Working Together to Power Innovation

Our strategic research partnerships provide expertise, cutting-edge facilities and new possibilities for discovery, learning and advancing the future of Tennessee.

A male and female working on glass fiber tensile.

Trusted by Industry and Government Leaders

Companies and agencies partner with the UT System to solve tough problems, accelerate innovation and develop top-tier talent. Here are just a few of the collaborations driving real change.

  • UT Knoxville and Lockheed Martin have expanded their collaboration, leveraging UT’s expertise in technologies like hypersonics, advanced materials and AI, while offering students real-world research opportunities.

  • The Volkswagen North American Innovation Hub at the UT Research Park fosters groundbreaking collaborations between UT, ORNL and Volkswagen engineers, driving innovations in automotive materials, electrification and sustainability, while providing students unique applied research experiences.

  • The UT Institute of Agriculture is leading cutting-edge research with IperionX with the Titan Critical Mineral Project, pioneering sustainable land rehabilitation and carbon sequestration techniques that could redefine ecological restoration in the mining industry.

  • UT Health Science Center researchers have received a $20 million award from the UT-Oak Ridge Innovation Institute, in partnership with UT Knoxville and Oak Ridge National Lab, to develop new radiopharmaceutical therapies to treat cancer.

Niki Labbé: Leading Innovation at the Center for Renewable Carbon

Niki Labbé, director of the UT Institute of Agriculture’s Center for Renewable Carbon, leads groundbreaking research in renewable carbon, focusing on sustainable chemicals, fuels, materials and processes. Through strategic industry partnerships and funding from sources like the UT-ORII Convergent Research Initiative (CRI), along with support from the UT Research Foundation for intellectual property management, she drives innovation in carbon sequestration and bio-based material development.

Niki Labbé
“UTRF’s expertise in technology transfer has allowed us to protect our intellectual property and effectively bring our research into the commercial world,” said Labbé.

This partnership has been outstanding. It’s tied in the strength of the university, the innovation and leadership of Oak Ridge Lab on the government lab side, to industry. And that’s been critical to take some of the inventions and the research projects and bring those to a production level where we can actually put those in our products that our customers can see and benefit from.

Lyndon Lie, Executive Vice President and Chief Engineering Officer, Volkswagen North America
Read More about UT’s Partnership with Volkswagen
Marc Gibson, associate vice chancellor partnerships and economic development, UT Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development; Lyndon Lie, executive vice president and chief engineering officer, Volkswagen North America; Donde Plowman, UT Chancellor; Susan Hubbard, deputy for science and technology, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; and Nikolai Ardei, executive vice president, Volkswagen Group Innovation.

A Research Network Built for Collaboration

With top-tier facilities, world-renowned scientists and a strong innovation culture, the UT System is built to support strategic, secure and ethical research partnerships. Explore our network.

Contact Us

Whether you’re exploring a research partnership or interested in sponsoring innovation, we’d love to hear from you.