Recurrent Receives $250K National Science Foundation Grant
Each year the National Science Foundation (NSF) supports the progress of science and welfare by funding the most impactful projects in the country. I’m excited to announce that this year Recurrent is joining that mission as an NSF startup grant recipient.
An NSF Grant Is A Big Deal
They don’t give these things to everyone with a big idea and a business plan. The application and selection process was rigorous. This Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant used a merit-based review process consisting of a panel of technical and commercial experts from industry and academia to thoroughly review thousands of applicants. Recurrent is one of only seven SBIR recipients in Washington State and one of three nationwide working on electric vehicles.
We demonstrated the technical, commercial, and societal merit of Recurrent’s work and were awarded $256,000 in non-dilutive funding to advance our R&D on in-field, vehicle-level EV battery degradation. It’s a tremendous propellant to what we hope to accomplish as the EV market surges this year.
This grant also illustrates how our work lines up directly with the Biden administration’s emphasis on fostering all of the emerging facets of the EV market, from charging infrastructure to fuel efficiency standards to battery R&D and manufacturing.
Why It's Really Special for Me
In some ways the validation of our science, and how we’re trying to transform transportation, is as exciting as the funding. We started less than a year ago, have gotten a great response from several thousand early EV drivers, and now have a chance to bolster our battery insights with this amazing R&D grant.
All of us at Recurrent are students of science -- although we vary from computer science to data science battery science to business science -- and are energized by learning. It’s what unites us as Recurrenters and committed stewards of cleantech.
What Comes Next
It’s also exciting that these funds are to be strictly used to advance R&D. This involves not only developing the largest cross-manufacturer EV real-world range data, but also grounding our vehicle-sourced data with hands-on measurements and diagnostics. We will be using the SBIR grant to accelerate our performance of hands-on research to inform our machine learning models. When we show promising results during Phase I, it can unlock the opportunity to apply for a Phase II SBIR grant, which could include up to an additional $1.5 million of new non-dilutive funding for R&D.
We Can’t Do This Alone
If you’re reading this, there is a pretty good chance that we need your help. We have an incredible team at Recurrent, but we certainly need additional:
- EV owners to help train our data models (connect your EV here)
- Software engineers to expand the platform (job openings here)
- Data scientists to scale the insights (contact us)
- Reporters and influencers to promote the mission (follow us on Facebook or Twitter, and reach out to get involved)
We can't do it without you so join us as we try to change the way that Americans move from where they are today to where they want to go.
