Ideas the Size of California

CalNEXT is a statewide initiative to identify, test, and grow electric technologies and delivery methods to support California’s decarbonized future.

CalNEXT is looking for new, big ideas to help reach California’s decarbonization goals. CalNEXT’s team of experts will provide resources and support the implementation of 170 projects that have the potential to make a significant impact. Focused on emerging and underutilized technologies, CalNEXT presents a great opportunity for entrepreneurs, designers/builders, developers, manufacturers, research labs, or utilities to energize their ideas and projects to demonstrate innovative and scalable solutions.

Technology Types

The Technology Priority Maps (TPMs) describe the high priority areas that are the focus of CalNEXT. Our scope spans technology areas, including but not limited to:

How it Works

We’re looking for big ideas that align with our technology priorities. If you have an idea or project, we want to hear about it. If your idea or project is selected, the CalNEXT team will work with you to get it off the ground.

Submit an Idea

If you have an idea that may not be fully developed, use the idea submission form at the link below. Once submitted, the CalNEXT team can help you determine whether this idea is a good candidate for program support, provide feedback, and/or pair you with a partner for implementation.

Submit a Project

If you have a project that’s ready to be implemented, use the project submission form at the link below. Your proposed project will go through our scanning and screening process and you will be notified whether or not it is selected for program support. If your project is selected, the CalNEXT team will work with you on next steps.

Who Can Participate?

Anyone who has a project or idea that fits the program evaluation criteria is eligible to participate. This includes entrepreneurs, manufacturers, designers and builders, research laboratories, or energy efficiency program administrators. Once an idea is selected, the CalNEXT team will support implementation and evaluation.

Any site used for the implementation of a project must be serviced by a California electric investor-owned utility customer account. 

Our Team of Experts

The CalNEXT team brings decades of marketing development and technical expertise to provide support and resources (purchasing units, paying labor, testing, market support) to help you get your idea off the ground.

For over 25 years Energy Solutions has offered proven, performance-based solutions for our utility, government, and institutional customers. Their turnkey products accelerate measurable change and policy support for energy standards at the local, state, and national levels. 

AESC brings over 25 years as a trusted consultant onutility programs, policy, and technology, as well as practical customer and market understanding. 

The Ortiz Group provides innovative solutions to California’s hard-to-reach (HTR) communities through their network of local community-based organizations and contractors specializing in serving HTR customers.

TRC Companies, Inc. is a leading consultant on building decarbonization that delivers code readiness, measure development, and scaled deployment activities to establish technology readiness and meet the state’s GHG goals. 

University of California, Davis is a world-class institution equipped with multiple cutting-edge testing and deployment centers including the Western Cooling Efficiency Center, California Lighting Technology Center, Center for Water Energy Efficiency, Russel Ranch Agricultural Sustainability Institute, and the Green Technology Lab. 

VEIC offers high-impact energy solutions that decarbonize buildings, transportation, and utility grids, today. We help our clients meet their clean energy goals through innovative and equitable solutions that benefit them, their partners, and their communities. We help our clients tackle their most critical and complex clean-energy challenges through proven, multi-faceted solutions. We do this through four core service areas: Energy Efficiency, Building Decarbonization, Transportation Electrification, and demand management for a Clean and Flexible Grid.