Technology · 2026-10-22 · Afternoon briefing
Fusion firm Helion wins $175m for power-doubling chips
Helion, a fusion energy startup, secured $175 million in US federal funding to develop advanced semiconductors for its power plants. Awarded by the Department of Commerce under the CHIPS Act, the grant will fund research into new power electronics designed to halve the current 5-10% electricity loss, effectively doubling a plant's potential output.
The investment will establish a new production line in Washington State—the first in the US for this class of high-voltage semiconductor. The federal grant was accompanied by a new $50 million private investment, bringing Helion's total capital raised to over $3.2 billion. The company is building its first plant, Orion, to supply power to Microsoft by a 2028 deadline.
The new chip technology will arrive too late for Orion. Instead, the efficiency gains are targeted for Helion's subsequent power plants, intended to improve their competitiveness in commercial electricity markets.
Summary written by Cup of News with AI from the sources below. Check the originals for the full story.
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- Fusion startup Helion is developing new semiconductors that could double output of its power plants
- Commonwealth Fusion Systems’ Brandon Sorbom and Helion’s David Kirtley on bringing fusion to the grid at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
- Helion just got the world’s first licences to run a fusion power plant
- Sam Altman’s fusion startup Helion Energy hits 150 million degree plasma temperature—a milestone that could bring first grid power in 2028
- Helion celebrates smoother path to fusion energy site approval
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