Fusion is no longer science fiction, but affordable fusion might be
Investments in fusion are sensible only if we treat it as what it currently is: development research, not a 2040 procurement decision.
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Commonwealth Fusion Systems, backed by Nvidia, Bill Gates and Temasek, recently raised another US$1 billion, to bring its total funding to US$4 billion.
PHOTO: COMMONWEALTH FUSION SYSTEMS
Tang Lingxi
Fusion energy is moving from the whiteboards of physicists to commercial road maps. Investors and governments, including Singapore’s, are placing serious bets. The US hosts more than half of the world’s fusion start-ups with more than US$8 billion (S$10 billion) in funding, while China is committing an estimated US$1.5 billion annually in public funding, nearly twice the US federal fusion budget.
Commonwealth Fusion Systems, backed by Nvidia, Bill Gates and Temasek, recently raised another US$1 billion, to bring its total funding to US$4 billion. Microsoft and Google have each signed contracts to purchase fusion-generated electricity.
