DOE selects 28 fusion research projects for $8.5 million, pending award negotiations

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science announced on November 2, 2026 that it had selected 28 projects for negotiations toward $8.5 million in fiscal year 2026 support through INFUSE, a program connecting private companies with national laboratories and universities. The selections involve 22 commercial enterprises, with 17 projects led by national laboratories and 11 by universities.

The work covers modeling and simulation, materials, plasma diagnostics and enabling technologies. Projects are planned for one or two years, with individual budgets of $100,000–$500,000. The published list includes research on restoring high-temperature superconductors’ properties after neutron irradiation, tritium fuel cycles and equipment for laser fusion, supporting several fusion approaches.

One Japan-linked project pairs Kyoto Fusioneering America with Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to model non-uniform flow and heat transfer in fusion blankets using magnetohydrodynamics. The selections connect research institutions not only with reactor developers but also with businesses working on materials, diagnostics and supporting equipment.

INFUSE’s federal funding supports work at national laboratories and universities rather than going directly to companies. DOE explicitly states that selection does not guarantee an award or funding. Negotiations with applicants must take place before funding is issued, and DOE may end those negotiations and withdraw a selection. The next milestones to watch are the outcome of negotiations and progress in each research project.

Read about the public-private partnerships supporting U.S. fusion