Helion, a prominent fusion start-up that has piqued both praise and skepticism for its unconventional approach towards fusion power, announced on Tuesday its latest financial achievement, a hefty $425 million Series F funding round. This lucrative investment hike has raised the company’s valuation to $5.245 billion and further consolidated Helion’s position in the fusion industry.
Last month, Helion initiated testing on its newest prototype, Polaris. Located in a significant 27,000 square-foot building in Everett, Washington, Polaris is the company’s seventh prototype and is projected to be the maiden fusion reactor to generate electricity. A deadline of 2028 has been set for Helion to provide Microsoft with electricity, clearly demonstrating the company’s bold ambitions.
“This is about building a fusion power plant that can deliver electricity to the grid. This is not a science experiment,” said CEO David Kirtley in an interview with TechCrunch. The funding will be allocated to developing in-house manufacturing capabilities, one of them being the faster production of capacitors, an essential component for Helion’s fusion power technology.
Helion’s fusion reactor is based on an unconventional approach called a field-reversed configuration reactor. This mechanism involves generating a burst of magnetic force that is then converted into electricity. This could potentially result in a more efficient system that delivers more electricity than it needs to power the reactor.
Despite the challenges and criticism surrounding Helion’s novel approach to fusion power, the sizeable influx of funds from this investment round suggests strong confidence in Helion’s plans. Investors include the likes of Lightspeed Venture Partners, Sam Altman, and the SoftBank Vision 2 Fund, reiterating the high expectations around Helion’s fusion power plant goal.
Original source: Read the full article on TechCrunch
