This startup just raised nearly $500 million to build nuclear reactors for the US military

Antares closes $470 million Series C, $370 million in equity and $100 million in debt, co-led by Paradigm and Caffeinated Capital The move follows the Mark-0 reaching criticality at Idaho National Laboratory and helps fund an electricity-producing Mark-1 in 2027 and military deployments in 2028 Anta

<![CDATA[ <article> <ul><li><strong>Antares closes $470 million Series C, $370 million in equity and $100 million in debt, co-led by Paradigm and Caffeinated Capital</strong></li><li><strong>The move follows the Mark-0 reaching criticality at Idaho National Laboratory and helps fund an electricity-producing Mark-1 in 2027 and military deployments in 2028</strong></li><li><strong>Antares' military-first strategy targets a price-insensitive customer bound by an executive order requiring a reactor on a US base September 30 2028</strong></li></ul><p>Nuclear fission startup Antares has <a href="https://antaresindustries.com/updates/antares-raises-seriesc" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">announced</a> it has raised a total of $470 million in funding as it looks to supply a single client with a looming deadline: the US Military.</p><p>The Torrance, California company closed a Series C co-led by Paradigm and Caffeinated Capital, with Point72 Ventures, Shine Capital and Industrious Ventures among the participants, according to <em>TechCrunch</em>'s <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/27/antares-raises-470m-to-build-nuclear-reactors-for-the-u-s-military/" target="_blank">look at its PitchBook data</a>.</p><p>Antares' raise comes seven weeks after its Mark-0 microreactor reached criticality at Idaho National Laboratory under the Department of Energy's authorization in a demonstration run with the DOE, the lab, and BWX Technologies, with the US Army observing.</p><h2 id="a-direct-beneficiary-of-the-white-house">A direct beneficiary of the White House</h2><p>Antares calls it the "first privately developed non-light-water reactor to achieve criticality in the United States in more than four decades," underscoring how important the test was for both Antares and the US military.</p><p>The US military's presence is not by chance; It is mandated by an executive order ("Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security") signed by US President Donald Trump to ensure that it has an operating army-regulated nuclear reactor on a domestic military site by September 30, 2028.</p><p>Antares happens to be one of three finalists in the Pentagon’s Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations program that aims to test-deploy a small module reactor (SMR) on two different air force bases.</p><p>With Antares being the first private company to go through that gate under the DOE's Reactor Pilot Program, it plans to build an electricity-producing Mark-1 reactor in 2027, followed by initial deployments to defense customers by 2028. </p><p>The Mark-1 uses the same full-scale core, facility, and TRISO fuel as the Mark-0, which is the company's argument for why the 2027 date is credible rather than aspirational.</p><p>Antares CEO Jordan Bramble says the reactor is being engineered to run reliably for six-plus years deployed without refueling, at an output the company, while noting that firm contracts to build reactors and the capital raised would allow the company to build<em> </em>"the first microreactor producing useful electricity in a truly commercially viable design."</p><p>The claim might hold for the US military, but insights from financial advisory firm Lazard <a href="https://www.lazard.com/research-insights/levelized-cost-of-energyplus-lcoeplus/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">suggest</a> the approach is more expensive for now than all but the most expensive gas turbines in operation, with renewables clocking in considerably cheaper.</p><p>More importantly, the US supply chain for advanced reactors remains immature; no company has yet to manufacture microreactors at a production scale, and a first-of-a-kind electricity-producing reactor may reveal problems that a zero-power core does not currently exhibit.</p><p>Half a billion dollars in capital buys Antares a serious attempt at the deadline. Whether it manages to buy a reactor running on a US base in time to meet the executive order remains to be seen for now, even as it remains committed to trying.</p> </article> ]]>