program, as more industry engagement sends a signal to innovators everywhere that private industry wants in on the breakthrough technologies developed through the national lab network. To further illustrate that point, Cohort 6 is host to the program’s first industry-funded team, in an effort to prove the commercial feasibility of nascent technology.
Several of the alumni teams, driven by market validation findings through Energy I-Corps, have continued working hard to advance their commercialization efforts. CuB Fuels, of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), for instance, is exploring a unique licensing model to propel their drop-in fuel technology into its perfect-fit market: high-octane fuel. They recently placed first in NREL’s Pitch! Energy competition, earning them a chance to compete against other alumni teams at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in the National Lab Accelerator Pitch Competition, on November 29. Part of CuB Fuels’ success in the program stems from their bearish effort in the customer discovery process; they previously held the record for most customer interviews in the eight-week span (100), but have now been surpassed by ELINA of Cohort 6 (103)! But there’s no rest for the weary, and the Energy I-Corps teams understand the drive and perseverance needed to bring technology to market. Don’t expect CuB Fuels to hibernate after their next pitch, either. Energy is the name of the game, after all.
National lab researchers do not go-it-alone through this tech transfer quest. Industry mentors from various sectors and backgrounds guide the teams in their customer discovery and understanding of the product-market fit. This is vital, especially as participants navigate the early weeks of the lean startup methodology. And at the helm, is the elite Energy I-Corps instructor panel. Cohort 6 was steered by Jean Redfield – President and CEO of NextEnergy; Hannah Farquar – Creator of Market Intelligence at Lawrence Livermore National Lab; Sally Hatcher – Co-Founder of Mbio Diagnostics; and Dr. Peter Fiske – Director of the Water-Energy Resilience Institute at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab.
Though the commercialization process can be lengthy and complex, the tenacious Energy I-Corps alumni have a leg up and a clear vision for how to gain traction with industry and their ideal customer segments. Cohort 7 will kick off spring 2018; stay tuned to hear which innovative technologies and lab teams will be joining the commercialization effort. Last week, two Cohort 6 teams won R&D 100 Awards, and several Energy I-Corps alumni teams were finalists! Follow @NRELentreprenr to see photos from the Energy I-Corps Alumni event, and visit energyicorps.energy.gov to learn more about the accelerator program and its stellar teams.
NREL Innovation and Entrepreneurship 