LEMONT, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Since 2015, clean energy entrepreneurs have developed game-changing technologies with the support of the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP). The first LEEP Summit on July 12 will showcase the program’s science-based climate solutions, highlighting their regional and national impact. Registration is open for the event, which will be held virtually with limited in-person attendance at each of the four participating DOE national research laboratories.
Achieving a net-zero economy—one that adds no planet-warming greenhouse gases to the atmosphere—requires innovators to implement solutions at unprecedented speed and scale. LEEP has supported more than 100 entrepreneurs by providing two-year full-time scholarships. LEEP fellows gain access to unique resources in DOE national laboratories and their regional innovation ecosystems.
“If we are to fully address climate change with new innovations, the scientists involved must take a direct role in moving these technologies toward commercial viability,” said John Carlisle, Senior Advisor at Chain Reaction Innovations and Chair of the LEEP Summit. “LEEP is not just a deep development program, it is a fellowship program focused on providing two years of full-time support to help these individuals translate their discoveries into the real world.”
The July 12 summit will convene former and current LEEP entrepreneurs and key climate change stakeholders, as well as investors and thought leaders from government, industry, academia and the US climate innovation ecosystem. At the event, more than 20 participating LEEP startups will pitch their technologies to potential investors or research partners.
Participants in LEEP, which is funded by DOE’s Office of Advanced Manufacturing, work out of one of four program nodes: Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois; Cyclotron Road at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California; West Gate at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado; and Innovation Crossroads at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
“Argonne is honored to work with the best and brightest science and technology innovators the US has to offer,” said Argonne National Laboratory Director Paul Kearns. “Together with our scientists, they are using Argonne’s unique scientific customer capabilities to develop a wide range of technologies that will accelerate the clean energy economy. Their laudable efforts are creating next-generation industries that will keep our nation at the forefront of innovation in science and technology.”
For more information about the LEEP Summit and to register, visit leepsummit.anl.gov.
