Tag Archives: National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI)

Economic impacts (2002 – 2022) and the US National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI)

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Lynn L. Bergeron’s and Carla Hutton’s December 27, 2023 posting on The National Law Review announced a new report from the US National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), Note: A link has been removed,

On December 5, 2023, the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) released a report analyzing the economic impact of federal investment in nanotechnology from 2002 to 2022 [emphasis mine]. The report states that NNI selected this timeframe because it was codified by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act in 2003, and thus the range covers its entire existence. The report examines the impact of public investment, growth and trends of the market, and the evolving understanding and application of nanotechnology in the United States. It also provides key data for evaluating NNI’s ability to fulfill its mission and illustrates NNI’s successes to date.

NNI notes that in 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau released data from its 2017 Economic Census, and data in the classification code of Nanotechnology Research and Development (R&D) revealed that more than 3,700 companies, employing more than 171,000 people, reported $42 billion in annual revenue and $20 billion in employee salaries. According to NNI, these numbers “suffered from a limited scope, as the Bureau only included companies that self-identified as primarily being in the business of nanotechnology R&D.” To understand better the complete picture, NNI commissioned the Parnin Group to conduct a more complete economic impact analysis. [all emphases mine]

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You can find the more conservative claim of a $42 billion impact on the US economy in this November 28, 2022 NNI post by Mike Kiley. This year’s December 5, 2023 NNI post by Mike Kiley updates the numbers based on a new report,

An independent study focusing on the aggregated revenues of a select list of nanotechnology companies has estimated that the 2022 economic impact of nanotechnology on the U.S. economy was between $67 billion and $83 billion and close to a trillion dollars over the past two decades . This dwarfs the U.S. Government’s investment of around $40 billion over that same timeframe, which corresponds to the nation’s prioritization of the field through the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI).

The NNI investment has been used to explore the potential of nanoscale science, to capture societal benefits of nanotechnology, and to establish and sustain U.S. leadership in this critical field, both scientifically and economically. While it is difficult to fully capture the economic impact of the NNI’s sustained focus, these numbers hint at the tremendous multiplier effect that nanotechnology investments have had on the economy and the Nation.

As impressive as these numbers are, they only represent a relatively small number of companies that are clearly classified as nanotechnology. This limited approach ignores the field’s critical supporting role in several large commercial sectors. Therefore, the study also explored the impact of one closely related industry – microelectronics and semiconductors – to provide anecdotal evidence of the full magnitude of nanotechnology on the nation’s economy.

Examining the impact of the addition of the microelectronics and semiconductor industry to the study resulted in an estimate of $268 – 297 billion in 2022 alone. While significantly higher than the initial analysis, the authors recognized that this estimate still does not capture the full scope of the nano-economy, since microelectronics and semiconductors are only one of many commercial areas that substantially benefited from the nation’s leadership in the field.

Zooming in on the Not-So-Nano Numbers

In late 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau released data from its 2017 Economic Census. In the classification code of Nanotechnology Research and Development (R&D), the data revealed that over 3,700 companies, employing more than 171,000 people, reported $42 billion in annual revenue and $20 billion in employee salaries. As noted in a previous NNCO blog post , released on Nov. 28, 2022, these numbers also suffered from a limited scope, as the Bureau only included companies that self-identified as primarily being in the business of nanotechnology R&D. This limited scope led to a desire to better understand the full picture.

In early 2023, the NNI commissioned the Parnin Group (Alexandria, VA) to conduct a more complete economic impact analysis of nanotechnology to the U.S. economy . To conduct this analysis, the report identified a variety of nanotechnology products, including nanomaterials, intermediate nanotechnology products, and finished products in the marketplace. These products were organized into four categories: (1) core nano (e.g., carbon nanotubes), (2) nano tools (e.g., nanoscale etching tools), (3) integrated nano (e.g., mRNA vaccines), and (4) nano-enabled (e.g., pharmaceuticals). Once products and their parent companies were identified, Parnin examined Bureau of Labor Statistics data, value-chain analysis, product categories, public companies’ Securities and Exchange Commission filings, and patent filings to establish the collective economic value produced by these companies.

Clearly, capturing the economic impact of nanotechnology is not trivial. Products used every day are enabled by nanotechnology, but “nanotechnology” is not seen in the packaging of some of the most ubiquitous items in our lives, like a smartphone, e-reader, or television. Companies and products seldom draw attention to nanomaterials used to make them, for various reasons, including protecting proprietary formulations and practices. As a result, many large companies and related commercial areas – including microelectronics and semiconductors, healthcare, pharmaceutical production, oil and gas refining, and cosmetic products – that have operations and products in the nanotechnology space, but not exclusively so, were excluded from this economic analysis, leading to conservative estimates of the economic impact of nanotechnology.

The report explored the omission of these major areas through an analysis of nanotechnology’s contribution in one of these sectors: microelectronics and semiconductors. While it represents one of the clearest examples of how nanotechnology is used to drive the U.S. economy, the microelectronics industry was mostly excluded in the initial analysis since, historically, it has been unclear what percentage of companies’ portfolios were related to nanotechnology. However, by 2022 every competitive product in the sector features nanoscale dimensions created through nanotechnology tools, creating confidence that this area can defensibly be included in an analysis of the nano-economy.

As indicated earlier, when the microelectronics and semiconductor segments were included, the estimated impact jumped to between $268 billion and $297 billion annually. While other sectors are not as clearly connected to the field of nanotechnology, they are a part of the story and this exploration provides a glimpse into how sizeable the field’s impact might be.

Caveats and nuances abound, because seeing the impact of nanotechnology to the U.S. economy would be like seeing a 10-nanometer object in the palm of your hand; it is there, but you need special tools to see it! And regardless of the exact number, the message is clear: The United States’ leadership in the field has certainly paid off.

Report: Assessing the Economic Impact of Nanotechnology in the United States

The report (title page: Economic Impact Analysis: 20 Years of Nanotechnology Investments) covering 2002-2022 is relatively short, 56 pp. in the print version or 57 pp. in the PDF.

Eye-opening to me, was that the NNI never included semi-conductors and micro-elecronics in its previous economic analyses. Pretty significant omission.

I have no background in economics and so, much of the report flew over my head. However, I am a long time (and experienced skeptic) and can’t help suspecting that everyone (especially the client, in this case, the US government) is much happier with these new numbers. Lest we forget, the NNI was signed into existence by a Democratic president, Bill Clinton and the administration is now led by another Democratic president, Joe Biden. As well, this report was released just in time for 2024, an election year.

While I think there might have been a little over enthusiasm in the estimates, the report seems to bear out the notion that nanotechnology is increasingly a foundational element of modern technology and products.

Symposium on “Enabling the Nanotechnology Revolution” on October 10, 2023, in-person in Washington, DC or virtual

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It’s the 20th anniversary of the US National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and, now, scientists and policymakers will be celebrating and analyzing the results on October 10, 2023 according to a September 18, 2023 post on the JD Supra Nano and Other Emerging Chemical Technologies blog, Note: A link has been removed,

On October 10, 2023, the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) will host a symposium entitled “Enabling the Nanotechnology Revolution: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act” at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Experts will address the importance of nanotechnology in microelectronics, optics, advanced polymers, quantum engineering, medicine, education, manufacturing, and more. Discussions will also focus on the environmental, health, and safety implications of nanomaterials, as well as the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) community’s efforts around inclusion, diversity, equity, and access.

You can register and find more information on the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) anniversary symposium webpage, Note: A link has been removed,

Scientists and engineers across many fields and disciplines are united by their work at the nanoscale. Their diverse efforts have helped produce everything from faster microchips to powerful mRNA vaccines. The transformative impact of this work has been spurred by the coordination and focus on U.S. nanotechnology established by the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act in 2003. Celebrating such a broad impact and envisioning the future can be quite challenging, but this event will bring together voices from across the emerging technology landscape. There will be experts who can speak on the importance of nanotechnology in quantum engineering, optics, EHS, plastics, DEIA, microelectronics, medicine, education, manufacturing, and more. We can’t predict what will emerge from this lively discussion between researchers, policymakers, members of industry, educators, and the public, but the conversation can only benefit from including more diverse perspectives – especially yours.

You have the option of registering in-person attendance or for virtual attendance.

Here’s the:

AGENDA

9:00-9:05   Welcome and Introduction

9:05-9:30   Opening Remarks on the NNI

9:30-10:15  Morning Keynote

10:15-10:30  Coffee Break

10:30-11:15  Panel: Responsible Development

11:15-12:00  Panel: Fundamental Research

12:00-1:00  Lunch and Networking

1:00-1:45  Keynote Panel: The Future of Nanotechnology

1:45-2:30  Panel: Workforce Development

2:30-2:45  Break

2:45-3:30  Panel: Infrastructure

3:30-4:15  Panel: Commercialization

4:15-5:00  Closing Keynote

Reception to follow

If you’re curious about the panelists and speakers, you will find a list with pictures and links to profile pages on the NNI’s anniversary symposium webpage.

Sign up for Nano4EARTH’s Roundtable Discussion (Batteries and Energy Storage): September 26, 2023 (online or in person)

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Given that Nano4Earth was first announced by the US government in October 2022 (see my November 28, 2022 posting), the initiative has been quite active (see my February 27, 2023 posting, “Nano4EARTH workshop recordings available online“).

Now for the latest, from the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) webpage for the batteries and storage roundtable discussion,

Nano4EARTH Roundtable Discussion on Batteries and Energy Storage

September 26, 2023
9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET
Online and L’Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, D.C.

The Nano4EARTH roundtable discussion on batteries and energy storage aims to identify fundamental knowledge gaps, needs, and opportunities to advance current electrification goals. By convening stakeholders from different sectors, backgrounds, and expertise the goal of this roundtable is to identify applicable lessons across the spectrum of technologies, discuss system-specific needs, scalability and commercialization challenges, and potential paths forward. These needs could have a near-term impact on energy efficiency, sustainable development, and climate change. The moderated discussion will tackle all aspects of the topic – ranging from exciting R&D opportunities to commercialization challenges – by featuring a small group of experts from different sectors and backgrounds.

This roundtable is a critical part of the Nano4EARTH National Nanotechnology Challenge, which aims to leverage recent investments in understanding and controlling matter at the nanoscale to develop technologies and industries that address climate change. Nano4EARTH focuses on facilitating opportunities for members of the nanotechnology community to convene, collaborate, and share resources. Nano4EARTH also strives to provide mechanisms that support technology development and commercialization of nanotechnology-enabled climate solutions.

The topic of this roundtable was identified at the Nano4EARTH kick-off workshop (summary readout and video archive) as a particularly promising area that could have an impact in a short time frame (four years or less). This roundtable is the second of four.

MEETING LOCATION:

Online and the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office: Suite 8001, 470 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Washington, DC 20024. Directions are available here.

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Registration is now open and you can find the links to online or in person registration on the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) webpage for the batteries and storage roundtable discussion

h/t JD Supra blog’s August 23, 2023 posting

Nano4EARTH workshop recordings available online

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Announced in October 2022, the US government’s Nano4EARTH is the Biden-Harris {President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris] Administration’s first national nanotechnology challenge. (You can find out more about the challenge in my November 28, 2022 posting.)

More recently, JD Supra’s February 22, 2023 news item notes Nano4EARTH’s kick-off workshop (Note: Links have been removed),

The kickoff workshop for Nano4EARTH was held January 24-25, 2023. Nano4EARTH will leverage recent investments in understanding and controlling matter at the nanoscale to develop technologies, industries, and training opportunities that address climate change. On January 26, 2023, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) issued a press release summarizing the workshop. According to OSTP, more than 400 people across sectors, with diverse expertise and perspectives, participated in the workshop. OSTP states that discussions focused on identifying nanotechnologies that will have an impact on climate change in four years or less, in addition to sharing resources to address barriers to entrepreneurship and technology adoption. Workshop participants identified goals and metrics to maintain momentum throughout the challenge. New connections and networks spanning federal agencies, non-federal organizations, and industry were created and several examples of collaborations and events centered on nanotechnology and climate change developed organically between participants.

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A January 26, 2023 White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) press release, which originated the news item on JD Supra, described some common workshop themes,

  • Battery technology has seen increased adoption in personal vehicles and long-term energy storage solutions, but further advances in Li-ion, as well as new chemistries and architectures, show tremendous and broad potential. It is critical that research directions are well matched with particular use cases.
  • Catalysts leveraging new understandings of nanoscale materials and phenomena could optimize many high-greenhouse gas emitting industrial processes, minimize the need for rare-earth metals, and serve as a precursor for alternative energy sources such as green hydrogen and electrofuels. 
  • Coatings and other material innovations are likely to increase the overall efficiency of nearly any industrial process and lead to more resilient structures and devices, especially in changing and harsh environments. Examples include reflective coatings, corrosion protection, heat management in computing, lubricants and other additives, and membranes for separations. Drop-in solutions would have a more near-term impact.
  • Capture of greenhouse gasses through advanced materials and sorbents (e.g., metal organic frameworks) and nature mimicking processes (e.g., artificial photosynthesis), especially deployed at the point of production, could be impactful but deploying at scale has significant challenges. In the near term, renewable energy production and efficient transmission is worthy of increased attention.

In the months to come, the NNCO will convene a series of roundtable discussions that focus on some of the highest potential nanotechnologies identified at the kick-off workshop. Subject matter experts and federal partners will be asked to match nanotechnology opportunities to urgent climate change needs, with strong consideration of the broader societal needs and impacts. Feedback from the kick-off workshop will also inform additional activities and events to facilitate conversations and collaborations across this growing community.

The US National Nanotechnology Initiative-hosted Nano4EARTH Kick-off Workshop page features the meeting agenda where there are links to video recordings of each session.

US and Nano4EARTH

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After such a long time (a couple of years at least), it was nice to come across this update on the US government’s national nanotechnology efforts. From a October 7, 2022 (US) White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) news release (h/t JD Supra October 17, 2022 legal news update),

Today [October 7, 2022], to mark National Nanotechnology Day, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) are making key announcements that aim to advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to leverage the promise of science and technology to benefit all Americans. They also complement the Administration’s ongoing CHIPS and Science Act implementation efforts that will ensure the United States remains a world leader in the industries of tomorrow.

“National Nanotechnology Day is an opportunity to celebrate the NNCO’s – and Biden-Harris Administration’s – efforts to advance research breakthroughs on the nanoscale that impact nearly every scientific discipline and lay the foundation for emerging fields and technologies,” said newly announced National Nanotechnology Coordination Office Director Dr. Branden Brough. “As evidenced by this week’s Nobel Prize announcements highlighting work in quantum information science and click chemistry, the nanotechnology community is leveraging the Nation’s investments in research at the level of atoms and molecules to find solutions to address today’s most pressing challenges, including climate change, pandemic preparedness, and domestic microelectronics manufacturing.”

Biden-⁠Harris Administration’s National Nanotechnology Challenge, Nano4EARTH

The National Nanotechnology Coordination Office is announcing the inaugural National Nanotechnology Challenge, Nano4EARTH. Nano4EARTH will leverage recent investments in understanding and controlling matter at the nanoscale to develop technologies and industries that address climate change. Nano4EARTH recognizes the role nanotechnology plays in: Evaluating, monitoring, and detecting climate change status and trends; Averting future greenhouse gas emissions; Removing existing greenhouse gasses; Training and educating a highly skilled workforce to harness nanotechnology solutions; and developing Higher resilience to – and mitigation of – climate change-induced pressures for improved societal/economic resilience.

The NNCO supports the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), a White House-led initiative that coordinates the nanotechnology R&D activities of 20 federal government agencies. Identified in the 2021 NNI Strategic Plan, National Nanotechnology Challenges are a new mechanism to mobilize and connect the NNI community so it can help to address global societal challenges.

Members of the NNI community – the scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, and government leaders developing solutions at the nanoscale – are invited to participate in Nano4EARTH! By doing so, they can support the United States’ goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and inspire and build the STEM workforce capacity that will help develop and implement climate change mitigation and resilience solutions. Links to relevant agency programs, information about the public kick-off workshop, and a link to join a mailing list to get involved can be found on the Nano4EARTH webpage. The Nano4EARTH kick-off workshop (to be held in early 2023) will serve as an information-gathering exercise to identify key feasible outputs of the challenge and effective ways to measure success.

National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) Leadership

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and The National Nanotechnology Coordination Office are announcing Dr. Branden Brough as the new Director of the National Nanotechnology Coordination Office (NNCO) and Dr. Quinn Spadola as its Deputy Director.

Dr. Brough joins the NNCO from the Molecular Foundry, a U.S. Department of Energy-funded nanoscale science research center that provides users from around the world with access to cutting-edge expertise and instrumentation. He will also serve as OSTP’s Assistant Director for Nanotechnology. As the Molecular Foundry’s Deputy Director, Dr. Brough was responsible for helping guide the organization’s scientific plans and initiatives, while also managing the center’s operations. Before joining the Molecular Foundry, Dr. Brough worked at the NIH’s National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, where he led strategic policy and planning activities, as well as Congressional and public outreach efforts. Dr. Brough received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering – focusing on the integration of synthetic motor molecules and natural self-assembling proteins into micro/nanotechnologies – from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

Dr. Spadola was the Associate Director of Education for the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI), a network of open nanotechnology laboratory user facilities supported by the National Science Foundation, and the Director of Education and Outreach for the Southeastern Nanotechnology Infrastructure Corridor NNCI site at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Prior to joining the Georgia Institute of Technology, Dr. Spadola was the Education and Outreach Coordinator and a Technical Advisor to the Director at NNCO. She received her Ph.D. in physics from Arizona State University and her MFA in Science and Natural History Filmmaking from Montana State University.

Once again, the Climate Change National Nanotechnology Challenge (Nano4EARTH) webpage is here and apparently they aren’t quite ready yet but,

The NNI is planning a Nano4EARTH kick-off workshop! Join our mailing list to get all future updates!

Happy (belated) US National Nanotechnology Day (October 9, 2022)

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H/t to Lynn L. Bergeson’s and Carla N. Hutton’s October 8, 2022 posting on The National Law Review website for the news about the US National Nanotechnology Day on October 9, 2022.

Here’s more from the US National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) October 6, 2022 posting by Adrienne Eastlake, Gary Roth, and Nicole Neu-Baker on the NIOSH Science blog (Note: Links and footnotes have been removed),

Every year on October 9th we celebrate National Nanotechnology Day. The date 10-9 pays homage to the nanometer scale: 10–9 (one billionth of a meter). Anything that can be measured in nanometers is extremely small! For instance, the width of a strand of human hair is about 90,000 nanometers, bacteria are between 300–5,000 nanometers, viruses are 5–300 nanometers, the diameter of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is 2.5 nanometers, and a single atom is 0.1–0.5 nanometers. A healthy young adult’s fingernail grows an average of just over 1 nanometer per second (3.47 millimeters per month on average)!1 National Nanotechnology Day was created to help raise awareness of nanotechnology, to show how it is currently used in products that enrich our daily lives and to consider future challenges and opportunities.

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Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) are materials intentionally produced to have particle sizes between 1 and 100 nanometers in at least one dimension. These materials can be nanoparticles, nanotubes, or nanoplates, depending on their shape. ENMs typically have new or unique properties different from those of larger forms of the same material, making them desirable for specific product applications. These properties can contribute to increased elasticity, tensile strength, electrical conduction, and reactivity. Increasingly, they are added into existing materials to give these properties to bulk materials (such as plastics or metals). Consumer products using ENMs include cosmetics, sunscreen, food storage products, appliances, clothing, electronics, computers, sporting goods, and coatings. ENMs are also used in state-of-the-art sensors and biomedical technologies. COVID-19 research and the development of vaccines depend heavily on nanotechnology, and many vaccines use nanotechnology to improve their effectiveness. You probably are interacting with nanotechnology-enabled products every day!

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Since the early 2000s, NIOSH has been at the forefront of efforts to characterize potential workplace hazards for those working with ENMs and to ensure safe and healthy workplaces, including the creation of the NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center in 2004. Since then, NIOSH has published a quantitative risk assessment and an elemental mass-based recommended exposure limit (REL) for each of the following: carbon nanotubes/nanofibers,4 nanoscale titanium dioxide, 5 and silver nanomaterials.6 In addition, the poster Controlling Health Hazards When Working With Nanomaterials: Questions to Ask Before You Start is a helpful and easy-to-use visual resource for the workplace.

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In collaboration with RTI International, NIOSH administered a survey developed by the RAND Corporation to North American companies working with nanomaterials to assess health and safety practices and the impact of efforts made by NIOSH to protect worker health and safety.9 Forty-five companies in the United States and Canada that fabricate, manufacture, handle, dispose, or otherwise use nanomaterials completed the online survey in 2019. The survey included research questions about nanomaterials in use and the overall occupational health and safety culture at the companies. Additionally, other questions asked about whether the companies interacted with NIOSH or used NIOSH resources to inform their health and safety practices and policies. More than a third (37.8%) of the 45 respondents reported using at least one NIOSH resource for information about safe handling of nanomaterials. Larger companies were more likely to report using NIOSH resources than companies employing fewer than 50 employees. While the survey was limited by the small sample size, it provided valuable insight, including that future NIOSH outreach should specifically target small businesses that use or handle nanomaterials.

We hope you find a way to celebrate National Nanotechnology Day! The National Nanotechnology Initiative (nano.gov) suggests running a 100 Billion Nanometer Dash. Sounds like quite a distance, but it is just 100 meters (328 feet) or 6.2% of a mile. As we continue to provide guidance and recommendations to keep workers safe when working with ENMs, we will be right there with you until you cross the finish line… one nanometer at a time. Good luck!

You can find other activities to celebrate the day (even belatedly) at nano.gov here on their National Nanotechnology Day webpage.

Documentary “NNI Retrospective Video: Creating a National Initiative” celebrates the US National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and a lipid nanoparticle question

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i stumbled across an August 4, 2022 tvworldwide.com news release about a video celbrating the US National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) over 20 years of operation, (Note: A link has been removed),

TV Worldwide, since 1999, a pioneering web-based global TV network, announced that it was releasing a video trailer highlighting a previously released documentary on NNI over the past 20 years, entitled, ‘NNI Retrospective Video: Creating a National Initiative’.

The video and its trailer were produced in cooperation with the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), the National Science Foundation and the University of North Carolina Greensboro.

Video Documentary Synopsis

Nanotechnology is a megatrend in science and technology at the beginning of the 21 Century. The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) has played a key role in advancing the field after it was announced by President Clinton in January 2000. Neil Lane was Presidential Science Advisor. Mike Roco proposed the initiative at the White House in March 1999 on behalf of the Interagency Working Group on Nanotechnology and was named the founding Chair of NSET to implement NNI beginning with Oct. 2000. NSF led the preparation of this initiative together with other agencies including NIH, DoD, DOE, NASA, and EPA. Jim Murday was named the first Director of NNCO to support NSET. The scientific and societal success of NNI has been recognized in the professional communities, National Academies, PCAST, and Congress. Nanoscale science, engineering and technology are strongly connected and collectively called Nanotechnology.

This video documentary was made after the 20th NNI grantees conference at NSF. It is focused on creating and implementing NNI, through video interviews. The interviews focused on three questions: (a) Motivation and how NNI started; (b) The process and reason for the success in creating NNI; (c) Outcomes of NNI after 20 years, and how the initial vision has been realized.

About the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI)

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) is a U.S. Government research and development (R&D) initiative. Over thirty Federal departments, independent agencies, and commissions work together toward the shared vision of a future in which the ability to understand and control matter at the nanoscale leads to ongoing revolutions in technology and industry that benefit society. The NNI enhances interagency coordination of nanotechnology R&D, supports a shared infrastructure, enables leveraging of resources while avoiding duplication, and establishes shared goals, priorities, and strategies that complement agency-specific missions and activities.

The NNI participating agencies work together to advance discovery and innovation across the nanotechnology R&D enterprise. The NNI portfolio encompasses efforts along the entire technology development pathway, from early-stage fundamental science through applications-driven activities. Nanoscience and nanotechnology are prevalent across the R&D landscape, with an ever-growing list of applications that includes nanomedicine, nanoelectronics, water treatment, precision agriculture, transportation, and energy generation and storage. The NNI brings together representatives from multiple agencies to leverage knowledge and resources and to collaborate with academia and the private sector, as appropriate, to promote technology transfer and facilitate commercialization. The breadth of NNI-supported infrastructure enables not only the nanotechnology community but also researchers from related disciplines.

In addition to R&D efforts, the NNI is helping to build the nanotechnology workforce of the future, with focused efforts from K–12 through postgraduate research training. The responsible development of nanotechnology has been an integral pillar of the NNI since its inception, and the initiative proactively considers potential implications and technology applications at the same time. Collectively, these activities ensure that the United States remains not only the place where nanoscience discoveries are made, but also where these discoveries are translated and manufactured into products to benefit society.

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I’m embedding the trailer here and a lipid nanoparticle question follows (The origin story told in Vancouver [Canada] is that the work was started at the University of British Columbia by Pieter Quilty.),

I was curious about what involvement the US NNI had with the development of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) and found a possible answer to that question on Wikipedia The LNP Wikipedia entry certainly gives the bulk of the credit to Quilty but there was work done prior to his involvement (Note: Links have been removed),

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A significant obstacle to using LNPs as a delivery vehicle for nucleic acids is that in nature, lipids and nucleic acids both carry a negative electric charge—meaning they do not easily mix with each other.[19] While working at Syntex in the mid-1980s,[20] Philip Felgner [emphasis mine] pioneered the use of artificially-created cationic lipids (positively-charged lipids) to bind lipids to nucleic acids in order to transfect the latter into cells.[21] However, by the late 1990s, it was known from in vitro experiments that this use of cationic lipids had undesired side effects on cell membranes.[22]

During the late 1990s and 2000s, Pieter Cullis of the University of British Columbia [emphasis mine] developed ionizable cationic lipids which are “positively charged at an acidic pH but neutral in the blood.”[8] Cullis also led the development of a technique involving careful adjustments to pH during the process of mixing ingredients in order to create LNPs which could safely pass through the cell membranes of living organisms.[19][23] As of 2021, the current understanding of LNPs formulated with such ionizable cationic lipids is that they enter cells through receptor-mediated endocytosis and end up inside endosomes.[8] The acidity inside the endosomes causes LNPs’ ionizable cationic lipids to acquire a positive charge, and this is thought to allow LNPs to escape from endosomes and release their RNA payloads.[8]

From 2005 into the early 2010s, LNPs were investigated as a drug delivery system for small interfering RNA (siRNA) drugs.[8] In 2009, Cullis co-founded a company called Acuitas Therapeutics to commercialize his LNP research [emphasis mine]; Acuitas worked on developing LNPs for Alnylam Pharmaceuticals’s siRNA drugs.[24] In 2018, the FDA approved Alnylam’s siRNA drug Onpattro (patisiran), the first drug to use LNPs as the drug delivery system.[3][8]

By that point in time, siRNA drug developers like Alnylam were already looking at other options for future drugs like chemical conjugate systems, but during the 2010s, the earlier research into using LNPs for siRNA became a foundation for new research into using LNPs for mRNA.[8] Lipids intended for short siRNA strands did not work well for much longer mRNA strands, which led to extensive research during the mid-2010s into the creation of novel ionizable cationic lipids appropriate for mRNA.[8] As of late 2020, several mRNA vaccines for SARS-CoV-2 use LNPs as their drug delivery system, including both the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine and the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines.[3] Moderna uses its own proprietary ionizable cationic lipid called SM-102, while Pfizer and BioNTech licensed an ionizable cationic lipid called ALC-0315 from Acuitas.[8] [emphases mine]

You can find out more about Philip Felgner here on his University of California at Irvine (UCI) profile page.

I wish they had been a little more careful about some of the claims that Thomas Kalil made about lipid nanoparticles in both the trailer and video but, getting back to the trailer (approx. 3 mins.) and the full video (approx. 25 mins.), either provides insight into a quite extraordinary effort.

Bravo to the US NNI!