Owen
Boyd.

Valar develops high-temperature gas-cooled reactors for industrial power, hydrogen production, and data centers. Its Ward 250 demonstration reactor first achieved criticality in June 2026 in Utah. The bigger plan is to manufacture reactors at scale and cluster them at dedicated nuclear “gigasites.”

Antares is developing factory-built nuclear microreactors for remote operations, defense installations, and other locations that need power independent of the grid. Its Mark-0 program reached a reactor-testing milestone at Idaho National Laboratory in June 2026, with electricity-generating systems planned as a subsequent step.

Founded in 2023, Aalo is building factory-manufactured nuclear plants, with data centers among its target customers. Its Aalo-X test reactor, constructed beside Idaho National Laboratory, achieved initial criticality in July 2026. The core idea is to make nuclear deployment repeatable rather than treating every project as a custom build.

Bluebird operates an underground data center within Springfield Underground, a former limestone mine in Springfield, Missouri. The facility sits roughly 85 feet below ground and uses its location for physical security and infrastructure resilience. I toured the site in Missouri; it’s an interesting example of repurposing existing infrastructure for modern computing needs.

Idaho National Laboratory is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory and a major center for nuclear research, testing, and demonstration. Its work spans reactor technology, fuels, energy systems, and national security. Companies including Aalo, Antares, Deployable Energy, Oklo, and X-energy have worked with INL on different nuclear programs.

Deployable Energy is developing Unity, a factory-built, transportable nuclear “battery” designed to produce about 1 megawatt of electricity. It targets remote industry, defense, and other sites where reliable power is hard to deliver. Its demonstration reactor reached criticality at Idaho National Laboratory in June 2026.

Founded in 2023 by Liz and Rich Muller, Deep Fission is developing small pressurized-water reactors installed in boreholes about a mile underground. The approach combines conventional reactor technology with techniques from geothermal energy and drilling. Its initial pilot project is being developed in Parsons, Kansas.

Founded in 2023, Skild AI is developing a general-purpose AI model for robotics rather than software tied to a single robot or task. Its “Skild Brain” is designed to work across different machines and physical environments. The company announced a $300 million Series A in 2024 and has since expanded into commercial deployments.

Modal is a cloud computing platform built for AI developers. It lets teams run GPU and CPU workloads—including model inference, fine-tuning, and batch processing—without managing the underlying servers. Its pay-for-usage infrastructure is aimed at getting applications from prototype to production with less setup.

Founded in 2013, Oklo develops compact fast-fission power plants under its Aurora product line. It is also working on fuel recycling and isotope production. Based in Santa Clara, the company is pursuing a model of supplying power directly to customers, with Idaho among its project locations.

Founded in 2009, X-energy is developing the Xe-100, an 80-megawatt-class high-temperature gas-cooled reactor, alongside its TRISO-X fuel. Its technology targets utility and industrial power markets. The company has also worked with Idaho National Laboratory on irradiation testing for its nuclear fuel.