The Building Technologies Office develops, demonstrates, and accelerates the adoption of cost-effective technologies, techniques, tools and services that enable high-performing, energy-efficient and demand-flexible residential and commercial buildings in both the new & existing buildings markets, in support of an equitable transition to a decarbonized energy system by 2050, starting with a decarbonized power sector by 2035. Learn more about BTO. 

News, Blogs, and Success Stories

DOE Recognizes 2022 Housing Innovation Award Winners

The winners' high-performance homes are so energy efficient they can offset most or all the energy they consume with a renewable energy system.

VIEW MORE
VIEW ALL
DOE Announces First Cohort of Post-Secondary Programs to Receive New Zero Energy Design Designation
Today, the DOE awarded its first-ever Zero Energy Design Designation (ZEDD) seal of recognition to 17 leading educational programs that are preparing tomorrow’s leaders to design and build the most sustainable buildings possible.
September 28, 2022
Learn More
New Interactive Home Tour Shows You How to Make Your Home Energy Efficient
The Home Performance with ENERGY STAR® program has launched an interactive online resource that lets you explore a real home that’s been evaluated to improve energy performance, save money on energy costs, reduce carbon emissions, and improve comfort.
September 26, 2022
Learn More
28 DOE-Funded Building Innovations Succeeded Commercially in Last Five Years
DOE and Carnegie Mellon University opened the Global Clean Energy Action Forum, a global event that has drawn 5,000 people from around the world to Pittsburgh, where they’re convening to turn clean energy ambition into action.
September 21, 2022
Learn More
DOE Recognizes 2022 Housing Innovation Award Winners
DOE announced the winners of its 2022 Housing Innovation Awards, the highest honor builders can receive for constructing Zero Energy Ready Homes.
September 20, 2022
Learn More
Windows Key to Increased Energy Efficiency in Buildings and Achieving Clean Energy Economy
Windows are a critical element of any building, and inefficient ones can negatively impact a building’s comfort, energy bills, and carbon footprint.
August 17, 2022
Learn More
Interested in Building Science? This Competition is for You!
JUMP Into STEM competition begins Aug. 15, 2022.
August 15, 2022
Learn More
DOE Reports Examine the State of Current Commercial UV LEDs
The COVID-19 pandemic has put a spotlight on germicidal ultraviolet (GUV) radiation for air and surface disinfection. This technology area represents a growing opportunity to improve indoor air quality while saving energy over high-ventilation approaches.
August 10, 2022
Learn More
Biden-Harris Administration Launches $225 Million Program to Lower Utility Bills Through More Efficient Building Codes
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a Notice of Intent (NOI) to provide $225 million for states and local governments to expand the implementation of the latest building energy codes and support the development of buildings that use less energy.
July 21, 2022
Learn More
DOE’s Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program Selects New Group of Innovators to Deliver Next-Generation Technologies for a Clean Energy Economy
Selected innovators will work with network of mentors and experts at U.S. National Laboratories
July 21, 2022
Learn More
Build Your Team! Solar Decathlon 2023 Design Challenge Opens Registration
DOE will accept applications for the Solar Decathlon 2023 Design Challenge through October 26, 2022
July 13, 2022
Learn More

BTO's Program Areas

Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships

Energy, Emissions and Equity (E3) Initiative
Better Energy, Emissions, and Equity (E3) Initiative
Learn More
Advanced Building Construction Initiative
The ABC Initiative integrates energy-efficiency solutions into highly productive U.S. construction practices for new buildings and retrofits.
Learn More
Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings
We’re conducting Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings research to help bring connectedness and the related energy savings across the buildings sector.
Learn More
Tech-to-Market
T2M activities accelerate innovative R&D concepts to become commercially viable and available products.
Learn More
Better Buildings
Partners in DOE’s Better Buildings Initiative set ambitious goals and contribute real-world solutions that help accelerate our clean energy economy.
Learn More
Green Building Workforce Development Initiatives
Achieving DOE’s high-level goals of combating climate change, creating clean energy union jobs, and promoting energy justice, requires improving the energy efficiency of America’s nearly 130 million buildings.
Learn More
Examining data on a wall display

Resource Dashboard

Find technical reports, technology roadmaps, fact sheets, relevant and authorizing statutes, and quick links to BTO’s decision tools.

Project Map

The Building Technologies Office Projects Map is a searchable table and map of BTO’s active projects that have been competitively awarded and funded through DOE’s national labs all across the United States. Dive into any project to learn more about its funding amount, who’s leading the work, the project term, what the project is developing, and its most recent progress.

Map of Solar Projects

BTO Career Opportunities

Ready to start building our clean energy future with a new career in BTO? Whether you’re looking for building energy-efficiency research or engineering jobs, or you’re interested in business support careers in the building energy-efficiency industry, BTO may have a position for you.

See the available opportunities.