EnableFusion has an answer to AI's power problem

Choi Doo-whan, CEO of EnableFusion [ENABLEFUSION]

[INTERVIEW]

Nuclear fusion has emerged as one of the most promising energy sources to supply the tremendous amount of electricity needed to power generative AI.

Not only can it potentially generate a nearly limitless amount of energy by imitating the process that powers the sun, it also is a clean energy source that does not emit greenhouse gases.

That is why Sam Altman, the man behind ChatGPT, recently mentioned fusion as one of the solutions to reach a breakthrough for the energy supply for AI.

Despite the rosy picture, nuclear fusion has been grappling with one significant setback for commercialization — the technology.

Nuclear fusion technology is too intricate and complicated to design and manufacture simultaneously, similar to the ecosystem of semiconductors.

This is where EnableFusion comes in, a Korean startup that aims to connect nuclear fusion reactor developers with skilled manufacturers through a platform business.

"We envision becoming a foundry of the semiconductor business for nuclear fusion reactors," said Choi DooWhan, CEO of EnableFusion, in a recent interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily.

"Korea has a highly skilled manufacturing capacity which can realize the design layout at more accurate levels in a shorter amount of delivery time than other countries," said Choi.

"In addition to bridging the developer with the manufacturer, we also redesign the layout so that manufacturers can understand it. We also test the equipment before delivering it to the clients so they don't have to take the risk of getting a non-properly working device."

Choi, who cofounded EnableFusion with Dr. Lee Gyung-Su in December 2023, is an IT expert in Korea, having served as the head of KT, Korea's major telecom company, and Posco DX (former Posco ICT), which specializes in smart solutions.

EnableFusion has raised $9 million in Series A funding within its first three months, and is expecting to incur sales in the latter half of this year.

Nuclear fusion is a reaction when two lighter atomic nuclei combine to form a single heavier one. The reaction is only feasible when matter is in a plasma state, which is when something is superheated to the point of freeing electrons from atomic nuclei. This process releases a tremendous amount of energy.

There are two types of machines used to produce nuclear fusion. Tokamak type is the most preferred machine, as nearly 80 percent of the nuclear fusion industry is focusing on the machine, including EnableFusion.

Compared to nuclear fission, which is commonly used in nuclear power plants, nuclear fusion generates four times more energy per kilogram of fuel, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Korea is familiar to nuclear fusion, and holds a notable position in the field.

It is one of the seven countries that founded International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), which is currently the largest research and engineering project on nuclear fusion. Korean manufacturers have been acknowledged for their precision in manufacturing the components for the project.

The country also recently set a new world record for sustaining plasma at a temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius (180 million degrees Fahrenheit) for 48 seconds under the project dubbed KSTAR.

"For ITER project, since it is such a huge project, two to three countries are allocated to make certain components of the Tokamak-type machine," said Choi. "And Korea was the most preferred country among others, such as Japan and China, for its supremacy in precise manufacturing."

EnableFusion is looking at some 50 fusion startups that don't have the manufacturing capacity to build the reactor themselves as its potential clients. Most of these startups are based in the United States and Europe.

Dr. Lee, the chief strategy officer at EnableFusion, is expected to take the helm of the engineering aspect of the platform, as he served a vital role in both ITER and KSTAR projects.

Choi will handle the IT side, which includes digitizing the design through technology like Digital Twin to let the company run AI-based simulations of the equipment.

Demand for such service is already sufficient, says Choi.

"This industry started to pick up pace from the fourth quarter of last year because nuclear fusion took place repetitively from about a year ago, meaning this technology is no longer confined to the academic field, but actually works in real life," he said.

"The generative AI boom also contributed to the rise of fusion technology, because large language models can process and analyze the extensive amount of data generated from the reactors, which is expected to speed it up."

Acknowledging the potential, the United States, Britain, Germany and Japan have formed private-public partnerships last year, each committing approximately $1 billion to foster the industry to bring forth the "dream energy's" commercialization schedule.

Korea is also following suit, having started to draft a similar private-public partnership with the Science Ministry planned for the second half of this year.

Choi says Korea has a five-year time limit to leverage its resources to take an early lead in the global game.

"After five years, we don't know how geopolitics will play out," he said. "Tension with China might not exist then. The advantage we have over China with the developers in the United States might subside."

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]