Forty years after Chernobyl, a nuclear renaissance is reshaping global energy markets. Morgan Stanley projects worldwide nuclear capacity will more than double by 2050, with $2.2tn flowing into the sector. Net-zero targets and data center power demands are driving this shift, while US-China AI competition makes energy security a strategic priority.

President Trump's executive orders aim to expand American nuclear capacity from 100 to 400 gigawatts by 2050, with 10 large reactors under construction by 2030. Will Dufton of Giant Ventures sees this as breaking 'decades of sclerosis' in US nuclear policy. The EU's Nuclear Alliance targets 150GW by 2050, generating half the bloc's carbon-free electricity today.

Venture capital is flowing to nuclear innovators. Giant Ventures invested in Radiant, which raised $465mn total and reached a $1.8bn valuation for its military microreactors. TerraPower, backed by Bill Gates and Nvidia, secured $1.7bn for small modular reactors. These technologies remain unproven at scale and still produce radioactive waste.

Fusion startups attract similar enthusiasm. Proxima Fusion raised €200mn to build a stellarator by 2027, while Helion Energy secured $425mn from SoftBank and OpenAI's Sam Altman. China has invested $6.5bn in fusion since 2023 alone, building entire 'fusion cities' to accelerate development. The technology remains unproven, but geopolitical competition is forcing governments to bet on nuclear's potential.