General Fusion Inc. is a clean-energy technology company specializing in the development of commercial nuclear fusion power. Headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, the company was founded in 2002 by physicist Dr. Michel Laberge. General Fusion is notable for pioneering a proprietary approach to fusion energy known as Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF). The company's business model is centered on the research, development, and eventual licensing or deployment of utility-scale fusion power plants to provide clean, baseload electricity to the global power grid. Following a landmark business combination in mid-2026, General Fusion transitioned to a publicly traded entity listed on the Nasdaq exchange.
Core Technology: Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF)
General Fusion’s operational mandate is to bypass the historical constraints of traditional fusion approaches—namely Magnetically Confined Fusion (MCF), which utilizes massive superconducting magnets like tokamaks, and Inertial Confined Fusion (ICF), which requires high-powered, expensive laser arrays.
The company's MTF architecture is a hybrid design that operates through a distinct multi-stage mechanical process:
1. Plasma Injection
The process begins with a specialized plasma injector that forces a large electric current through a low-density hydrogen isotope gas (deuterium and tritium) in the presence of a static magnetic field. This ionizes the gas into a highly conductive plasma, forming a self-contained, stable magnetic structure known as a Compact Torus (CT).
2. Liquid Metal Cavity Setup
The injection takes place inside a spherical stainless steel compression vessel. Inside this vessel, a liquid metal alloy—specifically containing liquid lithium—is introduced via a spinning, porous internal structure. The centrifugal force from this rotation creates a smooth, hollow vortex or cavity in the center of the liquid metal.
3. Mechanical Compression
Surrounding the exterior of the spherical vessel is a coordinated matrix of high-velocity, synchronized pneumatic pistons. Once the Compact Torus plasma is injected into the central liquid metal cavity, these pistons strike simultaneously. This creates a mechanical shockwave that forces the liquid metal liner to collapse rapidly inward.
4. Fusion and Heat Capture
The collapsing liquid metal cavity drastically reduces the volume of the plasma, compressing it to ultra-high densities and heating it to solar-core temperatures exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius. At this inflection point, the hydrogen isotopes fuse into helium, releasing high-energy neutrons.
The surrounding liquid metal liner plays a triple role in this system:
* Shielding: It absorbs the destructive neutron flux, protecting the outer steel structure of the reactor from radiation degradation.
* Fuel Breeding: The neutron interactions with the liquid lithium breed tritium, which is extracted and recycled back into the system as ongoing fuel.
* Heat Exchange: The liquid metal captures the thermal energy from the fusion reaction and is pumped to a secondary heat exchanger to drive conventional steam turbines for electricity generation.
Current Operations & The LM26 Program
General Fusion does not sell commercial off-the-shelf products to retail consumers. Instead, its primary operations are focused on complex hardware engineering, plasma physics R&D, and structural scale-up prototyping. The company’s defining operational asset is its flagship demonstration program located at its Canadian headquarters:
The Lawson Machine 26 (LM26)
Constructed over a 16-month period, the LM26 is General Fusion's premier large-scale operational prototype. It is engineered at a 50% commercial-scale diameter. Rather than a full power-generating facility, the LM26 serves as a technological testbed designed to validate the physics of MTF under rigorous, repeatable conditions.
The progression milestones of the LM26 program include:
* First Plasma: Successfully achieved in early 2025, proving the integrity of the injector systems.
* Plasma Compression: First structural mechanical compression runs executed in mid-2025.
* Compressional Heating: Reaching plasma core heating thresholds approaching 1 kiloelectronvolt (keV), with an operational target of scaling to 10 keV (100 million degrees Celsius).
* Scientific Breakeven: The end-goal of the LM26 testing regime is achieving the Lawson Criterion—the specific product of plasma density, temperature, and confinement time required to demonstrate net-energy capability within the plasma.
Products, Services, and Commercialization Pipeline
As an advanced-stage development company, General Fusion's commercial output is currently structured around technology pipelines, collaborative engineering services, and long-term utility deployment frameworks rather than immediate transactional consumer goods.
1. MTF Commercial Power Plant Design
The ultimate commercial product offered by General Fusion is a standardized, utility-scale power plant design. These conceptual plants are architected to deliver approximately 115 megawatts (MW) of clean electricity to the local power grid per module. The architecture emphasizes the use of industrial manufacturing supply chains and conventional materials, avoiding the exotic, expensive materials required by competing magnetic fusion designs.
2. Nuclear Engineering & Regulatory Collaborations
Through partnerships with entities such as Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL), General Fusion offers specialized co-development services. This involves working with national laboratory infrastructures to advance:
* Tritium extraction systems for managing closed-loop fuel lifecycles.
* Regulatory compliance and safety framework data to clear pathways for civilian fusion-grid integration.
* Reactor component durability modeling under persistent neutron bombardment.
3. IP Licensing and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)
The long-term commercialization roadmap transitions General Fusion from an R&D entity to an intellectual property (IP) licensor and joint-venture power provider. The company plans to deploy its technology under two primary B2B models:
* Technology Licensing: Providing proprietary MTF reactor blueprints, injector components, and compression synchronization software to global industrial engineering firms and power plant operators.
* Independent Power Production: Partnering with regional utilities via public-private partnerships to build, own, and operate fusion facilities, generating revenue by selling zero-carbon electricity directly to the grid through long-term PPAs.
