Legion Member Criteria

Cradle to Commerce seeks to select the best candidates for our program while paying consideration to:

• project/technology feasibility

• team experience and track record

• scalability, market, and climate impact potential.

Technical Feasibility: Is the project idea or technology scientifically sound and technically feasible? What are any potential limitations or challenges?

Team and Execution: Does the team communicate the value proposition effectively? Do they have complimentary skills? Do they have a track record of success? Does the team demonstrate the drive and desire to make an impact on the world? Does the team actively highlight the value of diversity, equity, and inclusion?

Impact Potential: Does the project idea or technology have the potential to make a significant positive impact on climate change? How do scalability, relevance to specific climate challenges, and potential for emissions reductions play into the project idea or technology’s potential impact?

Market Viability: Does the project idea or technology have the potential to be commercialized? What are the barriers that need to be addressed in order to go-to-market? Is there a plan to address the barriers?

National Lab and Domain Alignment: Does the project or team have the potential to find complimentary IP in the selected domain(s)? And/or does the project or team have the potential to leverage C2C partner labs’ capabilities?

C2C Application Eligibility

• Applicants can be either an individual or up to two leaders of an existing team or company. If a project has two leaders that meet the eligibility criteria, both individuals should apply in a single application.

• Applicants must be interested in lab IP to be eligible for the program.

• If the company is a foreign entity, it must be interested in C2C IP to be eligible. The company must be cleared through DOE foreign review to participate.

• Foreign nationals must be authorized to work in the US for the duration of C2C participation. Applicants who are foreign nationals and wish to work with the national labs will require the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s review and approval, a process which can take six months or longer to obtain with no guarantee of approval.

• Applicants must be proposing a project aligned with C2C domains and National Lab partners capabilities.

• Project summary must be reasonably clear and complete.

Required Commitments for Applicants

*Note: dates listed in commitments should change in accordance with the given application period.

By submitting a full application to Cradle to Commerce, applicants affirm and certify that all the information and answers to questions within the pre-application and full application form are true and correct to the best of their knowledge and belief. Applicants understand that any misrepresentation, falsification, or omission of any facts called for in the application may render this application void and may be cause for cancellation of my program participation, whenever discovered.

If selected, applicants agree to:

• Participate in virtual Soft Skills Training during April 2024 (Phase I)

• Participate in tech development which may require multiple visits to their lab test bed site and/or relocation near their lab test bed (dependent on technical needs) from July 2024 through September 2025 for in-person Hard Tech Development (Phase II)

• Participate in pitch competitions with their team's project at the Cradle to Commerce Summit in June 2024 in Berkeley, CA (if selected to participate).

• Approve that their name, likeness, and testimony, company name, and website materials may be used on the Cradle to Commerce website and for Cradle to Commerce marketing materials.

• Work with Cradle to Commerce as needed to form a legal entity and license intellectual property.