TAE Technologies and UKAEA partner to commercialise fusion tech

TAE Technologies, a leading US private fusion energy firm with over 25 years at the forefront of scientific innovation, today announces a bilateral and reciprocal investment commitment with the United Kingdom's national fusion laboratory, the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) to commercialise TAE's proprietary particle accelerator technology for the global market.

At the centre of this landmark partnership is the new joint venture TAE Beam UK – a collaborative entity that will harness the partners' collective scientific leadership, commercialisation experience and market innovation to develop this highly versatile advanced particle accelerator technology, beginning with neutral beams for fusion. The venture aims to design, develop, and ultimately manufacture and service neutral beams for a wide range of fusion approaches, as well as adapt the accelerator technology for state-of-the-art cancer therapeutics, and other applications like food safety and homeland security.

TAE, with more than two decades of patented intellectual property and particle accelerator R&D, is an industry leader in neutral beams, which are critical for commercial fusion. For a fusion machine to produce electricity, it must keep plasma steadily confined at fusion-relevant conditions. On TAE's current fusion machine, eight powerful neutral beams are placed at precise angles to meet those requirements. Inside each neutral beam canister, protons are accelerated and then combined with electrons to create a stream of neutral, high-energy hydrogen atoms (a.k.a., the ‘neutral beam'). Because the particles have no charge, they can bypass the fusion reactor's magnetic field to provide heating, current drive and plasma stability. TAE is the first to use neutral beams for both FRC plasma formation and high-quality plasma sustainment – resulting in a streamlined design that is smaller, more efficient and more cost-effective.

The same accelerator technology that produced TAE's sophisticated neutral beam system for fusion has also been adapted for TAE's medtech subsidiary, TAE Life Sciences, to provide a non-invasive, targeted treatment for complex and often inoperable cancers.

As the UK's national fusion laboratory, UKAEA has led the way in fusion energy research for over 40 years, operating the world-record breaking Joint European Torus (JET). Through decades of running and maintaining JET's neutral beam system, it has developed world-class facilities and deep technical expertise in this critical technology that the new joint venture will leverage.

New global hub for fusion tech 

TAE Beam UK will operate out of UKAEA's Culham Campus, in Oxfordshire, UK, establishing the UK as a global hub for this vital fusion technology while boosting the economy with high-skilled job creation.

TAE already has additional facilities in the UK; its power management subsidiary, TAE Power Solutions, is based in the West Midlands – and TAE Beam UK will leverage TAE's considerable and growing role within the UK fusion landscape and advanced energy ecosystem, becoming an anchor in the world's fusion supply chain.

TAE Beam UK also expands the US-UK partnership to deliver clean, abundant fusion energy – especially given fusion's unparalleled potential for fuelling power generation for artificial intelligence development in both countries.

Michl Binderbauer, CEO, TAE Technologies, said:

The UK has long been at the forefront of fusion innovation, and we're proud to deepen our partnership with UKAEA. The UK's world-class scientific talent and unwavering commitment to commercialising fusion energy make the country an ideal partner as we scale neutral beam technology from lab to market. Together, we're building critical infrastructure for the fusion supply chain and ensuring that the US-UK partnership can together remain central to the fusion economy of the future.

Tim Bestwick, CEO, UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), said:

UKAEA is very much looking forward to working in partnership with TAE Technologies on developing neutral beams and commercialising this exciting technology, bringing jobs and growth to the UK. They have shown the way as a global leader in applying fusion technologies to other markets, and TAE Beam UK will join TAE Life Sciences and TAE Power Solutions as great examples of this innovation in action.

UKAEA plans to make an equity investment of £5.6 million in this new venture, including engaging some of the world's best scientists to work on this critical fusion technology and leverage expertise built up over decades of operating JET. TAE Beam UK is backstopped by TAE's own nine-figure investment in the technology due to TAE's own usage requirements over the next several years. The project aims to deliver the first short-pulse beams within 18-24 months of the start of work. The foregoing remains subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Support from Policy Leaders

Lord Vallance, Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear:

Britain is a world-leader in the fusion industry and today's partnership between the UKAEA and TAE brings us one step closer to reaching its promise of limitless clean energy. This builds up our Technology Prosperity Deal with the US, which includes closer working on fusion, as we continue to support the industry by backing it with over £2.5 billion, supporting thousands of jobs across the country, from Nottinghamshire to Oxfordshire and South Yorkshire.

Secretary Peter Kyle, Sec. State for Business & Trade, UK Government:

This landmark partnership shows our Technology Prosperity Deal with the US in action and demonstrates our shared ambition to lead the global race for clean, secure fusion energy. By anchoring TAE Beam UK at Culham, we're not only investing in cutting-edge new technology but also reinforcing the UK's position at the heart of the international fusion supply chain – delivering on our modern Industrial Strategy by creating high-skilled jobs and advancing scientific excellence.

Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis of California:

This partnership between TAE Technologies and the United Kingdom's Atomic Energy Authority is a powerful example of what global collaboration can achieve. We're grateful to forward-looking partners like the UK government for investing in this critically important technology, one that's made right here in Southern California and advancing a cleaner, more sustainable future for us all.

Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis visited TAE Technologies' headquarters in January 2024.

Rep. Young Kim (CA-40):

Energy security is national security, and we need every tool at our disposal to power our energy future. America must lead in critical technologies to meet the demands of AI and keep costs down for hardworking families. I applaud TAE and the UK government for investing in innovation that strengthens our economy, deepens our partnerships, and reinforces our global leadership.

Rep. Don Beyer, Congressional Fusion Energy Caucus Co-Chair:

I have seen firsthand how TAE is making progress toward clean fusion energy and realising the benefits today of the technological innovations derived from fusion research and development. This is an industry that is moving from lab to market, and I am proud that on a bipartisan basis the US Congress has reaffirmed not only that trajectory but the critical importance of fusion for our energy and national security. TAE and UKAEA's partnership promises to make advancements in neutral beam science and commercialisation, forming a critical link of the fusion supply chain – and bringing us closer to a future with carbon-free, abundant fusion energy on our grids.