Constellation proposes to partner with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to apply high-fidelity multiphysics modeling and high-performance computing to improve predictive understanding of MCO phenomena. ORNL will utilize the Virtual Environment for Reactor Applications (VERA) and complementary computational fluid dynamics simulations to analyze historical operating cycles and identify core- and bundle-level mechanisms driving carryover.
NANO proposes to partner with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to apply the SCALE/TSUNAMI code suite to quantify the impact of nuclear data, modeling assumptions, and operational parameters on key reactor physics metrics, including reactivity, power distribution, and temperature coefficients. ORNL’s NRC-recognized analytical tools and expertise will enable development of a validated UQ framework tailored to the KRONOS design.
NuCube proposes to partner with Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) to verify an autonomous control architecture using a Digital Twin of the DeccaCell reactor. ANL will adapt its existing autonomous operation and diagnostics framework to demonstrate automated startup, remote monitoring, islanding-mode transitions, and predictive maintenance within a validated simulation environment. The project will generate a technically defensible basis for reduced staffing models and support future DOE and NRC licensing engagement.
April 1, 2026 DOE’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) program provides the nuclear community with the technical, regulatory, and financial support needed to move innovative nuclear technologies toward commercialization while ensuring the continued, safe, and economic operation of the existing fleet. This is the 2nd round of GAIN vouchers awarded for fiscal year 2026. The businesses selected to receive a GAIN nuclear energy voucher for Round 2 FY 2026 are: Constellation Energy, Kennet Square, PA; NANO Nuclear Energy Inc., New York, NY; and NuCube Energy, Inc. Idaho Falls, ID.
Nuclear AI will partner with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to utilize the capabilities for the Nondestructive Evaluation Unit of the Engineering Materials group. PNNL will use high-temperature furnace infrastructure, ultrasonic PZT sensor components, and high precision prototyping equipment to demonstrate the efficacy of a high temperature pipe wall thickness detector. The ability to perform inspections and vet structural integrity at these temperatures would support advanced reactor inspection programs for piping and vessel components.
December 18, 2026 – TDOE’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) program provides the nuclear community with the technical, regulatory, and financial support needed to move innovative nuclear technologies toward commercialization while ensuring the continued, safe, and economic operation of the existing fleet. GAIN voucher recipients do not receive direct financial awards. Vouchers provide funding to DOE laboratories to help businesses overcome critical technological and commercialization challenges. All awardees are responsible for a minimum 20 percent cost share, which could be an in-kind contribution. This marks the 1st round of GAIN vouchers awarded for fiscal year 2026.
November 20, 2025,
DOE’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) program provides the nuclear community with the technical, regulatory, and financial support needed to move innovative nuclear technologies toward commercialization while ensuring the continued, safe, and economic operation of the existing fleet. GAIN voucher recipients do not receive direct financial awards. Vouchers provide funding to DOE laboratories to help businesses overcome critical technological and commercialization challenges. All awardees are responsible for a minimum 20 percent cost share, which could be an in-kind contribution. This marks the fourth and final round of GAIN vouchers awarded for fiscal year 2025. Please visit the GAIN website for more information on upcoming award rounds.
Industry toured Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to understand ongoing nuclear research and capabilities at the laboratory. Industry met with INL technical points of contact to discuss capabilities and identify potential future collaboration opportunities.
“When you look at our energy forecast, AI and data centers alone are driving the energy demand,” said Michelle Zietlow-Miller, the public engagement manager for “Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear. “That’s an equivalent of being the sixth largest country by themselves, in 2026.”
In 2020, the Arizona utility Salt River Project (SRP) announced its plans to cease coal generation at the Coronado Generating Station by 2032. This decision is set to have a profound impact not only on the power grid but also on the entire community of St. Johns, Arizona.