A fusion energy company that counts CEOs like Eric Schmidt and Bill Gates among its backers has come out of the blue, announcing $900 million in promised funding. Pacific Fusion, whose technology is riding on the latest advances in two US laboratories, is the latest US group to join the growing list of companies working on fusion technology.
The company, which is based in Fremont, California, in an initial letter published on Oct. 25 wrote that “Fusion has great potential,” and said that “global energy demand is increasing … as a result of climate change.”
Pacific Fusion said it is “pursuing a magnetic-to-inertial fusion process – that is, using high-speed, high-speed energy to compress and heat small vessels of deuterium-tritium fuel, driving the fuel into fusion.”
Eric Lander, known for his work on the Human Genome Project, and who was also a science advisor in the Biden administration, leads Pacific Fusion, which was organized last year. General Catalyst, a Massachusetts-based venture capital firm, led Pacific Fusion’s Series A funding round. Other investors include Schmidt, a former Google executive; Founder of Microsoft Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures; Lowercarbon Capital, a Jackson, Wyoming group that invests in companies working on carbon reduction; and John Doerr, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist and former Monsanto engineer who founded Silicon Compilers and sits on the boards of Google and Amazon.
General Catalyst said on its website that its funding comes from Pacific Fusion’s “unique team”, as well as “the most amazing magnetic fusion technology”.
Pacific Fusion in a letter announcing the investment said, “We launched Pacific Fusion in the summer of 2023 with a clear goal: to power the world with abundant, affordable, clean energy.” The company said its technology builds on recent advances at Sandia and Lawrence Livermore national labs. “In 2022, breakthroughs in inertial fusion demonstrated the conditions required for ignition with high gain. The National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) used lasers to achieve ignition and the highest laboratory performance (Pτ) than ever before, and the Z Machine at Sandia National Laboratories used fast-rising pulses to drive the MagLIF concept to achieve the strongest magnetic coupling Pτ, second only to laser-driven concepts. This was the culmination of more than half a year of US government support and solid progress and research experts for this study.”
The company said, “We are developing a high-speed pulser, similar to Sandia’s proven Z-Pulser. Our pulser is more efficient and compact thanks to advances in high-speed generator technology, especially the recently demonstrated Marx (IMG) generator. In 2022, LLNL demonstrated for the first time this advanced IMG technology, opening up an efficient and cost-effective way to meet mixed conditions.
“We have a low-cost and globally visible system. Our system is made of very small, mass-produced particles called bricks. [two capacitors and a switch]which are assembled into modules that fit into shipping containers. Our mixing room is compact and round, which enables cost-effective maintenance. Our system is made from the most widely available materials. And, our oil is much cheaper than fossil fuel, even counting the products used as fuel. “
Series A funding is a structured process. A total of $900 million has been issued, but “opened only when the company meets the requirements previously defined,” said General Catalyst.
Pacific Fusion wrote that the company’s son is “Net Gain. We are using this to create a high-speed pulsed magnetic fusion drive to achieve ‘space gain’. [more fusion energy output than all stored energy input]. In parallel, we have begun to develop the tools and systems necessary for low-cost integrated trading systems. We have a clear path to achieving these goals, and we are on track to complete the first major milestones.”
–Darrell Proctor is the editor-in-chief of POWER (@MPOWERmagazine).
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