ITHACA, N.Y. — REEgen, a biomining startup based in Ithaca, has won the grand prize of $150,000 in FuzeHub’s 2025 commercialization competition.

The contest was held as part of the New York State Innovation Summit in Rochester in late October.

FuzeHub is an Albany–based nonprofit that is focused on empowering small and medium-sized manufacturing and technology companies in New York State

The company called REEgen — which was spun out of Cornell University — describes its work as “transforming the way the world gets its critical minerals — the lesser-known metals that drive modern life,” per the FuzeHub announcement.

In particular, REEgen is focused on recovering rare earth elements (REEs), which are essential for making strong, lightweight magnets that power everything from electronics, your car’s power steering system, to wind turbines. Its product is called BioREEcovery Scale Up.

The FuzeHub award will accelerate REEgen’s path to achieving revenue by enabling the company to start producing rare earths for the U.S. supply chain as early as mid-2026, the Ithaca firm said in an announcement on its website. REEgen has externally validated its mixed rare earth oxalate product and is currently working with feedstock partners to prepare for its first commercial BioREEcovery unit installation.

“Winning this competition is an exciting validation of REEgen’s mission to revitalize critical mineral recovery and enable a future of widespread energy security,” Alexa Schmitz, co-founder and CEO of REEgen, said in the firm’s announcement. “This award will jumpstart our remaining scaleup milestones, really accelerating our path to first rare earth sales from industrial waste in the United States. We’re so grateful for the continued support from FuzeHub and New York State towards our mission, and we look forward to building up REEgen as a NY clean tech startup in the coming years.”

“As New York continues to invest in technology innovation, FuzeHub is honored to help entrepreneurs move their creative ideas onto successful products,” Patty Rechberger, Innovation Fund manager at FuzeHub, said. “This year’s competition drew inspiring talent from across the state, and this funding helps accelerate their journey from concept to commercialization. We’re excited to support their growth and follow the positive impact they bring to the world.”

Twelve entrepreneurs from across New York state competed for a chance to win one of four awards. Besides the grand prize of $150,000, the runner-up secured $100,000, one team received $80,000, and two more teams received $60,000 each toward their startups.

GynStrong, Inc. from the Mid-Hudson region was the runner-up and was awarded $100,000, and FuzeHub also awarded $80,000 to CryoBio, Inc., which is based in Ithaca.

In addition, two additional teams will receive $60,000 each toward their startup ventures. They include IVSonance Biomedical Inc., which is based in Ithaca, as well as TunaBotics LLC, which is based in Syracuse.

“We’re proud to celebrate this year’s Commercialization Competition winners. Their projects reflect the incredible ability of New York State’s innovation ecosystem to solve problems through technology and ingenuity,” said Ben Verschueren, executive director of Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR). “By pairing visionary entrepreneurs with targeted support through the Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund, we’re not just recognizing commercialization potential — we’re investing in the future of our state’s economy.”

The commercialization competition occurs yearly as part of the FuzeHub Jeff Lawrence Innovation Fund, which has the support of Empire State Development. The office of Gov. Kathy Hochul provided additional funding for higher prize amounts in the competition, FuzeHub said.