Fusion Startup Raises Funds to Build Desktop-Sized Power Plants

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(Bloomberg) — Fusion startup Avalanche Energy Inc. has raised $29 million to develop reactors small enough to sit on a desk that it hopes can one day power satellites, underwater drones and remote bases. 

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The oversubscribed funding round was led by RA Capital Management and joined by new investor Overlay Capital and existing backers Congruent Ventures and Lowercarbon Capital. 

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Fusion offers the promise of abundant, clean energy, but the technical and engineering obstacles remain daunting, particularly to build reactors at such a small scale. While the funding round is modest, it’s another sign that investors are willing to pour money into the elusive technology. The industry has attracted more than $9.7 billion, according to the Fusion Industry Association’s 2025 report, including $2.6 billion invested in the 12 months ending in June 2025. 

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Companies including Avalanche say they are making steady progress toward developing systems that will tap the energy created by fusing atoms — the same reaction in stars — but none have successfully demonstrated a viable commercial system. Avalanche Chief Executive Officer Robin Langtry said investors’ interest in the technology is driven by surging electricity consumption, especially from data centers. 

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“We have an energy shortage coming in the next few years,” he said. 

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Avalanche is pursuing magneto-electrostatic fusion, an approach that uses powerful magnets and high voltage to confine a cloud of plasma. There are technical barriers that make it difficult to scale the technology to large power plants, though Langtry said the design is well-suited for mass production in factories, a strategy that will eventually bring down costs.

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The startup is initially focused on specific applications that don’t require huge amounts of energy, but are willing to pay a premium for clean power that’s available around the clock and won’t require frequent refueling. That includes remote military bases, disaster relief missions and space exploration.

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Avalanche expects its first product to be ready in the early 2030s. The reactor is designed to deliver up to 100 kilowatts of power — enough for more than 50 homes — from a system about 1 meter (3 feet) wide and 2 meters long. The company also is developing a larger system with roughly 50 megawatts of capacity, aimed at data center operators that could deploy the units in clusters.The past few months have seen a run of fusion deals. That includes the announcement last month that General Fusion Inc. is planning to go public through a merger with a blank-check company, and December’s news that Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., the company behind Truth Social, would merge with fusion developer TAE Technologies Inc.

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