Tech company Google made an investment into a nuclear fusion company to develop clean energy.

Google announced it was one of the investors in TAE Technologies and that engineers from Google worked at the TAE facility. Google Research began its collaboration with TAE in 2015, applying AI to drive significant improvements in plasma temperature and lifetime, according to a statement.

Based partially on insights gained from the joint plasma reconstruction work, in 2023 TAE realized the company could simplify their fusion machine. The company then rebuilt their machine and demonstrated that it functioned properly.

TAE Technologies announced that it has raised over $150 million in its latest funding round, exceeding the company’s initial target for the round. Chevron, Google and NEA participated in the round, among other new and existing investors. The company has over $1.3 billion in equity capital that was raised since its inception to commercialize fusion.

TAE’s fusion systems can provide on-demand, carbon-free, utility-scale power that is inherently safe. With no risk of meltdown or long-lived radioactive waste, a TAE fusion power plant can be safely placed wherever power is needed, such as near highly populated areas, remote locations or large-scale data centers.