Advanced Technologies for Carbon-Neutral (ALCA-Next) Program

This program provides funding for promising research ideas in priority areas for carbon neutrality, with a budget of 1.6 billion yen for FY2024. The program was launched in 2023 under the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) as one of the JST Strategic Basic Research Programs. The program focuses on exploring challenging key technologies that have not been actively researched by industries but have the potential to become innovative technology game-changers. Initially, the program will adopt multiple projects with relatively smaller budgets for a "small start" phase lasting 3.5 years. After this period, approximately one-third of the projects will be selected through stage-gate evaluations to receive increased funding, ensuring a continuous funding stream for projects that pass the evaluation.