Google-backed US nuclear fusion firm partners with UK team for neutral beam tech

TAE Technologies, a US private nuclear fusion company backed by Google, has partnered with the UK’s Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) to form a joint venture called TAE Beam UK. This collaboration aims to commercialize proprietary neutral beam particle accelerator technology, which is crucial for nuclear fusion energy production, as well as adapt it for medical applications like cancer therapeutics, food safety, and homeland security. Operating out of UKAEA’s Culham Campus, the venture will receive a $7.4 million equity investment from UKAEA, complemented by significant funding from TAE Technologies. The joint venture plans to deliver its first short-pulse neutral beams within 18 to 24 months, pending regulatory approvals. Neutral beam technology is essential in fusion reactors for heating and stabilizing plasma by injecting high-energy neutral hydrogen atoms that can penetrate magnetic fields. TAE Technologies currently uses eight such beams in its fusion machines, enabling a smaller and more cost-effective reactor design. The technology has also been adapted by TAE’s