Powering the Future: Fusion Companies at a Glance

With data centers powering artificial intelligence (AI), energy demands are accelerating, and rapidly advancing fusion technology is poised to help meet that need.

The International Energy Agency World Outlook in 2022 forecasted that global energy demand would at least double by 2050. With the rise of AI, expected power demands have only increased since that report was released. That’s where fusion comes in. It has the potential to address some of these needs within 10 years, enhancing U.S. energy security and with a new green technology that’s in its infancy.

Here are some examples of fusion-related companies held in Cupola fund venture portfolios managed by AMG:

Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), founded in 2018 with technology spun out of MIT, is developing a grid-scale commercial fusion power plant in a collaboration with Dominion Energy in Virginia. CFS is hoping to have a small-scale test system completed by 2027 with plans for the grid-scale facility to deliver up to 400 megawatts of power by the early 2030s. CFS announced a strategic partnership with Google in June 2025 that includes an agreement to purchase 200 megawatts.

Acceleron Fusion Inc. (Acceleron), founded in 2023, is applying muon-catalyzed technology, originally studied in the 1950s. The company is addressing the engineering challenges associated with bringing fusion power to the grid. Research has demonstrated that muons (subatomic particles similar to electrons but much heavier) can catalyze fusion reactions at a lower temperature. Recent advances have allowed Acceleron to advance development of a full-scale prototype with plans to begin construction of a pilot plant.

Thea Energy Inc. (Thea), founded in 2022, is a spin-out of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and Princeton University. Thea is advancing stellarator technology originally conceived of at Princeton in 1951. Using advanced computer models, Thea is optimizing the design of the stellarator and creating its first integrated fusion system, Eos.

Xcimer Energy Inc. (Xcimer), founded in 2022, enhances established laser technology called Long Pulse Kinetics. Leveraging awards from the Department of Energy (DOE), Xcimer has laid out a three-phase plan toward its initial fusion energy prototype by 2035.

Zap Energy Inc. (Zap), founded in 2017, is developing modular, scalable and cost-effective fusion power systems that can be used to power local communities or dropped in to power finite facilities. The company has been generating verified fusion plasmas, critical to fusion power, continuously since 2018. The DOE recently awarded Zap access to the world’s fastest supercomputers to advance its fusion plasma models.

Avalanche Energy Designs Inc. (Avalanche), founded in 2018, is developing small, modular fusion systems, including the Orbitron, a compact desktop-sized machine. In 2022, the U.S. government awarded Avalanche a contract to demonstrate the next generation of nuclear propulsion and power generation for spacecraft. In 2024, Avalanche announced that it achieved a record of 200 kilovolts in its micro-fusion reactor.