Oklo Inc.
Category: AI in Climate / Energy
Advanced nuclear fission company building small modular "Aurora powerhouse" reactors to deliver clean, reliable, always-on power — increasingly marketed to hyperscale AI data centers. Oklo Inc. was founded in 2013. The company is led by Jacob DeWitte. Based in Santa Clara, California, USA. Team size: 101-500. Total funding raised: ~$3B+. Latest round: Post-IPO. Key investors include Sam Altman (AltC Acquisition Corp), DCVC (Data Collective), Peter Thiel, Dustin Moskovitz, Ron Conway (SV Angel), Kevin Efrusy (Accel), Tim Draper, U.S. Department of Energy (grants), Y Combinator.
- Founded
- 2013
- Headquarters
- Santa Clara, California, USA
- Team size
- 101-500
- Total funding
- ~$3B+
Value proposition
Fast, fuel-recycling liquid-metal micro-reactors (Aurora powerhouse, 15-75MW) that provide always-on carbon-free baseload power, positioned to meet surging electricity demand from AI data centers.
Products and solutions
Aurora powerhouse fast fission reactor (compact, fuel-recycling design), nuclear fuel recycling technology, power purchase agreements with data center/utility partners.
Unique value
Combines advanced fast-reactor design with used-fuel recycling to offer smaller, faster-to-deploy, cost-competitive nuclear power plants targeted at data center-scale AI compute demand.
Target customer
Hyperscale data center operators, utilities, industrial and government customers needing reliable clean baseload power.
Industries served
Energy / Nuclear Power, AI Infrastructure / Data Centers, Utilities
Technology advantage
Sodium/liquid-metal fast reactor design enabling fuel recycling (reduced waste, extended fuel cycle), NRC licensing pathway progress, first-mover site (Idaho National Laboratory) and partnerships with hyperscalers.
How they differentiate
Focus on smaller (15-75MW), factory-buildable fast reactors with integrated fuel recycling, targeted explicitly at AI/data-center power demand rather than traditional grid-scale utility contracts.
Main competitors
X-energy, NuScale Power, TerraPower, Kairos Power, Aalo Atomics
Key partnerships
Meta (prepayment for 1.2 GW Pike County, OH Aurora campus), Equinix (500 MW power LOI), Switch (12 GW Master Power Agreement), Vertiv (data center power/cooling co-development), Siemens Energy (Aurora-INL steam turbine/generator), Kiewit (EPC / lead constructor Aurora-INL and Ohio campus MOU), Centrus (HALEU LOI for up to 5 Aurora cores), U.S. Department of Energy / Idaho National Laboratory, Sam Altman/AltC Acquisition Corp (SPAC sponsor)
Notable customers
Meta (prepayment / up to 1.2 GW Ohio Aurora campus for data centers), Equinix (up to 500 MW LOI with $25M pre-payment), Switch (non-binding 12 GW Master Power Agreement through 2044), U.S. Department of Energy / Idaho National Laboratory (Aurora-INL pilot site), Prometheus Hyperscale (100 MW LOI), Diamondback Energy (50 MW LOI)
Major milestones
2019: first NRC combined license application (later withdrawn/refiled), 2023: SPAC merger announced with AltC Acquisition Corp (Sam Altman), May 2024: NYSE debut under ticker OKLO, Sep 2025: broke ground on first Aurora powerhouse (Aurora-INL) at Idaho National Laboratory, Jan 2026: Meta prepayment agreement for up to 1.2 GW Ohio campus, Jun 2026: DOE approved Preliminary Documented Safety Analysis for Aurora-INL, Aug 5–6 2026: Groves Isotope Test Reactor (Lockhart, TX) achieved first criticality — first DOE Pilot Program reactor on private land, Aug 7 2026: Q2 results — $3.0B cash/marketable securities
Growth metrics
Q2 2026 (ended 6/30): revenue $1.2M; YTD net loss $81.6M; cash & marketable securities $3.0B (incl. ~$1.9B ATM equity in 2026). Raised 2026 opex/capex guidance. Groves isotope reactor reached first criticality Aug 5–6, 2026.
Market positioning
Leading pure-play publicly traded advanced nuclear/SMR developer riding the AI-power demand narrative, backed publicly by Sam Altman.
Geographic focus
United States, with ambitions for global deployment.
Patents and IP
Multiple fast-reactor and fuel-recycling patents; details not fully itemized publicly.
About Jacob DeWitte
Co-founded Oklo in 2013 straight out of MIT; M.S. in Nuclear Engineering, MIT; prior research on advanced fission reactor design (sodium fast reactors, molten salt).
Latest news about Oklo Inc.
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Official website: https://oklo.com
