Deoras Prabhudharwadkar from Team Roberts recently hosted the second successful edition of the workshop “Lab to Market Insights: Introduction to Technoeconomics,” tailored specifically for the non-student community within the Clean Energy Research Platform (CERP). The highly interactive session attracted 30 participants, including postdoctoral researchers, scientists, and staff members, with more than 15 additional registrations placed on a waitlist due to room capacity—a strong indication of the growing interest in research translation and commercialization across the KAUST community. Building on the success of a previous offering delivered to Process Systems Engineering (PSE) students through the PSE Student Senate, the workshop continues to provide practical guidance for researchers interested in bringing innovations from the laboratory to the marketplace.

Drawing on 15 years of combined experience in industry and at KAUST, the workshop uses real-world examples from ongoing projects that are directly relevant to KAUST and Saudi Arabia’s innovation ecosystem. Participants work in small groups to explore the technoeconomic and commercialization considerations that shape the journey from scientific discovery to market adoption, fostering collaboration, discussion, and new perspectives. By providing a structured framework for evaluating and advancing research ideas, the workshop helps researchers better understand the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead on the path to impact. Following the enthusiastic response from both students and researchers, additional sessions are planned for next quarter, with opportunities to expand the program to other communities within and beyond KAUST.