In a step that could lead to the establishment of a high tech center in Livermore, the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency has selected i-GATE (Innovation for Green Advanced Transportation Excellence) as one of six applicants to be recognized as inaugural members of the California iHub demonstration program.

I-GATE was submitted to the state by the city of Livermore in partnership with Sandia National Laboratories/California (Program Lead), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and several others. Its mission is to maximize the economic impact of green transportation and clean energy technologies through expedited technology transfer, entrepreneurial assistance, collaboration opportunities, academic alliances, and a technology incubator for the development of high-growth green businesses.

The i-GATE initiative is designed to drive the Livermore Valley as the core of an energy resource cluster that would expand to benefit the regional economy and the state of California, create jobs, mitigate climate change, increase energy security, and form an interlocking innovation web.

The i-GATE hub will be leveraged by LVOC, a joint venture between Sandia and LLNL that will promote greater collaboration between the scientists at those laboratories and their partners in industry and academia. According to Energy Secretary Steven Chu in a press release last year, the LVOC will maximize the return on the nation’s investment in nuclear security. Chu stated, “By leveraging the groundbreaking research of our nuclear security labs through private sector collaborations, we will bring breakthroughs to the market faster and find new solutions to the energy problem.”

I think these developments represent an exciting opportunity to both advance technology in the transportation arena and to increase partnerships with the city of Livermore and local businesses.