2026 Critical Materials Symposium
Scaling the Future: Materials, Manufacturing, and Supply Chain Security for Next Generation Energy and Electronics
September 10-11, 2026
The global race to scale advanced energy and computing technologies is increasingly constrained not by scientific discovery alone, but by materials availability, manufacturing capacity, workforce development, and resilient supply chains. From lithium and critical minerals for batteries, to ultrapure silicon and rare earth elements for microelectronics, to advanced materials that enable next-generation energy systems, the challenge is the same:
Can we reliably design, source, and manufacture complex material systems at scale—securely, sustainably, and domestically?
The BRIGHT Institute Symposium 2026 brings together leaders from academia, national laboratories, industry, government, and education to address this urgent question. Over two days, the symposium will explore how advances in materials science, manufacturing, data-driven innovation, and workforce development can strengthen domestic capabilities and accelerate the transition from discovery to deployment.
The symposium highlights the shared challenges and opportunities that shape the future of advanced manufacturing, energy security, and semiconductor competitiveness. Discussions will examine how resilient supply chains, sustainable practices, emerging technologies, and a prepared workforce can support long-term innovation and economic growth.
Highlights of cross-cutting themes:
- Supply chain resilience & localization
- Sustainability & circular economy
- Scale-up and manufacturability
- Data + AI in materials and manufacturing
- Energy and semiconductor security
Agenda
Theme: Where the barriers really are: vulnerabilities, supply chains, domestic capacity, advanced materials processing, and device/component manufacturability.
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 8:30 – 9:00 | Registration and breakfast |
| 9:00 – 9:15 | Welcome and BRIGHT framing |
| 9:15 – 10:15 | #1 Opening Plenary: Critical Materials, Strategic Risk, and Domestic Capacity |
| 10:15 – 10:30 | Break |
| 10:30 – 11:45 | #2 Advanced Materials for Energy Storage, Energy Production, and Energy Efficiency/Infrastructure |
| 11:45 – 12:45 | Lunch |
| 12:45 – 2:00 | #3 End-to-end Processing, Purification, and Manufacturing Scale-Up |
| 2:00 – 2:15 | Break |
| 2:15 – 3:00 | #4 Student and Faculty Lightning Talks |
| 3:00 – 4:00 | #5 Workforce, Infrastructure, and Regional Innovation Ecosystems |
| 4:00 – 4:15 | Day 1 synthesis |
| 4:15 – 5:30 | #6 Reception and Poster Session |
Theme: From components to systems: grid resilience, defense applications, AI/data-center energy demand, fusion manufacturing, and commercialization.
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 8:30 – 9:00 | Breakfast and informal networking |
| 9:00 – 9:15 | Day 1 recap and Day 2 framing |
| 9:15 – 10:30 | #7 Energy Storage Systems for Grid Resilience and Defense Applications |
| 10:30 – 10:45 | Break |
| 10:45 – 11:45 | #8 Data Centers and the Energy-Computing Nexus |
| 11:45 – 12:15 | #9 Systems Discussion: Storage, Power, Computing, and Infrastructure |
| 12:15 – 1:15 | Lunch |
| 1:15 – 2:45 | #10 Manufacturing and Supply Chain Challenges of Emerging Energy Production Technologies |
| 2:45 – 3:00 | Break |
| 3:00 – 4:00 | #11 Commercialization Pathways |
| 4:00 – 4:30 | #12 Closing: What BRIGHT Builds Next |
- Poster showcase
- Vendor tables
- Technology showcase tables
- Career fair tables