By Deborah Mary Sophia and Timothy Gardner Dec 18 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump is getting into the fusion power business through a $6 billion merger of his social media firm and Google-backed TAE Technologies, announced just days after industry leaders met with U.S. Energy Department representatives to urge federal funding. The all-stock deal announced on Thursday is an ambitious bet on the power boom spurred by artificial intelligence data-centers and adds to the Trump family's growing roster of diverse ventures from cryptocurrency to real estate holdings and mobile services. After his return to office this year, Trump's close relatives have pursued ventures leveraging his political power and policy shifts. The Trump family has, for instance, amassed billions in crypto-related wealth as Trump throws his support behind digital financial assets. Greater support from the federal government could potentially boost the value of this investment, as well. The news put a charge into shares of the money-losing Trump Media on Thursday, sending them up 35%. The stock, popular with retail traders, had lost more than 70% of its value over the last 12 months following a big surge during the 2024 campaign. "At face value, this is a Barbenheimer mashup. Trump Media gets a dramatic new growth story tied to the AI power crunch and data-center (hyperscaler) electricity demand, while TAE gets a fast lane to being publicly traded via an all stock merger valued above $6 billion," said Michael Ashley Schulman, partner and chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors. EFFORTS IN FUSION The growing electricity needs of the technology industry have in recent months revived interest in nuclear power, including restarting fully shuttered reactors, expanding existing plants and signing contracts for future small modular reactors. Despite decades of global efforts, nuclear fusion, often seen as a cleaner and reliable power source, has yet to produce a commercially viable reactor. Shareholders of both companies will own about 50% of the combined entity after the deal closes in mid-2026. Trump Media and Technology Group will be the holding company for businesses including Truth Social platform, TAE Power Solutions, and TAE Life Sciences. Trump has 114 million shares in Trump Media, roughly 40% of the company. In the new merger, his ownership stake would be roughly 20%. The company, which mainly generates revenue from advertising on the Truth Social platform, has consistently clocked losses since its inception, including a loss of $54.8 million in its September-end quarter. Thursday's rally was a salve for some retail investors who have watched the stock's price fizzle for most of 2025. Chad Nedohin, an Edmonton-based pastor and mechanical engineer in the energy sector, leads one of the largest Trump Media retail investor groups on Truth Social, which has more than 190,000 followers. Up until the past year, Nedohin had been one of Truth Social’s most influential hype men – but has been frustrated as the stock slumped all year. “I can’t sit here and just be excited about a stock that’s done nothing but stupid stuff until today," he said. "But today was awesome, I think it’s a brilliant move.” WAVE OF THE FUTURE? Companies and physicists at national laboratories have been trying for decades to foster fusion reactions, in which light atoms are forced together under extreme temperatures to release huge amounts of energy, a process that fuels the sun. Big hurdles to commercialize fusion include getting more energy out of a reaction than what goes into it and developing plants that can withstand streams of fusion reactions to power the grid. TAE CEO Michl Binderbauer and other fusion company leaders met with U.S. Energy Department officials this month, weeks after the department formed its first ever fusion office. Trump Media agreed to provide up to $200 million in cash to TAE at signing and $100 million more upon initial filing of the registration. The deal has been approved by the companies' boards. DEMOCRAT CAUTIONS ON DEAL U.S. Representative Don Beyer, a Democrat and advocate for fusion, said on X the deal raises "significant concerns about conflicts of interest and avenues for potential corruption." The merger will need congressional oversight, Beyer said, to ensure that U.S. and public funds are directed toward ways that benefit Americans and not of Trump, his family, and allies. The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment. They plan to build the world's first utility-scale fusion power plant beginning next year. Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes said in a brief, eight-minute investor call that the companies plan to "quickly seek approvals" after the deal closes, with siting for the plant expected to begin by 2026 end. He will be co-CEO of the new company, along with Binderbauer. The two, along with Donald Trump Jr., will sit on the merged company's board. (Reporting by Deborah Sophia and Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru, Timothy Gardner in Washington DC and Michelle Conlin in New York; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar, Arun Koyyur, David Gaffen, Nick Zieminski and Chizu Nomiyama)
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