The U.S. Department of Energy announced on Tuesday (August 12) that it has preliminarily selected 11 companies to participate in a pilot program to develop high-tech nuclear test reactors, with the goal of having at least 3 of them operational within a year. This move marks an important step in the Trump administration’s efforts to strengthen U.S. energy security, support artificial intelligence (AI), and promote related technological advancements.
With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers, the demand for electricity is also growing quickly. Developers claim that these small modular reactors, with components that can be mass-produced in factories, will have lower construction costs per megawatt output compared to traditional large reactors.
Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, James Danly, stated in a press release that President Trump’s reactor pilot program is a call to action. The companies are striving to achieve criticality safely by July 4, 2026, and the Department of Energy will fully support their efforts.
The selected companies include: Aalo Atomics, Antares Nuclear, Atomic Alchemy, Deep Fission, Last Energy, Oklo, Natura Resources, Radiant Industries, Terrestrial Energy, and Valar Atomics.
According to the Department of Energy, the diversity of these applications demonstrates the extraordinary innovation and ingenuity of U.S. reactor developers. Each company will be responsible for all costs related to the design, manufacturing, construction, operation, and decommissioning of the test reactors.
This initiative was launched following an executive order issued by President Trump in May, aiming to expedite the nuclear reactor licensing process, reform the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and allow the Department of Energy to authorize test reactors without NRC approval.
Small modular advanced nuclear reactors have been discussed in the U.S. for many years, but currently, only China and Russia have operational ones.
President Trump is committed to rebuilding America’s global leadership in the field of nuclear energy, ensuring a reliable, diverse, and affordable energy supply to promote prosperity and technological advancements in the U.S.
With the rapid growth of AI and cloud computing, the demand for electricity in the U.S. is climbing at an unprecedented rate, prompting developers to seek more reliable energy solutions.
Austin Gae, a researcher at The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Energy, Climate, and Environment, pointed out in a commentary that wind farms operate at full capacity only about a third of the time, dropping to 26% in the summer, while nuclear, natural gas, and coal power plants operate at full capacity 93%, 60%, and 42% of the time, respectively.
This indicates that nuclear power has an advantage in providing stable power for AI infrastructure that requires long-term uninterrupted operation.
In May, President Trump issued four executive orders related to nuclear energy, for the first time designating AI data centers as “critical defense facilities” and directing the Department of Energy to construct and operate advanced reactors supporting AI or other critical infrastructure by October 2027.
These orders also stipulate that the total installed nuclear capacity in the U.S. must increase from about 100 GW to 400 GW by 2050, including the construction of 10 large reactors by 2030.
In addition to stability, supply chain security is also a critical consideration for the Trump administration’s promotion of nuclear energy. An International Energy Agency (IEA) report in May highlighted the increasing concentration of global key mineral sources in a few countries, notably in China.
Among the 20 strategic minerals studied by the IEA, China ranks first in refining capacity for 19, with an average market share of about 75%, and has imposed export restrictions on various key products. The IEA warns that this concentration makes supply chains highly vulnerable to trade disruptions.
The development of wind and solar energy relies heavily on key minerals dominated by China. Wind farms require ten times more key minerals than natural gas power plants and 1.6 times more than nuclear power plants.
In the solar energy sector, China also dominates global supply of over 80% of key components for solar panels, including polysilicon, glass, and solar cells, posing a structural challenge to the U.S. in promoting green energy supply.
In comparison, the primary raw material for nuclear energy is uranium, with the U.S. having been the world’s largest uranium producer in the 20th century. While currently dependent on imports, President Trump’s critical minerals executive order signed in March has prioritized copper and uranium, accelerating domestic supply.
Furthermore, the nuclear energy executive order requires the Department of Energy to establish a complete domestic nuclear fuel supply chain, including increasing mining, enrichment, conversion, and reprocessing capabilities, releasing at least 20 metric tons of high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) into the fuel reserve.
These measures will reduce U.S. reliance on foreign supplies and provide long-term energy security.
Compared to green energy, nuclear energy is also more advantageous in terms of land use and copper demand. To produce 1 GW of electricity, the land area required by wind farms is about 100 times that of nuclear power.
Additionally, wind turbines and their wiring systems require a large amount of copper for power transmission, with copper demand per unit of installed capacity higher than that of nuclear and natural gas power plants.
The IEA report predicts that by 2030, copper production for electric wires and grids will be insufficient to meet demand, with an expected shortfall of 30%. Against the backdrop of rapid growth in AI infrastructure and data centers, these discrepancies directly impact the reliability and economic viability of energy supply.