Taiwan Restarts New Solutions for Nuclear Energy? AI Sparks a Nuclear Energy Wave: Tech Giants Rush into Next-Generation Nuclear Fission Energy

The demand for electricity in the United States has finally been ignited by the explosive development of artificial intelligence after years of nearly zero growth stagnation. In order to support the enormous demand for 24/7, highly stable computing power from data centers, tech giants are accelerating their search for reliable and clean power sources. One of the answers: nuclear fission energy. With the rise of next-generation small modular reactor (SMR) technology, the nuclear energy industry is experiencing a long-awaited revival. Companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft are signing power supply protocols with nuclear startups and even directly investing in them, competing for the advantage in this wave of energy revolution.

Why is the tech industry in love with nuclear fission?

Nuclear fission, unlike nuclear fusion which is still in the experimental stage, is a currently feasible and deployed form of nuclear energy. For data centers that require stable operation, the intermittency and instability of traditional energy sources are inadequate, whereas nuclear fission can provide 24-hour uninterrupted power supply, making it the ideal partner for AI computing "perpetual motion machine."

In addition to stable power supply, technology companies are also looking at the potential of small modular reactors. These next-generation nuclear facilities are designed through modularization and mass production, making them not only safer and more flexible, but also expected to significantly reduce construction costs.

The Small and Mighty Future: The Rise of Small Modular Reactors (SMR)

The design of traditional nuclear power plants mostly revolves around the construction of large and expensive 1GW (1 billion watts) reactors, which are daunting in terms of cost and construction time. In contrast, small modular reactors, although lower in power, can be assembled flexibly like Lego blocks, allowing for scale expansion based on demand, and improving overall deployment speed and safety.

Although the United States currently does not have any officially operational SMR power plants, this has not dampened the enthusiasm of tech giants for investment. Here are a few nuclear fission startups that are attracting significant funding from Silicon Valley.

Kairos Power: A High-Safety Salt-Cooled Reactor Supported by Google

Kairos Power from California has secured a commitment from Google to purchase up to 500 megawatts (MW) of electricity by 2035, with the first reactor expected to go online in 2030. Kairos' reactor uses high boiling point fluoride salts as coolant, allowing it to operate in a low-pressure environment, enhancing safety. Its fuel particle shells are coated with carbon and ceramics, which can withstand high temperatures and suppress meltdown.

This startup also secured a $629 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and received approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in November 2024 to begin construction of two testing reactors (each 35 MW) in Tennessee, with a commercial scale expected to reach 75 MW.

Oklo: A metal-cooled nuclear energy dream backed by OpenAI CEO Altman

Oklo is another startup focused on the SMR field, with notable investors including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Altman not only invested but also took Oklo public through his shell company AltC.

Oklo's reactor uses liquid metal cooling, with a design based on the U.S. Department of Energy, focusing on reducing nuclear waste. Although the first plant application was rejected in 2022, the company still plans to resubmit the application in 2025. Currently, Oklo has reached an agreement with data center company Switch, expecting to supply up to 12GW of nuclear power by 2044.

Saltfoss: Building Floating Nuclear Power Plants

The Danish startup Saltfoss, originally named Seaborg, has also taken the route of fluoride salt cooling, but its innovation lies in the "floating nuclear power barge": installing 2 to 8 SMRs on vessels for mobile deployment to different areas. The company has raised approximately $60 million in funding, with investors including Bill Gates, Peter Thiel, and Unity co-founder David Helgason, and has signed a construction contract with Samsung Heavy Industries.

TerraPower: The liquid sodium nuclear energy future created by Bill Gates

Founded by Bill Gates, TerraPower is constructing the first Natrium nuclear power plant in Wyoming, USA. The reactor combines liquid sodium cooling with molten salt storage, with a power output of 345 MW, positioned between large-scale nuclear and SMR.

The highlight of Natrium is its ability to store excess thermal energy when electricity demand is low, and convert it back into electricity when demand increases, allowing nuclear energy to respond more flexibly to intermittent demand. Major investors include Cascade Investment, Khosla Ventures, and steel giant ArcelorMittal.

X-Energy: The air-cooled reactor heavily invested by Amazon

X-Energy is currently one of the largest SMR companies by financing scale, having secured $700 million in a C-1 funding round led by the Amazon Climate Pledge Fund in 2024. The company plans to build a total of 300MW of power generation capacity in the Pacific Northwest and Virginia.

The Xe-100 reactor from X-Energy features a unique design, utilizing high-temperature gas cooling technology, which facilitates heat exchange through helium flowing among 200,000 fuel "marbles," providing an output of 80MW. Although this technology is not commonly seen in Europe and America, X-Energy is working hard to prove its future potential.

The Symbiotic Future of AI and Nuclear Energy

As the appetite of artificial intelligence for energy grows, traditional power grids will struggle to meet their demands solely with renewable energy. The new generation of nuclear fission technology, especially SMR, is becoming a lifeline in the eyes of Silicon Valley. Although there are still regulatory and technical challenges to overcome, tech giants are betting on the future and have already incorporated nuclear energy into their AI infrastructure blueprint.

This article discusses Taiwan's new approach to restarting nuclear power? AI sparks a nuclear energy whirlwind: Tech giants rush into the new generation of nuclear fission energy, first appearing in Chain News ABMedia.