As AI workloads push electricity demand higher, one startup is preparing a nuclear solution designed to respond when computing needs suddenly surge.
TerraPower, the American startup founded by Bill Gates, is preparing to use its nuclear technology to supply electricity to artificial intelligence data centers. The company expects to announce its first such project within a year, with construction potentially beginning in 2027.
TerraPower has not yet disclosed the name of the customer. In January, Meta agreed to purchase eight of the company’s Natrium power plants. The future facility will be TerraPower’s second plant: the first is already under construction in Wyoming.
Nuclear Energy for AI Data Centers
The rapid growth in the number of AI data centers is increasing the need for reliable power supplies. Such facilities can sharply change their level of consumption: demand rises during the training of large artificial intelligence models or when processing large volumes of user requests.
TerraPower sees its main advantage not only in its reactor, but also in its thermal energy storage system. It makes it possible to keep the nuclear plant operating steadily while responding more flexibly to fluctuations in demand from data centers.
How Natrium Technology Works
Traditional nuclear power plants are most cost-effective when operated at maximum capacity. In the United States, their capacity factor is 92.5%. At the same time, conventional reactors cannot instantly change their output: according to the National Laboratory of the Rockies, their ramp rate reaches about 5% of nominal capacity per minute.
Small modular reactors, which are being developed by many technology companies, can be faster – approximately up to 10% of nominal capacity per minute. However, reducing nuclear power output is economically disadvantageous, since building such facilities requires major investment and the first production reactors will be expensive.
TerraPower’s 345-megawatt reactor is cooled by molten salt. When electricity demand declines, the nuclear reaction does not slow down: excess heat is directed into a large tank of molten sodium.
During a sharp rise in consumption, the stored heat is used to produce additional steam that drives the turbines. This allows the system to increase electricity output without needing to rapidly change the operating mode of the reactor itself.
Why Thermal Storage Could Become TerraPower’s Advantage
Combining a nuclear reactor with thermal storage enables TerraPower to offer AI data center operators both stable carbon-free generation and flexible responses to changes in demand. This feature of Natrium technology could strengthen the company’s position in the competition for major contracts in the artificial intelligence infrastructure sector.