ANS - American Nuclear Society
04/10/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 04/10/2026 09:59
Helion outsources research by funding external partners
Helion has launched a program formalizing its process of funding projects with external research partners. On Tuesday, the fusion company announced it would fund 25 proposals ranging from $50,000 to $500,000, totaling $4 million. The recipients include private companies, universities, and national laboratories.
Michael Hua, Helion's senior director of radiation safety and nuclear science, said the recipients will have some access to the Helion team and that the company will be partnering with them to "ensure relevance and impact on the projects more critical to scaling commercial fusion programs," but that program partners are expected to be highly autonomous.
"In parallel, the Helion team will receive data and results from the projects throughout the project completion process," he said. Hua said the company expects to apply the learnings from this program, called HERCULES (for Helion External Research Collaboration for Universities, Labs, and Enterprise Scientists), to systems that enable commercial-scale deployment.
"Prior to the official launch of the HERCULES program, Helion has been working with universities and national labs on bespoke projects. This effort brings all those efforts into one core program, facilitated by Helion," said Hua.
The company has committed $17 million to the program through 2028. New projects enter the program at phase one, which offers $10,000 to $100,000 over six to eight months. Proposals building on prior collaborations with Helion are eligible for phase two, which offers $100,000 to $500,000 over 12 to 24 months. Helion will also be offering phase three proposals of $1,000,000 to $2,000,000, but all projects in this round of funding are in phase one or two.
Hua said the company considered "possible impact on commercial fusion technologies, the technical credibility/risk of the proposed project, and value for the time and dollar investment" when selecting projects.
Helion will open the next phase of applications in mid-2026.
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