Every Fusion Startup That Has Raised Over $100M
An overview of nuclear fusion startups that have raised over $100 million, led by industry leaders like CFS, Helion, and TAE.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Nuclear fusion transitions from theoretical physics to tangible technology.
- Massive investments driven by powerful chips, AI, and superconducting magnets.
- Top startups like CFS and Helion secure billions in private capital.
- Major tech companies step in to secure future clean energy supply.
Fusion power has evolved from the butt of jokes into an increasingly tangible technology that has successfully drawn investors off the sidelines. While building reactors remains challenging and expensive, fusion promises to harness the nuclear reaction powering the sun to generate nearly limitless energy on Earth, with the potential to upend trillion-dollar markets if commercially viable plants are realized.
This bullish wave in the fusion industry has been propelled by three key technological advances: more powerful computer chips, sophisticated AI, and high-temperature superconducting magnets. Together, these breakthroughs enable more advanced reactor designs, improved simulations, and complex control schemes. Furthermore, the milestone achieved by a U.S. Department of Energy lab in late 2022, which produced a controlled fusion reaction yielding more power than the energy imparted, proved that the underlying science is sound.
The influx of billions of dollars into private fusion startups in recent years highlights a fundamental shift in investor risk appetite toward long-term clean energy solutions. The active involvement of tech giants like Google and Microsoft as future energy buyers provides critical commercial validation for these capital-intensive projects.
Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) leads the sector, having raised about a third of all private capital invested in fusion companies to date. Its latest funding round closed in July, adding $1 billion and bringing its total capital raised to $3.94 billion, according to FusionX data. CFS is currently constructing its Sparc power plant in Massachusetts, expected to be operational in late 2026 or early 2027, and plans to build a 400-megawatt commercial plant named Arc near Richmond, Virginia, with Google already agreeing to purchase half of its output.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Meanwhile, Helion maintains one of the most aggressive timelines in the industry, planning to generate electricity from its reactor by 2028 with Microsoft as its first customer. Based in Everett, Washington, Helion utilizes a field-reversed configuration reactor and recently secured $465 million in a June funding round, valuing the company at $15.5 billion with a total of $3.2 billion raised.
Another notable player, TAE Technologies, was founded in 1998 as a spin-out from the University of California, Irvine. In December 2025, TAE announced a merger with President Donald Trump’s Trump Media & Technology Group in an all-stock transaction valuing the combined entity at $6 billion, following a total of $1.65 billion previously raised from backers including Google, Chevron, and New Enterprise.
Source: TechCrunch
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