Chain Reaction Innovations (CRI) Cohort 2027 Fellowship at Argonne National Laboratory

About

CRI is a two-year, non-equity fellowship that embeds four to six technical founders per cohort at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, providing a $115,000 annual stipend, healthcare benefits and national laboratory facilities to de-risk early-stage energy and science technologies.

Benefits

• Guaranteed: a stipend of $115,000 per year for two years plus healthcare benefits; a Manufacturing Entrepreneurship Partnership (MEP) fellowship funded through Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) covering stipend, health insurance and a travel allowance; non-dilutive funding for de-risking technological innovations; use of Argonne laboratory equipment, working and laboratory space and office space; connection to Argonne technical experts, facilities and capabilities, including access to named user facilities described by the program; pairing with an Argonne principal investigator/host scientist; networking with business experts, investors, mentors and corporate partners; neither the U.S. Department of Energy nor Argonne nor its employees take an equity stake in the startup; the startup receives rights to inventions and data generated during the program and may negotiate up to an exclusive license to certain IP developed under the CRADA. Conditional: the ORISE fellowship is provided for the first year with the potential for a one-year renewal; continued funding is subject to availability of funding from the U.S. Department of Energy; selected candidates must upload a resume and transcripts or other official documentation verifying the degree in Zintellect, and offers are contingent on receipt of those documents and eligibility verification by ORISE.

Eligibility Criteria

• Mandatory: applicants must be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent U.S. residents at the time of application; must have at least five years of R&D technology experience or a doctoral degree or equivalent experience in an appropriate discipline; must be a first-time technical founder; must not have raised more than $2 million in private sector funding at the time of application; if affiliated with a startup company at application, that startup must be incorporated in the U.S.; selected innovators must belong to an incorporated business structured as a C Corporation rather than an LLC; must pass a conflict-of-interest due diligence review and comply with Argonne's Prime Contract, including a non-negotiable CRADA with NDA language and an IP Management Plan; must relocate to and be in residence in the Chicago area to embed at Argonne; must focus on technology supporting the U.S. Department of Energy mission that requires roughly a two-year development cycle to reach a pre-commercial prototype stage. Preferred: technical founders with hands-on laboratory experience developing an early-stage technological innovation, working in areas that leverage Argonne's resources and specialty focus areas. Note: affiliation with Argonne, UChicago Argonne LLC or the University of Chicago does not disqualify an applicant but triggers an organizational conflict-of-interest management plan, and participation is not guaranteed in that case.

Participation Commitments

• Selected innovators must make a full commitment to the program and embed in residence at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois, relocating to the Chicago area if they do not already live there. The appointment is structured as an 80 percent time ORISE fellowship, with the remaining 20 percent provided by the participant or their future research partners. Innovators must work with CRI partner mentor organizations on legal, financial, marketing and business operations development and planning, and must engage a qualified business mentor. They must sign an individual, non-negotiable Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Argonne that contains non-negotiable NDA language, and must develop and obtain DOE approval of an IP Management Plan during the Scope and Planning phase before proceeding to the R&D phase. They must pass conflict-of-interest due diligence, comply with Argonne's Prime Contract and federal site access and export control requirements (including the Foreign National Access Program process and, for lawful permanent residents, DOE Policy 485.1 foreign-engagement reviews), and are expected to gather additional outside funding and to graduate from the program after two years. No participation fee or tuition is stated in the official materials, and the program explicitly takes no equity stake in the startup; fees, if any, are not publicly stated.

Target Region

Applicant geography: CRI is described as a nationwide U.S. program for individuals who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent U.S. residents at the time of application; citizenship or lawful permanent residency is mandatory. Company geography: applicants do not need to have incorporated a company when applying, but if they belong to a startup at application that startup must be incorporated in the United States, and selected innovators must structure the business as a C Corporation. Residency requirement: DOE requires all LEEP fellows to embed in their host laboratory, so selected innovators must live in or relocate to the Chicago area and be in residence at Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont, Illinois.

Target Sector

Agriculture & Food, Defense & Security, Education, Energy & Utilities, Financial Services, Government & Public Sector, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Media & Entertainment, Real Estate & Construction, Retail & Consumer, Semiconductors & Electronics, Sports & Fitness, Telecommunications, Transportation & Logistics, Travel & Hospitality, Other