Empowering Aspiring Hard-Tech Entrepreneurs
Starting new energy-related technology companies can be challenging, and that’s one reason the number of energy startups has declined significantly over the past decade. Innovation Crossroads, a Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program, is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, Building Technologies Office, Office of Electricity, Office of Science Advanced Scientific Computing Research program and Basic Energy Sciences program, and the Tennessee Valley Authority that leverages Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s unique scientific resources and capabilities and connects the nation’s top innovators with experts, mentors, and networks in technology-related fields to take world-changing ideas from research and development to the marketplace.
Innovation Crossroads is a two-year program for fellows focusing on energy and advanced manufacturing technologies. Through an annual national call and competitive stage-gate process, top entrepreneurial-minded fellows are selected to join the program. Selected innovators receive a fellowship that includes a personal living stipend, along with health insurance and travel allowance, a substantial grant to use on collaborative R&D at ORNL, and comprehensive mentoring assistance to build a sustainable business model.
By embedding the next generation of top technical talent within ORNL, Innovation Crossroads positions entrepreneurial researcher fellows to address fundamental energy and manufacturing challenges identified by industry.
Program Impacts
51
Startups supported
323
Jobs created
$307.4 million
In follow-on funding
22
Startups with sales
$34 million
In sales revenue
29
Patents granted
Featured News
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Energy Department Selects 27 Innovators for Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today selected 27 innovators and entrepreneurs to join the latest cohorts in its Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP). Selectees will be embedded within four U.S. national laboratories where they will work with an extensive network of mentors and experts to develop transformative energy technologies.
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SkyNano Awarded $1.6M DOE Phase II Contract to Scale Carbon Nanotube Production
SkyNano, a sustainable domestic producer of advanced carbon products, is excited to present that we have been granted a $1.6M Award from the Department of Energy. Starting in late 2024 when this was first awarded, we have worked diligently to make substantial progress on this project. This award builds on our successful Phase I results
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Ateios Systems wins $1 million investment in inaugural TitletownTech’s start-up draft competition
The company was part of the 2022 cohort of the “Innovation Crossroads” program at ORNL.Yesterday afternoon in Green Bay, WI, ahead of the National Football League’s annual draft of college football players that began at 8 p.m., there was another competition that was also held in the city, and one of the two winners was
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