German startup Proxima Fusion, founded in 2023, has raised €200 million to develop a Stellarator Model Coil (SMC) by 2027. This SMC is intended as the foundational step toward constructing a functional fusion power plant. This significant investment highlights a growing trend in venture capital and larger tech companies backing nuclear technologies, particularly fusion, as a solution for clean and abundant energy.
Investors in Proxima Fusion include SoftBank and OpenAI's Sam Altman, with Redalpine, a European venture capital firm, acting as a seed investor. Proxima Fusion's CEO expressed an aim to have a test reactor operational by 2031, with commercial electricity production targeted for later in the 2030s. The test reactor alone is projected to cost €1 billion ($1.1 billion).
The broader nuclear energy sector is experiencing a renaissance due to global targets for net-zero carbon emissions and increasing power demands from data centers. Morgan Stanley predicts global nuclear capacity will more than double by 2050, with investments in the nuclear value chain reaching $2.2 trillion. While Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) are attracting considerable investment, fusion is particularly appealing to investors like Sebastian Becker of Redalpine due to its potential for clean, abundant energy without the radioactive waste or meltdown risks associated with fission.
Notably, China has invested an estimated $6.5 billion in commercially viable fusion projects since 2023, indicating a global race for dominance in this technology. Other companies like Helion Energy secured $425 million, and TerraPower, founded by Bill Gates, has raised $1.7 billion for SMRs. The total private investment in fusion research, excluding public funds, reached nearly €13 billion ($14.8 billion) by the end of 2025, with a 30% increase since June 2025 alone.
Proxima Fusion's Series A financing round, amounting to €130 million ($150 million), brought its total funding to over €185 million in private and public capital. This round was co-led by Cherry Ventures and Balderton Capital, with additional contributions from UVC Partners, DeepTech & Climate Fonds, Elaia Partners, Visionaries Tomorrow, and Redalpine. This makes it the largest private fusion investment in Europe to date, reinforcing the company's mission to pioneer commercial fusion energy and advance European HTS innovation.
