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American-Made Challenges

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Lab MATCH Prize

Accelerates efforts of diverse entrepreneurs by working directly with national labs and their researchers on IP commercialization.
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$620,000
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Summary

Overview

Lab MATCH Prize

The DOE Office of Technology Transitions Lab MATCH (Laboratory Making Advanced Technology Commercialization Harmonized) Prize is a $620K, three-phase competition aimed to accelerate national laboratory intellectual property (IP) licensing and commercialization. 

  

Lab MATCH, which is funded by the Technology Commercialization Fund, is part of the American-Made Challenges suite of prizes. It provides an opportunity for innovators and entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds to work directly with national labs and their researchers to accelerate technology commercialization. 

 

Participating national labs include

  • National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) 
  • Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) 
  • Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). 

 

Prize Phases 

The Lab MATCH Prize offers a total prize pool of $620,000 in cash prizes across three phases.  

 

Phase 1 (Commitment) 

Each competing team will provide details about:  

  • The team as whole 
  • Member background and skillset 
  • Information describing a strong plan for licensing/commercialization.  

Teams will also select the available national lab IP from one of the three participating labs, agree to the basic terms and conditions of the lab agreements, and will work with the national lab associated with the selected IP. 

 

Up to 20 winning teams will receive $2,500 each in cash and will be eligible to compete in Phase 2.  

 

Phase 2 (Plan) 

Winning teams from Phase 1 will work to create a deep and comprehensive engagement plan that describes their commercialization intentions, past experiences, and specific plans of actions.  

 

Teams will complete a submission that provides relevant information describing their skills and qualifications that will ensure that the commercialization process will be successful and details the plan of action, partners, timelines, and more.  

 

Up to 9 winning teams will receive $30,000 each in cash and be eligible to compete in Phase 3.  

 

Phase 3 (Action)  

Winning teams from Phase 2 will make significant progress on licensing/commercialization by working closely with the national lab Technology Transfer Office and the relevant researcher.  

 

The Phase 3 prizes will be awarded based on level of effort and commercialization advancement as assessed by DOE. The submission form will give teams the ability to describe their progress made throughout the prize, describe the additional action steps that need to happen to fully commercialize the technology, and provide other useful information including further details about progress made, partnerships, etc.  

 

Three winning teams will receive $100,000 each in cash prizes. 

 

Competitor Eligibility 

This competition is only open to private, for-profit entities (for-profits).  

Private entities must be incorporated in and maintain a primary place of business in the United States. 

Individuals, or groups of individuals, that wish to compete must incorporate in the United States as a private entity and maintain a primary place of business in the United States. It is expected that any manufacturing component of anticipated commercialization occur in the United States. 

 

Read the Official Rules for full eligibility requirements. 

 


Guidelines

Please review the official rules for the complete application process and instructions for competing.

If you want to receive updates on the prize or have any questions, please subscribe by using the contact feature on the HeroX platform or message us directly at LabMatch@nrel.gov

Timeline
Updates9

Challenge Updates

Access Sample IP Agreements from Technology Transfer Offices

Nov. 30, 2023, 11:30 a.m. PST by NREL Prize Moderator

In order to streamline the IP agreement process, the Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) from NREL, Sandia and Oak Ridge are providing sample IP agreements! Make sure to review your technology’s national laboratory’s agreements in detail!

 

All agreement templates are posted under the “Resources” tab.


Connect with National Lab Experts for Your IP Questions

Nov. 27, 2023, 11:30 a.m. PST by NREL Prize Moderator

Have questions about your identified national laboratory IP? Use the contact list below to get the answers to your questions:

NREL - Anne Miller, Anne.Miller@nrel.gov

Sandia - Mary Monson, mamonso@sandia.gov

Oak Ridge - Susan Ochs,  


Don’t Forget: ADL Ventures' Commercialization Guidance Webinar Today!

Nov. 13, 2023, 8:30 a.m. PST by NREL Prize Moderator

Join ADL Ventures today from 1 to 2:30 p.m. MT to hear from Frank Yang, 2x hard-tech founder, and Diana Fisler, entrepreneur-in-residence and CEO of NREL-developed EcoSnap, about making the most of your Lab MATCH application!

Jumpstart your entrepreneurship journey with Frank Yang and Diana Fisler as they offer their exceptional insights on how to spin out and scale lab IP, strategic pathways, and success signals to support your Lab MATCH application. 

 

Register now for ADL Ventures' Commercialization Guidance Webinar. We hope to see you there!

 


Register for “Commercialization Guidance” Webinar on Nov. 13

Oct. 27, 2023, 11 a.m. PDT by NREL Prize Administrator

We’ve partnered with Power Connector ADL Ventures to provide you with resources that will help make the most out of your Phase 1 Submission! 

ADL will be hosting its “Commercialization Guidance: How To Go To Market Through the National Labs and Corporate Partnerships” on Nov. 13 at 3 p.m. ET. 

Register now: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_BrDr04JvQmytQrCOXonUHA.


Did You Miss the Phase 1 Webinar? View the Recording!

Oct. 25, 2023, 2:59 p.m. PDT by NREL Prize Administrator

If you couldn’t squeeze the Lab MATCH Prize info webinar into your schedule, don’t worry! A recording is now available so you can review the content at your convenience. The webinar covers:

 

  • Overview of Phases 1-3
  • Full list of National Lab intellectual property eligible for inclusion
  • Phase 1 submission details
  • Power Connectors-provided learning opportunities and mentoring
  • Question-and-answer discussion with webinar attendees

 

View the webinar recording here or find it posted under our “Resources” tab.


Forum3
Teams142
Resources
FAQ