The New Mexico Lab-Embedded Entrepreneur Program (NM LEEP) is accepting applications from technology entrepreneurs ready to obtain two years of individualized assistance to commercialize their technology. The program pairs deep-tech entrepreneurs with the unique talent and technology of Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories, matching LEEP fellows with seed capital and a large network of mentors, customers, and investors. Applications will be accepted from February 22 to April 22, 2024.

The program is for entrepreneurs who intend to transition their technology into a product and build a company. It is not for serial entrepreneurs or funding research and development. Selection criteria include:

• Your innovation fits into one or more of five technology areas: advanced materials, AI & advanced computing, biotechnology, space systems, or energy transition.
• You have conducted early customer discovery and have found there is interest in your solution.
• You meet most of these benchmarks: You have a prototype; less than four full-time employees; have received less than $1.5M in funding.
• You need the technical expertise of a national laboratory for testing, validating, de-risking, modeling, etc.
• You need business mentorship and training.
• You can commit to New Mexico LEEP for two years.
• You will relocate to New Mexico for the two-year program duration or longer.
• Recommended that your technology development matches New Mexico’s national laboratory expertise. 

New Mexico LEEP accepts applications each year from February through mid-April for cohorts that run from the following January to December of the next year. Successful applicants will make up the fourth cohort since the program started working with entrepreneurs in 2021. Three members selected for Cohort 1 graduated in 2023, two members selected for Cohort 2 are mid-way through the program, and three members of Cohort 3 started the program in January. Program managers report that more than 70 entrepreneurs applied to join Cohort 3.

More than capital

One graduate is Kristina Trujillo, CEO of T-Neuro Pharma, a company developing a blood test to determine the presence of Alzheimer’s disease and a treatment to prevent its development and stop its progress. Trujillo said working with New Mexico LEEP exceeded her expectations.

“I was assuming they would help with the technical aspects and help me optimize my assay, make it better for the diagnostic,” she said. “They are doing that 100 percent, but what I didn’t realize was all of the mentorship and all of the extras that come with it.”

In addition to providing technical support and access to expertise and facilities at Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories along with a network of mentors, customers, and investors, the New Mexico LEEP program offers a generous stipend, health insurance, and travel reimbursement so participants can build their startup in New Mexico.

Cliff Chan, co-founder and CEO of OAM Photonics, is another recent graduate. OAM Photonics, which is developing a compact solid-state coherent optical sensor for long-distance 3D light detection and ranging (LiDAR) with numerous applications, has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II grant for $1 million.

How to apply

An informational webinar is planned for March 19 at 3:00 pm MDT. Register here. Until then, view the 2023 webinar on YouTube. Find the application and all criteria, including the targeted areas of technology, on the New Mexico LEEP website.