The 2025 NREL Industry Growth Forum (IGF) celebrated its 30th anniversary by awarding six top innovators of emerging technologies on March 26–28, 2025. With this year’s theme of ‘Unlock Unlock Value,’ the IGF provided more programs than ever before. In addition to the one-on-one meetings between startups and investors and the pitch competition, this year’s event featured reverse pitches, where industry partners expressed their needs from the innovation ecosystem. Also new this year, a spotlight event showcased 10 companies that are part of NREL’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC) programs. The IEC hosted more than 1,000 attendees at the IGF. For this year's awards, a panel of judges made up of investors deliberated to identify the winners from a field of 52 companies that pitched technologies during the event, which had been selected by the IGF team from 247 applicants earlier in 2025. The Industry Growth Forum is the premier advanced energy technology event that brings together entrepreneurs, investors, and industry experts to forge new partnerships. The event allows them to share cutting-edge technologies, emerging resources, and models to bring new innovations to the market. The 2025 IGF award winners: **Best Growth Venture** Ampersand—Daniel Ketyer, VP of Corporate Development and Strategy, Kigali, Rwanda **Best Commercialization Venture** Sepion Technologies—Peter Frisch, Co-Founder and CEO, Alameda, California **Best Pre-Commercialization Venture** Tandem PV—Scott Wharton, CEO, San Jose, California **Best Early Venture** Palanquin Power—Michael Solomentsev, Co-Founder and CEO, Golden, Colorado **Best International Venture** Ampersand—Daniel Ketyer, VP of Corporate Development and Strategy, Kigali, Rwanda **People’s Choice Award** Ecotone Renewables—Dylan Lew, Co-Founder and CEO, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania **Best Overall Venture** Sunchem—Daniel Sun, Co-Founder and CEO, California For a list of participating companies and sponsors, and for more information on the IGF, visit us online at .

News Release: 2025 NREL Industry Growth Forum Celebrates 30 Years, Unlocks Value for Attendees

The 2025 NREL Industry Growth Forum (IGF) celebrated its 30th anniversary by awarding six top innovators of emerging technologies. The event, themed 'Unlock Unlock Value,' featured one-on-one meetings between startups and investors, a pitch competition, reverse pitches, and a spotlight event showcasing 10 companies from NREL’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center (IEC). The awards were given to six startups across various stages of development, including Best Growth Venture, Best Commercialization Venture, Best Pre-Commercialization Venture, Best Early Venture, Best International Venture, and People's Choice Award.