Past Events
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Invited Speakers
Ahmed Diallo
Program Director · ARPA-E
Dr. Ahmed Diallo is a Program Director at the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), where he spearheads high-risk, high-reward initiatives to accelerate the commercialization of fusion energy through transformative R&D, overseeing portfolios that bridge innovative diagnostics, materials, and power plant technologies to enable grid-scale electricity from fusion. A Distinguished Research Fellow and Principal Research Physicist at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) since 2009—where he previously headed the Advanced Diagnostics Development Division and served as Deputy Director of the Innovation Network for Fusion Energy (INFUSE) public-private partnership—Diallo has pioneered laser-aided, X-ray, and other cutting-edge diagnostic tools advancing magnetic fusion plasmas, high-energy-density physics, microelectronics, and quantum computing. Born in Burkina Faso and inspired by the quest for abundant clean energy in underserved regions, he earned a PhD in physics from the University of Iowa after earlier studies in Burkina Faso and Montana, followed by postdoctoral work at the Swiss Plasma Center and Australian National University; honored with the DOE Early Career Award, Oppenheimer Fellowship, and over 140 publications, Diallo passionately drives the fusion ecosystem toward rapid milestones for a sustainable energy future.
Alison Christopherson
Head of Target Design · Xcimer Energy
Dr. Alison Christopherson is the Head of Target Design at Xcimer Energy Corporation, a pioneering laser inertial confinement fusion (ICF) company developing a high-energy, gas-laser-driven approach to achieve commercial fusion power with a path to wall-plug breakeven. In this role, she leads the target and ignition physics program, defining the physics basis, system requirements, target designs, and risk retirement strategy for Xcimer's Fusion Pilot Plant, including work on scaling to megajoule-class drivers, filamentation mitigation, beam profile optimization, and experimental campaigns such as recent shots at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE). Prior to Xcimer, Dr. Christopherson was a physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), contributing to inertial confinement fusion research at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), where she advanced high-gain target designs, alpha heating theories, and understanding of hot-spot asymmetries and ion-temperature measurements in ICF experiments. Her doctoral research, conducted at the University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE), earned her the 2022 Marshall N. Rosenbluth Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Award from the American Physical Society (APS) for impactful theories on fusion alpha heating and related ICF phenomena. She holds a Ph.D. in a relevant field (likely mechanical engineering or plasma physics) from the University of Rochester, building on expertise that spans plasma physics, nuclear fusion, and scaling complex systems from fields like Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography and advanced materials R&D. An accomplished researcher with publications in high-impact journals and presentations at major conferences (including APS Division of Plasma Physics and SPIE Photonics West), Dr. Christopherson has been recognized for her contributions to both fundamental ICF science and practical pathways to fusion energy commercialization. Her leadership at Xcimer bridges cutting-edge plasma physics with engineering innovation to accelerate the realization of reliable, high-yield laser-driven fusion for sustainable energy.
Amanda Mork
Community Builder · Deep Tech
Relationship-first operator building networks, storytelling programs, and executive communications that drive measurable outcomes in technology. Proven track record architecting systems for AI, aerospace, manufacturing, and healthcare sectors—designing programs to amplify messaging and convert conversations into pipeline. Native fluency in technology ecosystems, with hands-on experience scaling early-stage companies and curating messaging for founders, operators, and investors.
Andrew Holland
CEO · Fusion Industry Association
Andrew Holland is the founding Chief Executive Officer of the Fusion Industry Association (FIA), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit trade organization representing over 40 private fusion companies and 100 affiliates worldwide, dedicated to accelerating the commercialization of fusion energy through advocacy for supportive policies, public-private partnerships, regulatory certainty, and equitable treatment alongside other clean technologies to deliver abundant, safe, carbon-free power in the coming decades. With more than two decades at the nexus of energy policy, climate change, national security, and international strategy—including prior roles as Chief Operating Officer of the American Security Project (where he authored a seminal 2013 report outlining a 10-year plan for U.S. fusion leadership) and legislative aide on energy and environment for Senator Chuck Hagel—Holland has been instrumental in shaping fusion's rise from government-led research to a vibrant private industry, influencing milestones like separate NRC regulations for fusion, increased federal funding, and global collaborations. A holder of an MSc in International Strategy and Economics from the University of St. Andrews and member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, he frequently speaks on fusion's transformative potential at forums like the IAEA and pens op-eds urging infrastructure-scale investment to secure American leadership in this revolutionary energy frontier.
Andrew Ryan
President · Far
Andrew Ryan is the President of Faraday 1867 Holdings LLC, the world's largest producer of high-temperature superconductor (HTS) tape. Through its subsidiary Faraday Factory Japan, the company has delivered over 7,000km of HTS tape to fusion projects worldwide, supporting tokamaks, stellarators, levitating dipoles, and magnetic mirrors. In 2023, Faraday partnered with Coherent Corp. to scale HTS tape manufacturing for mass deployment of nuclear fusion reactors. The company has been recognized in the Financial Times Awards and Nikkei Top-500 rankings for high-growth companies in Asia-Pacific.
Annie Kritcher
Design Physicist · Lawrence Livermore National Lab
Dr. Andrea "Annie" Kritcher is a distinguished nuclear engineer and physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), where she serves as the lead for Design and Integrated Modeling in the Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) program at the National Ignition Facility (NIF). She was the principal designer and campaign lead for the historic December 5, 2022, experiment that achieved the world's first controlled fusion ignition in a laboratory setting, producing more energy from fusion reactions (3.15 MJ) than the laser energy delivered to the target (2.05 MJ), marking a breakthrough in achieving scientific breakeven and fusion target gain exceeding unity. Her innovative target designs, incorporating advanced simulations, diamond ablators, and optimized laser conditions, have enabled repeated ignition shots and record yields up to 5.2 MJ, advancing both national security applications in stockpile stewardship and the prospects for inertial fusion energy. Kritcher began her career at LLNL as a summer intern in 2004, completed her Ph.D. thesis work there, became a Lawrence postdoctoral fellow, and joined the scientific staff in 2012. She holds a B.S.E. in Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences from the University of Michigan (2005) and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Nuclear Engineering with a focus on plasma physics from the University of California, Berkeley. An American Physical Society Fellow, she has received numerous accolades, including the 2024 David J. Rose Excellence in Fusion Engineering Award from Fusion Power Associates, recognition on TIME magazine's 100 Most Influential People list in 2023, and widespread acclaim for tackling one of fusion's greatest challenges through rigorous, data-driven design leadership.
Ara Knaian
CEO and co-founder · Acceleron
Ara Knaian is the CEO and co-founder of Acceleron, a company focused on advancing fusion energy technology. With a background in engineering and physics, he has played a key role in developing innovative solutions for sustainable energy. Under his leadership, Acceleron aims to bring fusion power to commercialization.
Brian Riordan
Co-Founder & COO · Avalanche Energy
Brian Riordan is the Co-Founder and COO of Avalanche Energy, building micro-fusion reactors (Orbitron) that you can hold in your hands—free of high-powered magnets or lasers, designed to be easily manufacturable and transportable. Brian and co-founder Robin Langtry met at Blue Origin, where both worked on rocket propulsion systems. Brian started his career in deep subsea oil and gas, pivoting to aerospace with side hustles along the way. Motivated by climate change and receding glaciers in his home state of Alaska, Avalanche has raised $45M+ and focuses on mobile power for space and underwater applications.
Bud Vos
CEO · MetOx
Bud Vos is the founder and CEO of MetOx International, a company established in 1989 that specializes in advanced materials, particularly high-temperature superconductors. He has a background in physics and has led the company in developing innovative technologies for various applications. In his current role, he oversees the strategic direction and commercialization efforts of MetOx's materials science initiatives.
Caroline Anderson
Head of Public Affairs and Communications · Fusion Industry Association
Caroline Anderson serves as the Head of Public Affairs and Communications at the Fusion Industry Association, where she leads efforts in advocacy, policy communication, and public engagement for the fusion energy sector. She has spoken at events such as the Fusion Energy Landscape, demonstrating her expertise in promoting fusion technology and its potential impacts. Her role focuses on bridging the gap between the fusion industry and broader audiences through strategic communications.
Clea Kolster
Partner · Lowercarbon
Clea Kolster is a Partner at Lowercarbon Capital, a venture capital firm focused on investments in climate technology and decarbonization efforts. She works on identifying and supporting innovative companies that address environmental challenges, particularly in reducing carbon emissions. Her role involves strategic investments in the energy and sustainability sectors.
Darren Woulfe
Head of Magnet Business · Commonwealth Fusion Systems
Darren Woulfe is an American energy sector executive and engineer best known as the Head of Magnet Business at Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), a leading MIT spinout developing commercial fusion energy through revolutionary high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnets. Joining CFS in 2021, he oversees the critical magnet program essential for compact tokamaks like SPARC and ARC. Previously, Woulfe served as CFO at Makani (an Alphabet X moonshot for airborne wind energy), led procurement in solar firms like Sungevity and Recurrent Energy, and started his career as a process engineer at Intel. He holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business.
David Gates
CTO and Cofounder · Thea Energy
Dr. David Gates is the co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Thea Energy, a stellarator fusion startup spun out of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) that is commercializing simplified planar-coil magnet arrays to make steady-state fusion power practical. Formerly the stellarator physics leader and head of the Advanced Projects Department at PPPL (with a joint appointment at Princeton’s Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment), he pioneered the core technology—arrays of planar (non-interlocking) coils and permanent magnets—under the ARPA-E BETHE program; this innovation earned PPPL the 2024 Edison Patent Award and has been licensed by Thea Energy for its Eos experimental stellarator and Helios power-plant designs. An internationally recognized plasma physicist and American Physical Society Fellow (2013), Dr. Gates began his career as a research associate at Culham Laboratory in the UK (1993–1997) working on the COMPASS-D and START tokamaks, then spent more than two decades at PPPL where he served as physics operator and group leader on NSTX before shifting focus to stellarators. He led U.S. collaborations on Wendelstein 7-X (Germany) and the Large Helical Device (Japan), was a visiting professor at Japan’s National Institute for Fusion Science, and previously served as editor-in-chief of the journal Plasma. He holds a B.S. in physics and mathematics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and M.S., M.Phil., and Ph.D. degrees in applied physics from Columbia University
Derek Sutherland
Head of FuZE-Q Physics · Realta Fusion
Derek Sutherland is an American plasma physicist and fusion energy pioneer renowned for his work advancing commercial fusion technologies. A Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree (2015) with a PhD from the University of Washington and dual BS degrees in Nuclear Engineering and Physics from MIT, he co-founded and led CTFusion (2015–2023), developing spheromak-based reactors before the team joined Zap Energy. At Zap (2023–2025), he served as senior research scientist and Head of FuZE-Q Physics, contributing to sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch breakthroughs. In 2025, Sutherland joined Realta Fusion as Vice President of R&D, driving tandem magnetic mirror systems toward high-gain pilot plants like Hammir, with recent publications modeling Q>5 energy gains and instability mitigation.
JC Btaiche
CEO and Founder · Fuse Energy
**JC Btaiche** is the Founder and CEO of Fuse Energy (also known as Fuse Energy Technologies), a U.S.-based fusion startup headquartered in San Leandro, California, that he established in 2019 at the age of 19. The company pursues magneto-inertial fusion (MIF) via an advanced pulsed power approach, developing high-power drivers like impedance-matched Marx generators and the TITAN system to enable efficient, repetitive energy delivery for fusion reactions—particularly targeting MagLIF Z-pinch configurations—while also generating revenue through radiation testing services for national security and defense customers, including collaborations with national labs such as Los Alamos. Born in Lebanon to a nuclear physicist father, JC developed an early passion for plasma physics and gained hands-on lab experience as a teenager. After immigrating to North America in 2016 and briefly founding an educational platform (Hestia Academy) in Canada, he relocated to Silicon Valley to launch Fuse. Under his leadership, the company has raised significant funding (including over $50 million reported in various sources), achieved a valuation in the hundreds of millions, and assembled a high-profile team featuring experts such as Iran's former top nuclear scientist Vahid Damideh as chief engineer, along with former Pentagon, CIA, and Department of Energy leaders on its advisory board. A frequent speaker at events like the Milken Institute Global Conference and FusionXInvest, JC has been profiled in outlets such as Forbes (30 Under 30 Energy), BBC, and major podcasts for his bold vision of accelerating the transition to practical, sustainable fusion power while addressing global energy and security challenges. He holds education from Marianopolis College and is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. His work exemplifies bridging youthful entrepreneurship with cutting-edge science to advance fusion commercialization.
Jordan Kanis
Managing Director, Climate Technology and Sustainability · Silicon Valley Bank
Jordan Kanis is the Managing Director for Climate Technology and Sustainability at Silicon Valley Bank, where he leads investment strategies and advisory services for innovative climate-focused ventures. With a background in finance and environmental policy, he has previously held roles in banking and sustainability consulting, advising on green initiatives and capital raising. Among his notable achievements, Kanis has facilitated funding for renewable energy projects and contributed to industry discussions on sustainable finance. His expertise includes climate technology, green investments, and energy transition strategies.
Kyle Schiller
CEO · Marathon Fusion
Kyle Schiller is the co-founder and CEO of Marathon Fusion, a San Francisco-based startup launched in 2023 with ex-SpaceX propulsion engineer Adam Rutkowski to revolutionize fusion energy commercialization through breakthrough fuel cycle technologies—like high-throughput metal foil superpermeable pumps and neutron-driven tritium breeding—that slash tritium inventory costs by orders of magnitude, enable smaller plants, and address the global fuel shortage (only ~20kg exists worldwide) for deuterium-tritium reactors. A 2021 Emergent Ventures winner for fusion studies, Schiller—a Carleton College BA in Asian Studies alum—bridged tech, policy, and global health in prior roles: building ML infrastructure at Airbnb, engineering infectious disease analytics at Zenysis in Ethiopia, co-running Founder's Pledge's Equity for Impact program, and serving as a science policy fellow at Schmidt Futures with Tom Kalil. Backed by a $5.9M seed from 1517 Fund, Anglo American, Übermorgen Ventures, and Shared Future Fund—plus DOE ARPA-E/INFUSE awards and Breakthrough Energy Fellows status—Marathon has prototyped superpermeation, secured LOIs from Commonwealth Fusion and Helion, and stunned the field with a 2025 preprint on scalable gold transmutation from mercury in reactors, potentially doubling plant economics via thousands of kg/year byproduct alongside clean gigawatt power. Passionately advocating for fusion's "virtuous cycle" of talent and milestones to deliver abundant, firm energy at terawatt scale, Schiller is engineering the alchemy to propel humanity's energy future.
Liam Corrigan
Head of Finance · Fuse Energy
Liam Corrigan is the Head of Finance at Fuse Energy, where he leads supply chain operations and capital structuring for the fusion energy company building TITAN, the world's most efficient pulsed power generator for magnetized-liner inertial fusion. Liam graduated magna cum laude from Harvard with a degree in Physics and Astrophysics and holds a Masters of Financial Economics with Distinction from Oxford. He represented the United States in rowing at two Olympic Games, winning gold in Paris 2024. Prior to Fuse, he worked at Alpine Investors and helped scale Tesla.
Malcolm Handley
Fusion VC Pioneer · Strong Atomics
Malcolm Handley is an American venture capitalist and former software engineer best known as the founder and managing partner of Strong Atomics, a San Francisco-based firm established in 2017 that specializes in investing in nuclear fusion startups to accelerate the development of clean, abundant, and commercially viable energy. Transitioning from a 17-year tech career—including roles as a senior engineer at Google, the first employee at Asana, and early work in virtual worlds—Handley pivoted to climate solutions, concluding fusion held unique promise. After serving in tech-to-market roles for fusion at ARPA-E, he continues to advise and back innovative approaches, with portfolio companies including Zap Energy, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, and NearStar Fusion.
Matt Aubuchon
Director of Pulsed Power Component Development · Zap Energy
Matt Aubuchon is the Director of Pulsed Power Component Development at Zap Energy, where he leads the team developing Zap's pulsed power components for their sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch fusion reactor. Previously, he worked at EPC Power Corp, helping grow the company from a 35-person San Diego startup to a 200+ person international manufacturing company with locations in Greenville SC, Raleigh NC, and Helsinki Finland. Matt is based in San Diego and joined Zap Energy in 2023.
Robin Langtry
CEO · Avalanche Energy
Robin Langtry is a Canadian-German aerospace engineer and fusion energy innovator best known as the co-founder and CEO of Avalanche Energy (also referred to as Avalanche Fusion), a Seattle-based startup developing compact, modular Orbitron electrostatic fusion reactors for applications in mobile power, defense, space propulsion, and distributed energy. Inspired by science fiction like The Expanse, Langtry invented the Orbitron concept in 2020 after years of self-directed research, leveraging his expertise in computational fluid dynamics and turbulence modeling (with over 6,000 citations). Previously, he spent 15+ years in aerospace at Boeing and Blue Origin, leading New Glenn rocket development. Avalanche has achieved milestones like sustaining 300kV in compact devices, raised significant funding including a $40M Series A, and is building the FusionWERX neutron testing facility.
Will Regan
President and Cofounder, Pacific Fusion · Pacific Fusion
Will Regan, Ph.D., is the co-founder and President of Pacific Fusion, a Fremont, California-based startup founded in 2023 to deliver the world's most affordable, on-demand clean energy through pulser-driven inertial fusion—leveraging fast-rising high-current pulses to magnetically compress deuterium-tritium fuel targets, aiming for net facility gain (more fusion energy out than electricity in) by 2030 via a Demonstration System promising 1,000x better price-performance than NIF's laser approach. A UC Berkeley alumnus who previously catalyzed the private fusion boom as co-developer of ARPA-E's ALPHA program supporting low-cost plasma heating, Regan later led moonshot energy and climate projects at Google X—including founding Alphabet's Mineral agricultural tech division—before assembling Pacific Fusion's elite team of national lab veterans to rapidly prototype scalable systems amid a $900M+ milestone-based Series A from General Catalyst and others. A congressional witness on fusion's promise for U.S. energy leadership, prolific communicator on podcasts and technical papers, and advocate for pragmatic paths to gigawatt-scale power, Regan is driving an ambitious roadmap toward pilot plants in the 2030s to meet exploding demand from AI, electrification, and global prosperity.