The American-Made Solar Prize Round 8 is a multimillion-dollar prize competition designed to energize U.S. solar innovation through a series of contests that accelerate the entrepreneurial process from years to months. Competitors leverage the American-Made Network, our innovation engine of more than 400 organizations, including world-class experts at DOE's national labs, clean tech accelerators, incubators, universities, facilities, and more.

Through the Solar Prize Round 8, teams have the chance to win part of more than $4.2 million in prizes to help them advance in the competition and accelerate the development of their solution toward commercialization.

Who can Compete?

Competitors are entrepreneurial individuals or teams legally residing or based in the United States. Competitors can be individuals of one or multiple organizations, students, university faculty members, small business owners, researchers, or anyone with the desire and drive to transform an idea into an impactful solution.

The Ready!, Set!, and Go! Contests

• Ready! Contest: 20 winners / $50,000 cash prize each and optional JEDI Contest prize / Power Up Contest. Winners are selected after identifying an impactful idea or solution addressing a critical need in the solar industry.
• Set! Contest: 10 winners / $100,000 cash prize each and optional JEDI Contest prize. Competitors work to substantially advance their technology solution toward a viable and promising proof of concept.
• Go! Contest: 2 winners / $500,000 cash prize each and optional JEDI Contest prize. Up to 10 eligible finalists who submit to the Go! Contest / $90,000 support voucher each. Competitors work to substantially advance their solution from proof of concept to a refined prototype and find a partner to perform a pilot test of the prototype.