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The Berkeley Startup Cluster was proud to sponsor a booth at Berkeley Lab’s Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP) Demo Day at Berkeley Commons, an energizing showcase of climate tech innovation.
During an inspirational keynote, California Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild’s announced that the state is on track to reach 100% clean energy by 2045, with over 1.2 billion solar panels produced annually. The event also spotlighted visionary startups from nationwide LEEP programs like Berkeley Lab's Cyclotron Road, presenting cutting-edge solutions in advanced materials and clean energy technologies.
Huge thanks to the U.S. Department of Energy, Activate, and all participating partners for bringing this incredible community of scientists, founders, and funders together. Events like this reinforce Berkeley’s role as a hub for climate innovation.
Thanks to ARRIS Composites for participating in the STEM CareerX program organized by the City of Berkeley's Office of Economic Development and the Institute for STEM Education at CSU East Bay. This visit gave students from the Berkeley High School chapter of National Society of Black Engineers a chance to learn carbon fiber can be used to produce shoe insoles, making them lighter and higher performing. ARRIS' co-founder and CEO, Riley Reese, shared that to start a company you really need to understand the market for the problem your company is trying to solve. It was exciting to hear that they were able to manufacture their Aurorra by Arris insoles in a matter of months so participants could use them at the 2024 New York City marathon!
If you have a Berkeley-based STEM business and want to host a future STEM CareerX tour for Berkeley High students, contact OED.
East Bay economy shows resilience despite market and trade uncertainty
At the 2025 East Bay Economic Outlook and Annual Membership Meeting hosted by the East Bay Economic Development Alliance on May 15, JLL's Senior Director of Northern California Research Alexander Quinn shared some promising news: companies that stayed in the Bay Area have outperformed those who’ve left in the last few years, and East Bay employment has bounced back at a faster pace than San Francisco. Despite uncertainty in the market, the East Bay economy shows signs of resilience.
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SF Business Times Bay Area Biotech Forum featured Berkeley leaders
Berkeley made a strong showing at the Bay Area Biotech Forum hosted by the San Francisco Business Times. Themed “The Future of Bay Area Biotech: Searching for Answers,” the event featured leaders navigating today's tough economic climate while pushing scientific boundaries.
Berkeley's biotech community was well represented, including:
- Co-Founder and CEO, Dana Foss, PhD of Editpep (UC Berkeley's Bakar Labs), who's tackling brain-based genetic diseases
- Tina Self, Bayer Berkeley Site Head and SVP of Global Biologics Manufacturing, who's advancing cell therapy and workforce development
- Darren Cooke, UC Berkeley's Interim Chief Innovation & Entrepreneurship Officer, who's promoting academic entrepreneurship, and acknowledged the Berkeley Startup Cluster and Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii for supporting early-stage biotech,
- Event sponsor Wareham Development, who's building cutting-edge life science spaces in West Berkeley.
Even in a challenging market, the momentum around academic innovation and local biotech is strong. Berkeley is proud to support the local startups and companies transforming health, science, and the world.
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EVENTS
TOMORROW, Tuesday June 3, 4:00 PM-6:30 PM
Ciel Creative Space, 2611 Eighth St, Berkeley, CA 94710
Join the Women Entrepreneurs of Berkeley (a subgroup of the Berkeley Chamber) to learn how to improve your verbal and non-verbal communication skills to influence others to be more receptive to your business (or business idea)! This workshop and networking event is good for long-term business owners and new entrepreneurs alike.
See details and register to attend.
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Thursday, June 5, 8:00AM-4:30PM
Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley
Join 1,000+ AI leaders, investors, and founders at TechCrunch Sessions: AI to hear from top voices like Jared Kaplan (Anthropic), Hao Sang (OpenAI), Logan Kilpatrick (Google DeepMind), Jae Lee (Twelve Labs), and more.
Explore two focused tracks: AI Startups & Investment and AI Infrastructure & Tools — covering everything from funding strategies to the systems powering next-gen models.
Use this link to get a free ticket.
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Wednesday, June 11, 3:30-5:30pm
Copper 2827 7th Street, Berkeley, CA 94710
Meet others who are creating technology solutions to address the global challenge of global warming and other environmental problems at Copper, the home electrification company whose first product is a smart induction stove with a backup battery. It will be a great evening to make connections with other leaders in the climate tech space.
RSVP here to attend.
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RESOURCES & OPPORTUNITIES
Application deadline: June 20
Courses on July 14, 17 and 24 from 5-8PM PST
Hosted by UC Berkeley, the NSF I-Corps Hub Northwest offers a free remote 2-week course based on Steve Blank's Lean LaunchPad. The three evening sessions teach you to identify your top customer segment and value propositions, and accelerate finding product market fit.
Outside of class, you'll do at least 20 interviews with potential customers as part of the customer discovery process. You can expect to spend 30-35 hours outside of class on interviews.
Eligible teams that complete the course with Hub recommendation might also qualify for the National NSF I-Corps program, which includes a $50,000 National Science Foundation customer discovery grant. Teams that complete the National program have a much higher funding rate, including SBIR grants and investment.
Apply by 6/20.
Program Dates: June 18 - August 28, 2025
Startup Showcase: September 11, 2025
The House Fund AI Accelerator is a highly selective, hands-on program uniquely designed for UC Berkeley-affiliated founders building AI companies. This accelerator combines personalized mentorship, deep AI integration, and gives access to Berkeley's legendary network to help you achieve rapid growth and secure your next funding round.
Apply soon to be considered.
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Are you curious to know if there are any microplastic chemicals in your body? Join Berkeley startup Million Marker's health study, led by the Healthy Nevada Project in collaboration with the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine. This study will examine exposure to microplastics and other harmful chemicals through at-home urine testing, surveys, and optional blood collection. Participants who complete the study will receive a $100 Amazon gift card.
Join today by completing a quick eligibility survey.
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Berkeley-based startups Aralez Bio and Sunchem are hiring for business development roles. At Aralez, they are seeking a driven and scientifically literate Business Development Manager to help bridge the gap between cutting-edge R&D and commercial strategy who will play a key role in identifying client needs, delivering tailored solutions, and supporting their company's growth within the drug discovery and development landscape. At Sunchem the Business Development Associate will work closely with the CEO to obtain feedstock agreements, help manage day-to-day operations, acquire vital data to help make strategic decisions, support fundraising efforts, and support any business development or operation tasks.
See these job posts and others from Berkeley startups at Activate here.
BERKELEY INNOVATORS MAKING NEWS
Berkeley startup TypeFive, founded by Tim Thimmaiah in 2022, is developing smart software to cut housing construction costs, helping address the Bay Area’s housing shortage. Their platform streamlines design, materials, suppliers, and local permitting, with modular homes starting at $35K.
Read more in the San Francisco Business Times.
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Elizabeth Muller, a Berkeley entrepreneur, is making headlines with her latest venture, Deep Fission. This innovative startup aims to address the growing energy demands of the AI industry by developing underground nuclear reactors. Building upon her previous success with her first startup Deep Isolation, which focuses on nuclear waste disposal, Muller's work continues to position Berkeley at the forefront of clean energy solutions.
Read the article in the San Francisco Business Times.
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In order to recapture some of the value emanating from its campus and beyond, UC Berkeley is betting on a unique venture capital fund launching later this year with a mandate to make investments with ties to the university. This new "Berkeley Chancellor's Fund" will be a limited liability corporation owned by the University of California system's Board of Regents and managed by Berkeley staff who already oversee investments and licensing deals. Its capital will come from philanthropic donations and it will return all profits back to the school. Director of Equity Solutions Services Omar Qarshi estimates the fund will need around $1 million to get off the ground.
Read the article in the San Francisco Business Times.
LM Arena, an open-source platform for crowdsourced AI benchmarking, raised $100 million in a seed funding round that values the organization at $600 million, according to Bloomberg. Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and UC Investments, which manages an investment portfolio for the University of California, led the fundraising. Created by researchers from UC Berkeley SkyLab, major AI labs rely on the platform to test and market their AI models.
Read more in TechCrunch.
Berkeley Lab has unveiled a new supercomputer named after Nobel laureate Luis Alvarez to advance AI and scientific research. The project, announced by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, is a collaboration with Dell Technologies and Nvidia. This powerhouse will help tackle pressing global challenges, accelerating breakthroughs in AI and other cutting-edge research fields.
Read the article in Berkeleyside.
Keep in Touch
For questions about the Berkeley Startup Cluster, contact: oedmailbox@berkeleyca.gov
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