Antares

CEO & Founder @AntaresNuclear, building the engine of strategic energy ⚛️. ex-@WhiteHouse 🇺🇸

Antares builds compact nuclear fission microreactors for U.S. defense and space applications, engineered to run autonomously for six or more years on a single fuel load. The launch marks the company's Series C, which arrived weeks after its Mark-0 reactor achieved criticality at Idaho National Laboratory, the first privately developed non-light-water reactor to go critical in the United States in more than four decades. The round comes at a moment when U.S. military installations are increasingly exposed to a commercial grid under strain, and when Executive Order 14299 directs the Department of War to have a reactor operating at a domestic base by September 30, 2028. The company was founded in 2023 by Jordan Bramble, previously at the White House, and Julia DeWahl, formerly on the Starlink team at SpaceX. Antares operates out of Torrance, California, with additional facilities in Idaho Falls and Aiken, South Carolina, and its first customer relationships include the U.S. Air Force under the Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations initiative, with Joint Base San Antonio positioned as an early host site. The Mark-0 milestone validated reactor physics and controls in a full-scale core using TRISO fuel, moving the design toward Mark-1, an electricity-producing reactor slated for 2027. The $470 million Series C consists of $370 million in equity and $100 million in debt, co-led by Paradigm and Caffeinated Capital, with participation from Point72 Ventures, Shine Capital, and Industrious Ventures. The capital is earmarked for the transition from a demonstrated core to fielded power systems, with initial deployments to defense customers beginning in 2028. For operators and investors tracking advanced nuclear, this launch is a signal that the sector is moving from paper designs and demo hardware to firm military contracts and a delivery timeline measured in single-digit years.

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