Aalo Atomics is an Austin-based nuclear startup founded in 2023 by CEO Matt Loszak and CTO Yasir Arafat (former lead of INL's MARVEL microreactor) to mass-manufacture sodium-cooled reactors purpose-built for AI data centers.
Latest update Oct 7, 2026
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Its product line pairs the factory-built 10 MWe Aalo-1 reactor with the Aalo Pod, a 50 MWe plant of five reactors and shared turbines designed to install in months. Selected for the DOE's Reactor Pilot Program in August 2025, Aalo brought its Aalo-X Critical Test Reactor at Idaho National Laboratory to first criticality on July 4, 2026 - the fourth DOE-authorized advanced reactor to meet Executive Order 14301's deadline, less than eight months after groundbreaking. The company says it has grown from 2 people to about 200 and has raised over $300 million, including a $100M Series B led by Valor Equity Partners; a roughly $500M Series C at a $4-5B valuation was still being shopped as of September 15, 2026, with no close announced. Its 40,000 sq ft Austin pilot plant is slated to expand tenfold to 400,000 sq ft, with a longer-term one-million-square-foot Gigawatt Factory now described on the company site as ramping in 2030. On July 30, 2026 Aalo named cloud provider Crusoe as the partner for a 2027 INL proof-of-concept pairing a 50 MWe Aalo Pod with a Crusoe Spark modular data center, targeting commercial nuclear-powered AI deployments by the end of 2029. Aalo's own public timeline now puts first power from the integrated Aalo-X plant in Q1 2027 and the NRC application for the first commercial Aalo Pod in 2027 (slipped from a 2026 COLA target), with a long-term cost goal of 3 cents/kWh. The full-scale non-nuclear Aalo-0 sodium system was still listed as 65% complete and a Q3 2026 milestone as of September 15.
aalo.comUpdated Sep 15, 2026
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2026
Aalo is reportedly negotiating a Series C of roughly $500M, building on an existing SAFE with a $3B valuation cap, expected to price around a $4-5B valuation; proceeds are earmarked chiefly for the Gigawatt Factory. Still not closed as of September 15, 2026 - no company announcement, the official site continues to cite $300M+ raised, and Nasdaq Private Market in late July still described Aalo as in the process of raising that round.
Q3 2026
Bring the full-scale non-nuclear sodium test prototype - the power plant without the heat, using electrical heaters to simulate a reactor core and validate heat-transport and power-conversion systems - into commissioning. Aalo's technology page lists Aalo-0 as a Q3 2026 milestone and, as of September 15, 2026, still showed it 65% complete with about two weeks left in the quarter. Modules were shipped from the Austin factory to Idaho National Laboratory in December 2025.
Q1 2027
Finish the second, commercial-scale 10 MWe reactor on the Aalo-X campus and demonstrate full 10 MW output, ahead of integrating with the Crusoe-partnered Data Center Proving Ground later in 2027. Aalo's public technology roadmap now lists this first integrated power plant as a Q1 2027 milestone with groundwork complete, after the earlier end-of-2026 completion target slipped. The July 4 criticality post still frames 2027 as the year the new reactor produces electricity and powers an on-site data center.
2027
Target2027 (POC); 2029 (commercial)
Bring the Aalo-X campus to power operations so Project Ascension's 10 MWe reactor can feed an on-site experimental data center - the first nuclear plant purpose-paired with a data center. On July 30, 2026 Aalo named its first named data-center partner for this work, Crusoe: a 2027 proof-of-concept at INL will pair a 50 MWe Aalo Pod with a Crusoe Spark modular data center running Crusoe Cloud, with both companies targeting commercial nuclear-powered AI data center deployments by the end of 2029.
Mid-2027
TargetMid-2027 (400K sq ft); 2030 (Gigawatt Factory ramp)
Grow the 40,000 sq ft Austin pilot factory tenfold to 400,000 sq ft within 12 months of the July 2026 criticality milestone, hiring roughly 100-200 more staff to run it, en route to the long-term Gigawatt Factory - a one-million-square-foot mass-production plant. Aalo's homepage now dates Gigawatt Factory ramp to 2030 (later than the prior 2028 framing); the July criticality post still says the company is expanding into that one-million-square-foot plant. Proceeds from the pending Series C are earmarked for construction.
2027
File Aalo's first commercial reactor license application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a combined construction and operating license covering the planned commercial Aalo-1 fleet (including the seven-reactor Idaho Falls Power project under an existing MOU). The 2026 COLA target has slipped: Aalo's public homepage now says the regulatory application for the first commercial Aalo Pod will be submitted in 2027. The NRC docket remained in pre-application as of August 2026, with a Regulatory Engagement Plan on file since 2024 and no COLA submitted.
2028
Start building the first commercial 50 MWe Aalo Pod for a data-center customer, with construction planned to begin in 2028 and availability targeted for Q3 2028. Crusoe, named July 30, 2026 as the partner for Aalo's 2027 INL proof-of-concept, is targeting commercial nuclear-powered AI data center deployments with Aalo by the end of 2029.
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Cloud provider Crusoe and reactor startup Aalo Atomics announced a strategic partnership on July 30 to deploy what they call the first nuclear-powered AI data center. A 2027 proof-of-concept at Idaho National Laboratory will pair a 50 MWe Aalo Pod (five sodium-cooled Aalo-1 microreactors) with a Crusoe Spark modular data center running Crusoe Cloud, with both companies targeting commercial deployments by the end of 2029.
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A factory-mass-manufactured 10 MWe (30 MWt) sodium-cooled, graphite-moderated reactor running on low-enriched uranium-dioxide fuel at near-atmospheric pressure. Sized to ship by truck, with fully passive shutdown and 72+ hour passive decay-heat removal; five Aalo-1s power each Aalo Pod.
Aalo's extra-modular power plant for AI data centers: five Aalo-1 reactors sharing multiple turbines (the company site specifies three) producing 50 MWe. Built from factory-manufactured truck-sized modules, designed to install in months and to phase maintenance so the plant is never fully offline.
Aalo's experimental reactor campus at Idaho National Laboratory, built under the DOE Reactor Pilot Program. Its sodium-cooled Critical Test Reactor - a full-scale Aalo-1 core with 13 uranium-dioxide fuel assemblies - reached first criticality on July 4, 2026; the campus's follow-on Project Ascension reactor is intended to generate 10 MWe and power a co-located experimental data center.
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Operating status
Pre-revenue
Venture-funded reactor developer: its Critical Test Reactor achieved criticality at Idaho National Laboratory on July 4, 2026, but no commercial plant is operating yet. Aalo's public technology roadmap still shows the full-scale non-nuclear Aalo-0 sodium system at 65% complete and targeted for Q3 2026 as of September 15, 2026, with the first integrated 10 MWe Aalo-X power plant listed as a Q1 2027 milestone (groundwork complete). On July 30, 2026 Aalo named cloud provider Crusoe as the partner for a 2027 nuclear-powered AI data center proof-of-concept at INL, with both companies targeting commercial deployments by the end of 2029. The company's own homepage now dates the NRC application for the first commercial Aalo Pod to 2027, and the NRC docket remained in pre-application as of August 2026 with no COLA on file. A ~$500M Series C was still unclosed as of September 15, 2026; Nasdaq Private Market described Aalo in late July as still in the process of raising that round.
Aalo Pod power sales (planned)
Behind-the-meter electricity from 50 MWe Aalo Pods co-located with AI data centers, targeting 3¢/kWh at scale; first commercial Pods are slated for construction starting in 2028.
Factory-built reactor manufacturing (planned)
Assembly-line production of Aalo-1 reactors and plant modules from its Austin factory. The current 40,000 sq ft pilot plant is expanding tenfold to 400,000 sq ft over the 12 months following the July 2026 criticality milestone, with a longer-term one-million-square-foot 'GigaWatt Factory' planned to reach gigawatt-per-year output.
DOE programs and demonstration work
Work under the DOE Reactor Pilot Program: Aalo signed an Other Transaction Agreement with DOE in September 2025, making it a direct DOE contractor for the Aalo-X demonstration campus at Idaho National Laboratory.
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How past announced dates turned out.
0/2announced dates hit on time
Complete the Project Ascension reactor at INL
Target Q4 2026 · Resolved Sep 8, 2026
Aalo's own technology roadmap now lists Aalo-X, the first integrated 10 MWe power plant, as a Q1 2027 milestone with groundwork complete, rather than reactor completion by the end of 2026. First electricity and the Crusoe-paired on-site data center remain a 2027 event.
Submit combined construction and operating license (COLA) application to the NRC
Target 2026 · Resolved Sep 8, 2026
Aalo's public timeline now says the regulatory application for the first commercial Aalo Pod will be submitted in 2027, not 2026. The NRC docket remained in pre-application as of August 2026, with no COLA on file.
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2026
Announces 10x factory expansion and hundreds of new hires
Days after the Aalo-X criticality milestone, CEO Matt Loszak said Aalo's 40,000 sq ft Austin manufacturing facility off Texas 71 will expand tenfold to 400,000 sq ft over the following 12 months, with a long-term goal of reaching one million square feet, and that the company plans to hire roughly 100-200 more staff to run the expanded plant.
Crusoe partnership targets first nuclear-powered AI data center
On July 30, 2026 cloud provider Crusoe and Aalo Atomics announced a strategic partnership to deploy what they describe as the first nuclear-powered AI data center. A 2027 proof-of-concept at Idaho National Laboratory will pair a 50 MWe Aalo Pod (five Aalo-1 microreactors plus turbine, sodium/air-cooled with no external water) with a Crusoe Spark modular data center running Crusoe Cloud, with the companies aiming to scale toward commercial deployments by the end of 2029.
Aalo-X Critical Test Reactor achieves first criticality at INL
At 12:20 a.m. MT on July 4, 2026, Aalo's sodium-cooled, graphite-moderated Critical Test Reactor reached a self-sustaining chain reaction - the fourth DOE-authorized advanced reactor to go critical under Executive Order 14301, less than eight months after groundbreaking and under three years from the company's founding.
DOE approves Aalo-X safety analysis; fuel delivered
DOE-Idaho approved the Documented Safety Analysis for the Aalo-X Critical Test Reactor (May 2026); fuel rods fabricated by Global Nuclear Fuel from Urenco-enriched uranium were delivered in April 2026.
2025
Microsoft collaboration on AI-driven nuclear licensing
Partnered with Microsoft (announced November 17, 2025) to apply Microsoft's generative-AI permitting tools and AI agents to Aalo's regulatory and engineering workflows, aiming to speed licensing and deployment of its factory-built reactors; the project later won two awards at Microsoft's internal hackathon.
First U.S. commercial enriched-uranium supply contract (Urenco)
Became the first U.S. reactor company with a contract for commercial delivery of enriched uranium, signing a fuel supply deal with Urenco (September 2025) to feed its factory-built reactors at scale.
$100M Series B led by Valor Equity Partners
Raised a $100M Series B (August 19, 2025) to build Aalo-X and pair it with an experimental co-located data center, with participation from Hitachi Ventures, NRG Energy, Tishman Speyer and others.
Selected for DOE Reactor Pilot Program
Named one of the initial companies in the DOE's fast-track Reactor Pilot Program (August 12, 2025) to build the Aalo-X experimental reactor at Idaho National Laboratory under DOE authorization, targeting criticality by July 4, 2026; groundbreaking followed within weeks.
2025
2024
2023
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$433Mdisclosed across 4 rounds with a stated amount
Cumulative disclosed raise · dated rounds
Seed
2023
Fifty Years (lead), Valor Equity Partners, angel investors
Series A
August 2024
Fifty Years, Valor Equity Partners, Harpoon Ventures, Crosscut, SNR, Alumni Ventures, Nucleation Capital
Series B
August 2025
Valor Equity Partners (lead), Fine Structure Ventures, Hitachi Ventures, NRG Energy, Tishman Speyer, Kindred Ventures, 50Y, Harpoon Ventures, Crescent Enterprises, Crosscut, MCJ, Nucleation Capital, others
Series B extension
May 2026
Undisclosed (company reports $300M+ raised to date)
Undisclosed; Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan holds a board seat as of mid-2026
