EnergyTech University Prize 2025

Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Technology Transitions (OTT) announced 10 Faculty Explorer award recipients in the EnergyTech University Prize (EnergyTech UP) Faculty Track. OTT awarded each faculty competitor $5,000 for showing promising interest, ideas, and/or materials that promote energy entrepreneurship at their collegiate institutions.

Those competing in EnergyTech UP 2025 as faculty are challenged to develop innovative educational activities to engage more students in energy technology commercialization and entrepreneurship at their institution. This track is designed to incentivize and support faculty directly, with $110,000 in cash prizes available for their efforts. 

The EnergyTech UP 2024 Faculty Explorers are as follows (organized alphabetically by last name): 

• Sevki Cesmeci, Georgia Southern University (Statesboro, GA)
  • Developing programming to equip students to bridge technical innovation and market application, preparing future leaders in the energy sector.
• Jeff Dusek, Baldwin Wallace University (Berea, OH) 
  • Creating a pathway for energy innovation in the Baldwin Wallace engineering program through industry-engaged curricular enhancements and entrepreneurship.
• Pejman Kazempoor, The University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK) 
  • Combining technology and business strategies to explore innovative entrepreneurship in green energy solutions.
• Charles McElroy, Cleveland State University (Cleveland, OH)
  • Engaging students, faculty, government, nonprofit stakeholders in the use of AI to make business plans for commercializing energy technologies.
• Selvaprabu Nadarajah, University of Illinois Chicago (Chicago, IL)
  • Creating a digital badge to train students in energy technology commercialization, bridging education and clean energy careers.
• Nelson Pizarro, University of the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas, VI)
  • Integrating energy tech and entrepreneurship at the University of the Virgin Islands to foster innovation, resilience, and equity in tackling Caribbean energy challenges.
• Amy Quarkume, Howard University (Washington, D.C.)
  • Developing a 7-week accelerator empowering HBCU students to create energy tech solutions for underserved communities, fostering equity and impact.
• Arif Rahman, Hawai’i Pacific University (Honolulu, HI)
  • Empowering students to develop market-ready clean energy solutions by integrating entrepreneurial fundamentals into curriculum.
• Jian Shi, University of Houston (Houston, TX)
  • Creating an energy technology commercialization course and certificate that will enable students to develop business plans, receive mentorship, and participate in pitch competitions.
• Liwei Zhou, The University of Texas at Arlington (Arlington, TX)
  • Developing a four-step program to educate, research, and commercialize energy technologies, bridging students with industrial practice for a sustainable future.

As part of EnergyTech UP, faculty develop a proposal throughout three phases of competition: the Explore Phase, the Develop Phase, and the Implement Phase. 

Faculty Explorers, as well as any other interested faculty, are encouraged to submit a plan by April 25 as part of the Implement Phase to reflect how their idea could be integrated into educational activities for students. Up to eight faculty teams will split the $60,000 prize pool as winners and runners-up.

Don’t forget: Students interested in participating in EnergyTech UP 2024 can join a final informational webinar on Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. ET.  To enter the competition, students must upload a submission that is focused on an energy technology commercialization business plan by Feb. 3 at 11:59 p.m. ET. 

Congratulations to the 2025 Faculty Explorers!

The submission deadline for EnergyTech UP is just a few weeks away. Have questions about how to enter? Join the final informational webinar to get answers directly from prize administrators! 

During the webinar, the prize team will discuss submission requirements, team building, bonus prizes, and preparing a successful submission. Bring your questions and make sure you’re ready to meet the Feb 3. submission deadline! 

• Informational webinar: Jan. 23, 1–2 p.m. ET—Register here

Even if you are unable to attend at that time, please consider registering for the webinar so that you will be automatically emailed the session recording. 

A Reminder About Bonus Prizes

Don’t forget, the competition offers 12 additional bonus prizes related to technology focus, team location, or student makeup. Below are the U.S. Department of Energy technology offices and their corresponding bonus prize challenges:

• Arctic Energy Office Bonus Prize:  As a team made up of Alaska-based students, demonstrate and propose an innovative business model for an emerging energy technology that helps meet the energy, science, and security needs of the U.S. and its Arctic allies. 
   
• Geothermal Technologies Office Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to increase the adoption of geothermal technologies that address key exploration and operational challenges.
   
• Office of Nuclear Energy Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced technologies supporting advanced reactors and fuel cycle technologies. 
   
• Office of Electricity Grid-Enhancing Technologies (GETs) Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to increase the adoption of GETs to benefit the U.S. power grid. 
   
• Office of Electricity Grid-Scale Power Electronics (PE) Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to stimulate the adoption of advanced power electronics in the U.S power grid. 
   
• Office of Electricity Long-Duration Energy Storage (LDES) Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to propose an LDES technology solution, explain the technology’s use case, and address market challenges to enable greater adoption of LDES in the U.S. power system. Innovative energy storage use cases are encouraged. 
   
• Solar Energy Technologies Office Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to improve the performance, affordability, reliability, and value of solar technologies in the U.S. grid and to tackle emerging challenges in the solar industry. 
   
• Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models to identify mechanisms for commercially viable hydrogen technologies to achieve market liftoff, supporting domestic competitiveness, job creation, and achievement of climate goals. 
   
• Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains Bonus Prize: Develop an innovative business model or commercialization plan to increase the adoption of industrial decarbonization improvements at small- and medium-sized manufacturers. 
   
• Water Power Technologies Office Bonus Prize: Develop innovative business models for a novel hydropower or marine technology of your choice that tackles emerging challenges in the water power industry and aims to improve the performance, affordability, reliability, and value of hydropower or marine energy in the United States. 

Below are additional bonus prizes offered by the Office of Technology Transitions (OTT): 

• As in past years, the Office of Technology Transitions: National Lab IP Licensing bonus prize is awarded to a team who develops innovative business models to help accelerate the commercialization of technologies available on the Lab Partnering Service website.
• OTT will also offer a bonus prize to an undergraduate-only team. Eligible teams must be made up of only undergraduate students, including those pursuing an associate degree or bachelor’s degree.

Student Track competitors will soon have the opportunity to pitch their innovative technology and associated business idea to a panel of judges based on their geographic region. (Read more about the Explore Phase pitch process in the official prize rules document.) The virtual events will take place March 4-6. 

Meet the regional conveners leading these exciting events and learn more about them at the next informational webinar on Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. ET. Register here to reserve your spot! 

Eastern Conveners

• Cleantech Open Northeast, the Alliance for Climate Transition
• Partnership for Southern Equity
• Research Triangle Cleantech Cluster
• University of South Florida
• Urban Future Lab, New York University
• Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation at Carnegie Mellon University 

Central Conveners

• Circular Venture Lab
• Evergreen Climate Innovations
• Grid Catalyst
• Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship
• University of Kentucky

Western Conveners 

• Activate – California
• Clean Energy Institute - University of Washington
• Colorado School of Mines, McNeil Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
• Hawaii Innovation Lab (in joint effort with Applied Research for Communities in Extreme Environments, NREL)
• University of Arizona Center for Innovation

More details about the regional conveners during the next webinar. Prize administrators will also discuss teams will be divided, and tips for preparing a successful virtual pitch, and answer any lingering questions you may have.

Register here to reserve your spot at the Jan. 23 informational webinar!

Submission deadlines for both the Faculty Track and the Student Track are quickly approaching!

As a reminder, faculty who would like to be considered for Faculty Explorer awards should submit their applications by Jan. 13. Students ready to accelerate the clean energy market with a concise business plan that leverages national laboratory-developed or other emerging energy technologies should apply with a 200-word summary by Feb. 3.

We recommend beginning your submission well in advance of each deadline to leave time for any technical problems you may encounter in the process. 

Questions? Ask a prize administrator!

There are still two opportunities to hear more about the prize and have your questions answered live by the EnergyTech UP prize team. Register today to reserve your spot:

• Office Hours on Jan. 8 at 12 p.m. ET | Register here
• January Informational Webinar (Student Track Only) on Jan. 23 at 1 p.m. ET | Register here

Additional Resources

Curious about what you need to submit as part of your application? Make sure you read the official prize rules before submitting any materials. Plus, you can hear from past prize winners and gain a better understanding of the competition by watching a recording of the December informational webinar. 

We hope to see your submission soon! 

Any faculty interested in being considered for one of the ten $5,000 Faculty Explorer prizes should start preparing now to meet the Jan. 13 Explore Phase submission deadline! 

During the Explore Phase, prize administrators are looking for faculty interested in incorporating or expanding energy technology commercialization and entrepreneurship topics into their institution’s educational activities. This track is designed to help faculty implement their ideas through cash prizes, resources, and mentorship. 

Read more about the success of the inaugural Faculty Track in this recently published technical report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. 

Submission Next Steps

Step 1. Click “solve this challenge” on HeroX to begin your Faculty Track submission.

Step 2. Upload the following submission materials:

• A project title and short summary of your proposal (no more than 250 words)
• A single slide that summarizes the proposal for integrating or expanding the topics of energy technology commercialization and entrepreneurship 
• A three-page written document addressing the suggested content shown in Table 10 of the Official Rules
• A completed entry form on HeroX with answers to all required questions, including institutional demographics
• Resume or CV.

Read more about submission materials for each phase in the Official Rules. 

Step 3. Press “submit final entry” by 11:59 p.m. ET on January 13, 2025.

A Reminder for Student Track Competitors

There’s still time to gather your team, choose an energy technology to leverage in a business plan, and get your initial submission ready before the student deadline on Feb. 3! If you still have questions about competing, consider bringing them to upcoming office hours on Jan. 8 (register here) or attending the final informational webinar on Jan. 23 (register here).

Good luck to all competitors!