part of the SPRIND Tech Metal Transformation Challenge

December 2, 2026 | 14:00-21:00 h

EUREF-Campus 3 | 10829 Berlin

SPRIND, CIRCULAR REPUBLIC, and the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) invite you to an evening at the forefront of one of the most pressing industrial challenges of our time: securing Europe's and America's supply of critical technology metals.

Metals and minerals are the backbone of the green and digital transition. From wind turbines and electric vehicles to microchips and defense systems, they are indispensable. Yet, less than 1% of Europe's demand for key tech metals is currently met through recycling. Both continents remain deeply dependent on imports from geopolitically volatile regions, while growing volumes of e-waste continue to squander the very materials we urgently need. Solving this requires not incremental improvement, but radical technological breakthroughs and deep transatlantic collaboration.

Solving the industry's critical metal dependency requires international collaboration and radically new approaches towards recycling and transformative technological solutions for securing such valuable materials from waste streams. In the ongoing Tech Metal Transformation Challenge, SPRIND aims to accelerate European access to tech metals from complex waste streams. SPRIND supports world-class interdisciplinary teams with multi-million, flexible funding allowing them to pursue ambitious ideas from early proof-of-concept all the way to functional prototypes ready for industrial application. SPRIND’s approach extends beyond traditional grants, offering a high-risk, high-impact framework that empowers inventors to test radical approaches with the potential to transform entire industries.

In parallel, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), through its Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP) and its STRIDE Ventures initiative, is advancing the U.S. effort by supporting breakthrough technologies that strengthen domestic critical mineral supply chains. Working alongside SPRIND in the Tech Metal Transformation Challenge, NSF backs interdisciplinary teams developing transformative solutions to recover and convert critical technology metals from complex waste streams into materials ready for manufacturing.

Hosted by:

SPRIND: Germany's Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation finances groundbreaking technologies and topics that have the potential to fundamentally improve our lives. SPRIND Challenges are multi-stage/multi-year competitions in which interdisciplinary teams tackle some of the toughest technological and societal issues.

CIRCULAR REPUBLIC: As Europe's leading innovation and collaboration platform for the Circular Economy, CIRCULAR REPUBLIC orchestrates hands-on cross-company projects to pilot and scale new value chains and business models, supports organisations in their transformation and acts as a strong voice in industry, politics and media to shape industrial transformation. CIRCULAR REPUBLIC is part of UnternehmerTUM, awarded as Europe's No 1 innovation hub, supporting thousands of German and international corporations, family enterprises and tech start-ups each year, and attracting multi-billion VC investments.

NSF & STRIDE Ventures: The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and innovation across science and engineering. Through its Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP), NSF launched STRIDE Ventures, a milestone-driven, challenge-based funding initiative that accelerates breakthrough technologies from research to real-world deployment. As the U.S. partner in the Tech Metal Transformation Challenge, STRIDE Ventures supports interdisciplinary teams developing transformative technologies to recover and convert critical technology metals from complex waste streams, strengthening resilient and sustainable supply chains.

Attendance by Invitation Only: This event convenes senior leaders from industry, startups, academia, policy, investment, and diplomacy – experts operating at the intersection of critical metals, circular economy, and technological sovereignty.

What to expect:

Meet the 16 leading U.S. and European teams developing breakthrough technologies to recover and transform critical technology metals from complex waste streams.

Discover emerging technologies with the potential to reshape critical materials supply chains and the circular economy.

Connect with a curated network of industrial corporations, investors, feedstock providers, off-takers, policymakers, and innovation leaders from Europe and the U.S.

Explore collaboration opportunities, from pilot projects and strategic partnerships to investment and commercial deployment.

Gain insights from keynote speakers and panel discussions on transatlantic innovation, market access, and the future of critical materials.

The Industry Day offers an exclusive opportunity to meet the 16 teams supported across both programs. Each team is pursuing a distinct, highly ambitious approach at the technological frontier of critical metal recovery to sustainably secure the materials essential to our industrial future. For guests, this is an opportunity to get an early look at the technologies that will shape the future of critical metal supply chains and to connect directly with the teams developing them.

Available Tickets

Registration Industry Day Critical Technology Metals

Free

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