Kairos PowerRegister for a premium account to gain access to Sterling AI.
Get StartedThings you can ask Sterling:
Kairos PowerUC Berkeley spinout developing the KP-FHR fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor; Google's commercial advanced-reactor partner
Google Master Agreement
Up to 500 MW / 6-7 plants by 2035
Oct 2024; first hyperscaler advanced-reactor PPA in the industry
Hermes NRC Construction Permit
First non-LWR CP since 1968
Dec 2023; ends 55-year drought of non-light-water reactor construction permits in the US
KP-FHR Output
140 MWe per module
FLiBe-cooled, TRISO-fuel pebble-bed; 650 C outlet enables industrial heat applications
DOE ARDP Cost-share
Up to $303M
Technology Investment Agreement finalized Feb 2026; funds Hermes through commissioning
Total raised: ~$700M private + ~$303M DOE (cost-share) · Latest valuation: Private (no recent disclosed valuation)
| Round | Date | Amount | Valuation | Key Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founder + Early | 2016-2020 | Undisclosed | - | Mike Laufer / Per Peterson / Ed Blandford (founders) |
| DOE ARDP Risk-Reduction | Sep 2020 | Up to $303M (DOE cost-share) | - | US Department of Energy (Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program) |
| Series B / Strategic | Sep 2022 | $303M (private) | - | Cohort sources include Sun Hung KaiHercules CapitalMaterial Impact |
| Strategic Round | 2024 | Undisclosed | - | Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO)MitsubishiReported per Nikkei + others |
| System | Type | Status |
|---|---|---|
| KP-FHR | Fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor (140 MWe per module, TRISO fuel pebbles) | Design certification work; first commercial ~2030 |
| Hermes | 35 MWth non-electricity demonstration reactor (Oak Ridge, TN) | Under construction; commissioning ~2027 |
| Hermes 2 | 2-pack electricity-producing demonstration (28 MWe net) | NRC CP application submitted Apr 2025 |
| ETU (Engineering Test Unit) | Non-nuclear FLiBe-salt integrated test loop (Albuquerque) | Operating since 2022 |
| FLiBe Salt Production | Vertically integrated salt manufacturing | Production-scale facility online (Q3 2025) |
Oct 2024 Master Plant Development Agreement for up to 500 MW across 6-7 KP-FHR plants by 2035; first hyperscaler advanced-reactor PPA in the industry.
Host utility for Hermes + Hermes 2 at Oak Ridge; potential operator of future commercial KP-FHR fleet.
ARDP Risk-Reduction award: up to $303M through ~2027 for Hermes.
Materials, fuel-cycle, and salt-chemistry research collaboration; FLiBe production lineage.
FLiBe salt component supply chain; vertically integrated through Kairos's own production facility.
Reactor pressure vessel + components for Hermes.
Mike Laufer (CEO, ex-Westinghouse), Per Peterson (UC Berkeley), Ed Blandford spin Kairos out of the UC Berkeley nuclear engineering program
Up to $303M in cost-share over 7 years for the Hermes demonstration; one of 5 risk-reduction awardees
Non-nuclear integrated test loop at Albuquerque NM site; validates pumps, instrumentation, and fluoride-salt chemistry
First non-light-water reactor NRC construction permit since 1968; landmark licensing milestone
Groundbreaking at Oak Ridge, TN site adjacent to TVA assets; targeted commissioning ~2027
Up to 500 MW across 6-7 KP-FHR plants by 2035; first hyperscaler PPA for any advanced reactor design
Construction permit for Hermes 2 (electricity-producing 2-pack) submitted; targets ~2028 commissioning at Oak Ridge
FLiBe (fluoride-salt) production at scale begins; resolves a key fuel-cycle bottleneck for KP-FHR deployment
First commercial 140 MWe plant under the Google PPA; site under selection
Developer of the KP-FHR fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactor (140 MWe). Hermes demonstration construction permit granted December 2023 at Oak Ridge. Signed October 2024 PPA with Google for up to 500 MWe across 6-7 plants, first by 2030. Kairos Power was founded in 2016, is headquartered in Alameda, CA and employs ~600.
Kairos Power has raised ~$700M private + ~$303M DOE (cost-share) in total at a Private (no recent disclosed valuation) valuation, based on the funding rounds Sterling tracks.
Sterling groups Kairos Power in the Nuclear sector, alongside NuScale Power (SMR), Oklo (OKLO), NANO Nuclear Energy (NNE), TerraPower (private), X-energy (private) and Last Energy (private).
If you are researching Kairos Power, also look at NuScale Power (SMR), Oklo (OKLO) and NANO Nuclear Energy (NNE). You can compare all of them side by side or browse the full Nuclear sector on Sterling.
