As part of the "AI for Fusion Engineering" program, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is funding Proxima Fusion with more than 6.5 million euros. The project partners include the University of Bonn, Forschungszentrum Jülich, and Technische Universität München (TUM). All project partners combine interdisciplinary expertise in plasma physics, machine learning, optimization, and computer science.
Together, they aim to develop AI-powered simulation tools that can integrate physical and engineering simulations. These tools are intended to optimize critical components of stellarators, such as high-temperature superconducting magnets, materials that come into contact with fusion plasma, and cooling systems. This technology is intended to provide clean energy from fusion power plants in the future.
Francesco Sciortino, Co-founder and CEO of Proxima Fusion, explains:
"Stellarators represent the clearest and most robust path toward commercially viable fusion power. They can enable stable and continuous power generation, but are complex to develop due to their 3D geometries. This project will accelerate stellarator development, reduce costs, and improve the reliability and performance of these devices."
The interdisciplinary collaboration is intended to enable a technological leap in nuclear fusion. Daniel Cremers, Chair of Image Processing and Artificial Intelligence at the TUM School of Computation, Information and Technology:
"By applying data-driven optimization techniques, geometric machine learning, and uncertainty-aware surrogate modeling, we can leverage the latest technological advances in stellarator development into scalable computational solutions."
Zorah Lähner, leading researcher in geometric deep learning at the University of Bonn and the Lamar Institute, sees further potential:
"The tools and technologies developed within this project also have broader applications beyond fusion energy. The innovative and practical solutions will also be incredibly interesting for complex engineering challenges in the aerospace and automotive industries, for example."
As the lead partner, Proxima Fusion is responsible for the overall coordination of the project. Startup focuses on the development and construction of economically viable Stellarator fusion power plantsBy the mid-2030s, fusion energy is expected to be ready for the market and integrated into the grid.
