While nuclear fusion has been considered an impossible target for decades, many experts now believe the holy grail is in sight. “It’s certainly not three years away, probably not 10 years away, but it could happen around 2050,” France’s National Center for Scientific Research fusion expert and plasma physicist Yannick Marandet tells Energy Intelligence. Artificial intelligence is likely to accelerate that quest, he adds. Useful AI applications on this front include digital simulation, materials design, engineering and systems control. Meanwhile, the number of fusion initiatives has expanded and they are using a wider array of techniques, while a growing list of companies are becoming investors.
