AI-powered innovation will drive materials circularity and improve U.S. supply chain resilience
AMES, Iowa—The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Ames National Laboratory and the Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub today announced a new collaboration with Amazon to advance technologies that recover and recycle critical materials, such as battery-grade graphite, and essential minerals that power modern technologies.
Through this collaboration, Amazon will combine its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities and supply chain scale with the world-class materials science expertise of DOE's Ames National Laboratory and the CMI Hub. Together, these organizations will work to reduce waste, strengthen domestic supply chains, and create opportunities for high-value material recovery.
As part of this effort, CMI researchers will collaborate with Amazon teams to explore methods for producing battery-grade graphite from post-consumer textiles (i.e., discarded clothing items). Converting discarded fabrics into a domestic source of graphite advances DOE's Genesis Mission goal of securing critical materials from waste.
In a second initiative, CMI will collaborate with Amazon Web Services (AWS) teams to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of recovering critical minerals, such as gallium, from end-of-life IT hardware. AWS will leverage its expertise in physical AI and supply chain management, while CMI contributes its expertise in critical minerals recovery and the combined capabilities of its network of partners.
“At scale, the recovery of critical minerals from end-of-life technologies and textile waste has the potential to transform our domestic critical materials supply chains,” said Assistant Secretary of Energy (EERE) Audrey Robertson, who leads DOE's Office of Critical Materials and Energy Innovation. “This pioneering work, made possible by an exciting new partnership with Amazon, supports the Trump Administration’s efforts to reduce our reliance on foreign imports and strengthen our national security.”
"This is an excellent match for Ames National Laboratory's deep expertise in materials science," said Ames Laboratory Director Karl Mueller. "For decades, Ames Lab has led the nation in metals refining, purification, and critical materials research—and applying that strength to real-world challenges."
"This collaboration is a natural extension of the expertise that CMI Hub was created to deliver," said CMI Hub Director Tom Lograsso. "CMI's mission is to move breakthrough materials technologies from the laboratory into real-world applications on timelines that meet industry's needs. Working with Amazon gives us the opportunity to apply our capabilities at scale—combining CMI's materials science expertise with Amazon's AI to turn innovations into practical solutions that strengthen the nation's critical materials supply chains."
"We are excited to bring the full depth and breadth of Amazon AI — including Amazon Nova — and our science capabilities to this collaboration,” said Kommy Weldemariam, Chief Scientist for Sustainability and AI at Amazon. “Together with Ames National Laboratory and CMI, we are advancing a new frontier in critical materials circularity — from converting discarded textiles into battery-grade graphite to recovering critical minerals from IT hardware. This is one example of how Amazon is helping build a more sustainable and resilient domestic supply chain.”
These projects build on the CMI Hub's strong record of industry collaborations focused on improving the resiliency and sustainability of domestic critical materials supply chains.
The Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub is an Energy Innovation Hub led by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames National Laboratory with support from the Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation Office’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO). CMI seeks ways to accelerate the development of critical material technologies and enhance the innovation pipeline for U.S. supply chains by accelerating research, educating a robust workforce, and creating de-risked, commercial-ready technologies in partnership with American industry.
Ames National Laboratory is a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science National Laboratory operated by Iowa State University. Ames Laboratory creates innovative materials, technologies, and energy solutions. We use our expertise, unique capabilities, and interdisciplinary collaborations to solve global problems.
Ames Laboratory is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit https://energy.gov/science.