OPINION:
The quest to commercialize fusion energy is no longer a science project; it’s a race for commercialization and industrial scale. The central dynamic of this race is clear: The United States has laid the scientific groundwork, but China is positioning to win commercial markets.
Western governments often frame fusion as a long-term research and development bet dominated by venture capital. Beijing, meanwhile, is treating it as a national imperative. Fusion promises near-limitless, dispatchable power, a technology that could rewrite the global energy, economic and security order.
The U.S. is also behind on infrastructure. Beijing has been executing an aggressive, state-led “infrastructure-first” strategy, backed by a mobilization of at least $6.5 billion, possibly as much as $13 billion, since 2023. This will give China the facilities, talent and supply chains to dominate the commercial market.
In July, Beijing announced a $2.1 billion investment in a single new state-owned firm, China Fusion Energy Co. That investment is nearly three times the entire annual U.S. government Fusion Energy Sciences budget. China also is constructing large-scale R&D facilities, while the U.S. has no significant public fusion infrastructure projects underway. China is also positioning to control the future supply chain, from high-temperature superconducting tape for tokamak walls to the enriched lithium-6 needed for fuel.
The Western response is mismatched. The U.S. leads in private investment, with a dynamic ecosystem of startups, but venture capital alone cannot build a national industrial base or secure global supply chains. We are bringing private investors to a fight against a nation-state.
The gap between America’s scientific prowess and its industrial follow-through is stark. The Department of Energy took a step in the right direction recently by creating the Office of Fusion, but without ambition or capital, it will have limited impact.
We need national mobilization. A clear, ambitious national goal, such as breaking ground on more than one demonstration power plant by 2028, and a funding injection of $10 billion, as recommended by a recent nonpartisan commission, would signal that America is finally serious about winning the fusion race.
The cost of inaction will be infinitely higher than the cost of this investment. The contest to ignite the first star on Earth has begun. The West must now choose whether to light the way or be consigned to the shadows.
YLLI BAJRAKTARI
President, Special Competitive Studies Project
Arlington, Virginia
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