New Year 2026: Fusion Updates from Helion and Commonwealth Fusion
Helion Energy (backed by Sam Altman and Thiel) has a short years end blog post:
https://mailchi.mp/helionenergy/2025-at-helion?e=05425b940c
> In 2025, Polaris transitioned fully into operations. Our team is now conducting thermonuclear fusion operations daily, refining test parameters, and using real-time plasma, neutron, and electrical diagnostics to increase the amount of fusion energy we recover from the system. Polaris consistently exceeds both the plasma temperatures and FRC size achieved on Trenta.
> We also received final approval from the Washington State Department of Health to operate with deuterium–tritium (D-T) fuel, marking the first time a private fusion energy company has been licensed to perform D-T fusion.
> One of our biggest milestones of the year was receiving approvals and beginning construction on the world’s first commercial fusion power plant in Malaga, Washington.
What is not said: Achieving net energy from the Polaris test machine. Three years ago they announced that their commercial plant is planned to come online in 2028 and will provide energy for Microsoft.
Rabbit hole link: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35887734
And then Commonwealth Fusion Systems (backed by Google and Bill Gates) released this short video of their first "superstrong magnet" from high-temperature superconductors. The test machine needs 17 other magnets and will be finished this year (hopefully). They want to build a commercial 400 MW plant in Richmond, Virginia, in "early 2030s".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PItOlY6_xE
They raised 4 month ago $860 million from Google, Gates, NVidia, but submissions about CFS generated zero comments/discussion on hn.
https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/28/nvidia-google-and-bill-gates-help-commonwealth-fusion-systems-raise-863m/ Didn’t expect to see my town on HN! We’re about 10 miles from the Helion plant. The tax revenue from it and the Microsoft and Sabey data centers here are currently the subject of a lawsuit the county is bringing against the port.