Activate Updates: February 2026

February 25, 2026

Investing in early-stage science entrepreneurs has a ripple effect. Not only are our fellows bringing game-changing technologies out of the lab and into the world where they can make an impact—they are also creating jobs, promoting economic growth, and bolstering domestic industries.

Read on to find out how Soctera is optimizing semiconductors to shape the future of wireless communications, how Alva Energy is deploying nuclear power without creating new reactors, and how our fellows are creating hundreds of jobs on their paths to impact (check out our job board if you haven’t yet!).

Soctera: Moving from Promise to Proof

Soctera (Austin Hickman, Cohort 2022) is at an inflection point after reaching a pivotal milestone: proving that its power amplifier outperforms incumbent models with double the power density, and subsequently producing Soctera’s power amplifiers at full commercial scale for the first time. Firmly on its way from the lab to the market, Soctera is gearing up to seek VC funding in order to expand its team and launch into commercial production.

“We Need More Scientist-Leaders”

At the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Activate CEO Cyrus Wadia discussed the growing role of scientists as company builders and leaders with Seema Gupta, co-founder and CEO of Climate Scale-Up. “Getting more scientists to the table to shape our future is really critical,” Wadia said, explaining the importance of having leaders who are both technically deep and fluent in other key areas, like business and policymaking.

WATCH THE CONVERSATION

Alva Energy Steps Into Spotlight

Alva Energy (Robb Stewart, Cohort 2023) was recently featured in the Wall Street Journal following a $33M Series A raise. The nuclear-power startup is getting noticed as it promises to lead the fastest, most affordable nuclear power deployment in history by using the United States’ existing nuclear fleet and eliminating the need for new reactors.

Activate Fellow Companies Are Hiring

Looking for an opportunity to shape the future through hard tech? Activate Fellows are securing capital and growing their teams fast. Everyday our job board is updated with new opportunities to work with them—see the 68 fellow-led companies hiring for 150 open positions right now.

In Our Ecosystem

Upcoming events, relevant opportunities, and what we're reading.

Fellow News

Zanskar (Joel Edwards, Cohort 2020) raises a $115M Series C following a record-setting year of geothermal discoveries.
PAGE Technologies (Elliot Strand & Payton Goodrich, Cohort 2025) announced that its pilot is live in the University of Wyoming (UWYO) Plant Growth & Phenotyping Facility as part of the UWYO Controlled Environment Agriculture Network. Elliot Strand was also selected as a Fierce Sensors 2026 Rising Star.
Four out of the nine finalists for the Halliburton Labs Pitch Day were companies led by Activate Fellows: Aepnus (Bilen Akuzum & Lukas Hackl, Cohort 2022), Osmoses (Francesco Benedetti & Holden Lai, Cohort 2021), Still Bright (Jon Vardner, Cohort 2022), and SiTration (Brendan Smith, Cohort 2020).
Antonio Baclig (Inlyte Energy, Cohort 2021) was featured on the S&P Global Energy's EnergyCents podcast and CleanTechies podcast.
SiTration (Brendan Smith, Cohort 2020) was announced as a finalist in BloombergNEF‘s BNEF Pioneers competition recognizing standout innovations for the energy transition.
Motibera (Nathan Petersen, Cohort 2024) received the Best Presentation Award at the 19th International Symposium on Magnetic Bearings in Otsu, Japan.
Brent Ifemembi (Drūl, Cohort 2024) was selected as an awardee in the first round of the Baltimore Innovation Initiative Pilot Program under the Maryland Innovation Initiative.
Noon Energy (Chris Graves, Cohort 2018) signed an MOU with Acwa, a global leader in power generation and water desalination, to partner on projects using Noon’s long-duration energy storage technology.
Electrified Thermal Solutions (Dan Stack & Joey Kabel, Cohort 2021) was featured in a Canary Media article, “Startup unveils heat battery it says can decarbonize almost any factory.” They were also covered by Latitude Media.
Visolis (Deepak Dugar, Cohort 2015) has signed a binding term sheet with Zeon Corporation to commercialize bio-based isoprene monomer and sustainable aviation fuel as well as a final investment decision for a production facility.
Osmoses (Francesco Benedetti & Holden Lai, Cohort 2021) was featured in an MIT News profile, “Taking the heat out of industrial chemical separations.”
Vycarb (Garrett Boudinot, Cohort 2022) was featured in ESG Dive and announced that it has joined the Shell Ventures portfolio.
MassCEC awarded grants to Elateq (Lily Rajic, Cohort 2024) and Prospect Growth (Wyatt Arnold, Cohort 2024) as AmplifyMass Awardees, and Daqus Energy (Harish Banda, Cohort 2024) and Found Energy (Peter Godart, Cohort 2022) as InnovateMass Awardees.
Fervo Energy (Tim Latimer & Jack Norbeck, Cohort 2018) has drilled the hottest well in the company’s history at its new giga-scale geothermal project site in Millard County, Utah.
Josué López (Cohort 2021) has joined DCVC as a Principal.
ReynKo (Justin Beroz, Cohort 2023) has entered into an investment agreement with General Oceans.
Margaret Lumley (Roca Water, Cohort 2022) was featured on the From Founder to Leader podcast.
Mariam Awara (Pulsenics, Cohort 2022) was selected to co-chair the NAATBatt International Equipment Makers Committee.
Mitchell Hsing (InchFab, Cohort 2019) was featured on the Siliconimist podcast.
Tensora (Rob Moak, Cohort 2022) was named a Top Innovator by Darcy Partners for the second year in a row.
Gradient (Vince Romanin, Cohort 2017) has officially launched Gradient Nexus, a software platform to control its window heat-pump units, as covered by TechCrunch in the article “Gradient’s heat pumps get new smarts to enable old-building retrofits.”
Alva Energy (Robb Stewart, Cohort 2023) raises a $33M Series A to unlock 10 gigawatts of nuclear power.
Visolis (Deepak Dugar, Cohort 2015) receives a $2.86M award from the U.S. Department of Defense Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program.
Rhoic (John Slack, Cohort 2024) was selected as a finalist in the Crucible Accelerator pitch competition at the Creative Defense Foundation’s Creative Disruptors in the Desert conference.
4th State Energies (Pankaj Ghildiyal, Cohort 2025) has achieved a 20x increase in production, enabling them to transition from early validation to scaled production.

Upcoming Events

Happening on February 26 in New York City: join Activate & Fenwick for a hard-tech happy hour featuring mini-pitches, networking, and the opportunity to meet Activate Fellows from across the United States.
Apply by April 6 for the Cleantech Open 2026 Accelerator, a five-month program featuring expert mentors, investor networking opportunities, industry connections, and a chance to compete for cash prizes and in-kind services to launch your venture.

Want us to highlight an upcoming event or relevant opportunity in next month's newsletter? Let us know.