NENY is growing a comprehensive ecosystem to support battery and energy storage innovators and startups in their technology development and commercialization journey from the lab to proof-of-concept, scaling, manufacturing, and market launch.

NENY innovation programs are made possible by partners Binghamton University, Koffman Southern Tier Incubator, Activate Global, The Clean Fight NY, New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST), and The Research Foundation for The State University of New York (RFSUNY).

Join us in New York State to take advantage of various accelerator programs, funding, and other support opportunities.

Chargeup Accelerator

ChargeUp, a battery accelerator program powered by New Energy New York in partnership with the Koffman Southern Tier Incubator, is now recruiting startups for its first cohort.

ChargeUp has everything you need to launch and scale your business. Funding, world-class advisors, structured curriculum, investor connections, and vast resources in an ecosystem built for battery innovation.

If you’re a startup from early-stage to Series A funding that is working on battery innovations, ChargeUp can help strengthen your business case and speed your technology commercialization. ChargeUp is based on Luminate, the world’s largest accelerator for companies developing deep tech that uses optics, photonics, or imaging and NextCorps’ Manufacturing Accelerator, which helps companies move their prototype into mass production.

WHO SHOULD APPLY? Companies with

Innovations anywhere in the battery supply chain
Technologies proven at lab scale
At least two full-time employees
C-level team members able to participate in person

The Energy Storage Capital Challenge

The Clean Fight is thrilled to announce the Energy Storage Capital Challenge, focused on aligning capital to accelerate innovative energy storage projects in New York State.

What makes this unique? This is not about pitching your project to individual investors. Instead, we’re bringing together the capital stack to collaboratively workshop your project and financing strategy.

The Challenge is supported by NENY, along with NYSERDA, and is conducted in collaboration with New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST).

Who Should Apply

We’re looking for energy storage projects currently in development in New York State, post-site control but pre-financial close. In particular:

Innovative or First of a Kind. Projects that include a novel element – be that technology, business model, use case, etc
Experiencing a financing gap. Has an immediate capital challenge that is currently underserved in the New York market
Broader applicability. The challenges experienced by the project must not be atypical, to ensure that the potential solutions can have broader benefit

Customer Discovery Courses

Throughout the year, in partnership with the NSF Interior Northeast I-Corps Hub, NENY offers a number of customer discovery courses, supplemented by funding of $3000-$5000 per team.

Courses offered through Binghamton University

Clean Energy I-Corps @ the ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit: Through the experiential course, clean energy innovators and entrepreneurs will learn about customer discovery and product-market fit of their innovations by directly connecting with relevant stakeholders, including potential customers and partners, at the in-person ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit.

I-Corps @ The Battery Show: The I-Corps @ The Battery Show Course is a hybrid program that provides researchers in the battery and energy storage space the opportunity to receive experiential customer discovery training at the premier battery industry event in North America. Participants will receive a combination of virtual and in-person instruction, while directly engaging with potential industry customers, partners, and other stakeholders. This course begins with online sessions and culminates in a trip to The Battery Show in Detroit, MI. Up to $5,000 in travel reimbursement is available for accepted teams. Apply by: Wednesday, August 21 at https://www.tfaforms.com/5134116

NENY Charge-Up Gap Funding Program

The Charge-Up Gap Funding Program support clean energy innovators and startups in key gap areas of incorporation, intellectual property protection, and grant proposal preparation with educational sessions coupled with micro-grant funding.

2023 application round is now closed.

Student Startup Experience

Your clean energy startup can work with regional student talent from premier New York State colleges and universities, with the program covering student stipends for participation, at no cost to the company. The program enables companies to select students based on their technical needs.

Apply to join the experience!

Technical Assistance Voucher Program

The NENY Technical Assistance Vouchers provide funding to battery startups and small businesses to cover the costs associated with testing, prototyping, and certification services through qualified providers to advance the development and commercialization of their technologies.

Eligible companies can receive up to $100,000 per RFP round, and up to $150,000 per calendar year.

The program runs in cycles on a competitive RFP basis.

Program RFP can be found here
Narrative Template can be found here.

NSF REgional I-Corps virtual course

Explore commercialization in an NSF I-Corps Regional Course! Led by the NSF I-Corps Hub: Interior Northeast (IN I-Corps), these free, month-long NSF I-Corps Regional Courses are designed for university-based STEM researchers and early-stage founders interested in evaluating the market potential of their technology and learning valuable entrepreneurial skills. The virtual course hosted by I-Corps Hubs partner Binghamton University is a perfect fit for tech researchers in all STEM fields.

This course runs January 12–February 14, 2024. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

Startup Programs