Type One Energy

Type One Energy is a fusion power systems developer that uses advanced additive manufacturing tech and high-field superconducting magnets. The company is developing the stellarator machine STARBLAZER, which uses deuterium and lithium as fuel for its fusion process. The lithium is used to breed tritium and is fused with deuterium creating helium and a neutron by using shaped magnetics to confine hot charged gas along a twisted circular path. According to the company, the stellarator has the potential to reach an infinite fusion energy gain factor (Q), making it more economically viable than other fusion generators.

In February 2024, Type One reported plans to begin construction of Infinity One, its stellarator fusion prototype machine at the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) Bull Run Fossil Plant in Clinton, Tennessee. Construction is set to begin in 2025. In parallel, it also plans to develop a stellarator risk reduction platform (RRP) over the coming years which will be used as a testbed to validate the viability of several FPP designs.

Key customers and partnerships

Backed by a grant from the US Department of Energy ARPA-E BETHE fusion program, Type One collaborated with MIT Plasma Fusion Science Center, Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in Germany, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison to develop a demonstration-scale high-temperature superconducting (HTS) stellarator magnet with 3D-printed metal assemblies to support the RRP magnet development. The company also partnered with Oak Ridge Ridge National Laboratory, with the support of a DOE INFUSE grant, to qualify materials developed for fusion applications to be used in additive manufacturing.

Funding and financials

In May 2023, Type One raised USD 29 million in a funding round co-led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, TDK Ventures, and Doral Energy Tech Ventures. The company intended to use the funds to launch its FusionDirect program to commercialize its stellarator fusion technology without needing a large proof-of-concept prototype.

Prior to this, in March 2023, the company raised USD 29 million in an oversubscribed seed funding round co-led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, TDK Ventures, and Doral Energy Tech Ventures with participation from Darco, the Grantham Foundation, MILFAM, Orbia Ventures, Shorewind Capital, TRIREC, VAHOCA, and others. The funding was to be funneled toward its FusionDirect program.

In May 2023, Focused Energy was one of eight companies to receive a total of USD 46 million from the US Department of Energy’s Milestone-based Fusion Development Program to advance designs and research and development for fusion power plants.