Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP)

Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP) is AMMTO's two-year funded fellowship for early-stage energy and manufacturing founders. It embeds technical entrepreneurs at DOE national laboratories through four nodes: Cyclotron Road at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne, Innovation Crossroads at Oak Ridge, and West Gate at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The program is managed by AMMTO, but each node runs its own selection cycle with the host lab. The fellowship includes a living stipend, healthcare, travel support, equipment and scientist access, collaborative R&D funding, and mentoring. Eligibility in the record calls for a technical degree, four to five years of R&D experience, full-time commitment, relocation to the host site, and U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residence. The annual cohort was open in 2026, and the program prioritizes founders who are new to company building. LEEP is strongest for founders who want lab access and can use the residence model to turn research into a business while staying close to national-lab scientists. Since 2015, the program reports 212 fellows, 182 businesses launched, 3,840 jobs created, $4.2 billion in follow-on funding, and a 92 percent business survival rate. The fit is unusually concrete: a founder, a lab, and a two-year runway built around the node's selection process.

Each grant below is a distinct funding opportunity with its own eligibility, scope, and deliverables.