SOSV, the venture capital firm behind HAX in Newark, recently announced that its new HAX Plasma Forge will establish its permanent headquarters at SRI’s historic WesT Windsor campus, where it plans to open approximately 10,000 square feet of specialized laboratory and workspace later this year.
The $51 million deep-tech hub at 201 Washington Road is designed to help startups commercialize technologies involving plasma science, fusion energy, next-generation semiconductors and advanced manufacturing.
The location was formerly home to RCA Laboratories and the David Sarnoff Research Center, where researchers contributed to the development of technologies including color television, liquid-crystal displays, radar systems and early semiconductor technologies.
The selection of the SRI site is the latest milestone for HAX Plasma Forge, a Strategic Innovation Center announced in June 2025 as a partnership among SOSV, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. The center is intended to help researchers and entrepreneurs turn advances in plasma science into commercial businesses.
The project is backed by $51 million in dedicated funding and support, including $24.5 million from SOSV and $24.5 million from NJEDA over a five-year partnership, along with technical collaboration and in-kind support from PPPL.
The center will include purpose-built research and development infrastructure, laboratory space and co-working areas. Its focus will include low-temperature plasma technology, fusion energy, semiconductor fabrication, advanced materials and manufacturing. Plasma-based processes are already widely used in manufacturing advanced computer chips, while plasma is also central to the development of fusion energy.
Founders accepted into the program will have access to as much as $550,000 in seed investment from SOSV, specialized plasma research equipment and technical support from HAX engineering, design and supply-chain teams. Companies will also have opportunities to work with PPPL scientists and industry partners.
The Princeton center builds on SOSV’s HAX operation in Newark, which provides laboratory, engineering and investment support to early-stage hard-technology companies.
“The HAX Plasma Forge isn’t just renting space, they’re joining a lineage of innovators who specialize in turning frontier science into the bedrock of global industry,” said David Parekh, CEO of SRI. “We can’t wait to see plasma become the next great chapter in that legacy.”
SOSV also recently announced an advisory board that will help evaluate potential startups, assess technologies and market opportunities, advise founders and help guide the Plasma Forge’s strategy.
The board includes Richard Gottscho, former chief technology officer and executive vice president of global products at Lam Research; Gilroy Vandentop, head of industry partnerships at the Texas A&M Semiconductor Institute and a former Intel executive; Kieran Drain, a former managing director at Applied Materials and former CEO of Tyndall National Institute; and Faran Nouri, a former senior partner at Natcast and former executive at Lam Research, Lam Capital and Applied Materials.
PPPL representatives on the board include Chantal Badre, the laboratory’s deputy chief operating officer and chief of staff; Ahmed Diallo, a distinguished research fellow and former program director at ARPA-E; and Yevgeny Raitses, a distinguished research fellow whose work includes plasma technology for materials synthesis, advanced semiconductors and space propulsion.
The Plasma Forge is intended to help close the gap between research and commercialization by locating startups near PPPL scientists while providing entrepreneurs with investment capital, laboratory infrastructure and business development support.
When the project was announced last year, PPPL Director Steve Cowley said the partnership would allow the laboratory’s scientific expertise to contribute more directly to economic development and commercialization of new technologies.
Organizers see particular opportunities in advanced computing, energy and manufacturing as growing demand for artificial intelligence increases the need for more advanced chips, energy systems and manufacturing technologies. SOSV also sees plasma applications extending into areas including advanced materials and space propulsion.
HAX Plasma Forge is scheduled to open at the SRI campus in late 2026.
HAX Plasma Forge, SRI, 201 Washington Road, Princeton. sosv.com
