Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Partnerships and Technology Transfer

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Economic Development

Entrepreneurial Programs

Partnerships staff believes that one of the very best ways to translate ORNL R&D into the commercial marketplace is to encourage the creation of new start-ups businesses. We devote significant time on entrepreneurial activities each year, including:

  • Bridging the GapBridging the Gap
    ORNL hosts a major annual celebration of technology commercialization and entrepreneurship called Bridging the Gap. This event is open to the public for registration. The audience has opportunities to hear about promising technology commercialization opportunities, meet with lab leadership and entrepreneurially-minded staff, and learn from others who have successfully collaborated with ORNL.
  • SparkSPARK! Partnerships staff hosts an event each year at which some of ORNL’s most promising technologies are presented to a small group of entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts, who provide valuable feedback about potential market applications and collaborators.
  • LDRD Launch In Fiscal Year 2012, ORNL leadership invested $1 million of internal R&D Funds to establish the LDRD Launch Program. A lab-wide call for proposals was issued seeking innovative ideas which had the potential to result in near-term economic impact. Five awards were made, and those awardees will compete for two larger follow-on investments later this year. Based on the enthusiastic staff response to LDRD Launch, ORNL will also invest in five new LDRD Launch projects later this year as well.
  • Tech 20/20 Center for Entrepreneurial Growth ORNL and Tech 20/20 created the Center for Entrepreneurial Growth in 2000 to provide experienced coaching and counseling to entrepreneurs and start-up companies related to ORNL technologies. The CEG program has since expanded significantly, and many organizations throughout the region call on Tech 20/20 to provide these expert services.