Chicago Construction News staff writer
mHUB, a new innovation center, is receiving $9.6 million in from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) to work on technology solutions for a clean tech economy through energy infrastructure, grid modernization, and long-energy storage.
“To make Illinois a leader in clean energy innovation, we need institutions like mHUB that convene public and private sector interests towards a common goal, such as protecting the future health and economy of our state by developing new solutions to our climate crisis,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement.
“The state is proud to recognize mHUB for the work it’s doing to scale the early-stage technologies needed to modernize, decarbonize, and incentivize industry, while protecting our most vulnerable communities.”
mHUB is a hardtech and manufacturing innovation center launched in 2017 to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem that promotes growth, advancement, and innovation solutions in the manufacturing industry. The community includes over 500 active and alumni startups and small business that are supported by a coalition of product designers and developers, entrepreneurs, engineers and manufacturers, corporate leaders, industry experts, mentors, and investors.
A new location is now complete and will provide more equitable access to Chicago’s south and west side to enhance mHUB’s partnerships with community-based organizations and uplift historically underrepresented communities.
The State’s funding will help propel clean energy and sustainable manufacturing innovation to advance the Pritzker administration’s clean energy goals as outlined in the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA). With its manufacturing and sustainability-centered work, mHUB is one of the state’s most active investors in climate technologies.
“We’ve seen incredible interest since opening the doors to mHUB’s new headquarters,” said Haven Allen, chief executive officer and co-founder of mHUB. “Stakeholders across the state recognize the promise, and necessity, of deep technologies to improve our physical world. The impact of what’s developed at mHUB is profound, from supporting local economic activity to commercializing tech with global impact. People want to be a part of rebuilding the Chicago and US manufacturing legacy and propelling it into the future.”
