ABOUT
OUR ORIGINS
A worldwide effort is underway to develop fusion as a long-term energy solution.
Discover how Kyoto Fusioneering’s unique DNA is helping to shape the future of industry.
Discover how Kyoto Fusioneering’s unique DNA is helping to shape the future of industry.
KF’s Origins
Leading the way in developing a new energy industry that will be ready to support the world’s first commercial fusion power plant
When the world’s first fusion power plant becomes operational, it will mark a major step toward a new era of clean energy.
At Kyoto Fusioneering—a technology start-up based in Japan—we’re working with global partners to build the foundation of a new industry and accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy.
Our goal is to lead the way in fusion engineering and help make the world’s first fusion power plant a reality.
At Kyoto Fusioneering—a technology start-up based in Japan—we’re working with global partners to build the foundation of a new industry and accelerate the path to commercial fusion energy.
Our goal is to lead the way in fusion engineering and help make the world’s first fusion power plant a reality.
START
STORY
Fusion as a long-term energy solution for humanity
The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in 2021 on global warming definitively stated the role of human activities in causing global warming. The unprecedented increase in carbon dioxide concentrations and rise in temperature have not occurred at any point in the last 2000 years.
The rapidly rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have also led to the acidification of seawater, meaning that the earth’s natural ecosystem has been impacted. Humankind has upset the equilibrium of the carbon cycle and the responsibility for improving this falls squarely on us.
Global warming has led us to a crisis in which the very survival of the planet is at stake. Therefore, we need to find globally relevant solutions if humankind is to have a prosperous future. The answer is to develop a “renewable energy society” where innovative solutions lead to a net-zero, fully decarbonized world.
The rapidly rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have also led to the acidification of seawater, meaning that the earth’s natural ecosystem has been impacted. Humankind has upset the equilibrium of the carbon cycle and the responsibility for improving this falls squarely on us.
Global warming has led us to a crisis in which the very survival of the planet is at stake. Therefore, we need to find globally relevant solutions if humankind is to have a prosperous future. The answer is to develop a “renewable energy society” where innovative solutions lead to a net-zero, fully decarbonized world.
STORY
Fusion energy as a revolutionary technology to decarbonize the environment
The world needs a new energy source that is safe, is low carbon producing and has a sufficient fuel supply to ensure decarbonization on a global scale. Fusion energy provides the ultimate solution: an energy source unlike any other that meets all requirements.
Inside the sun and the stars, nuclei of light atoms like hydrogen collide and “fuse” to form heavier nuclei, producing large amount of energy through fusion. Scientists have spent almost a century understanding how this process works to build a reactor to replicate this process on Earth.
Fusion energy has the potential to solve the energy and environmental challenges we’re currently facing. The primary fuels for the reaction are found in seawater. The reaction does not produce carbon dioxide. Unlike nuclear fission, there is no danger of a severe reaction occurring, nor is there the issue of high-level radioactive waste.
For these reasons and more, research institutes around the world have been developing fusion to usher in a new generation of clean energy. Japan has been at the forefront thanks to the work of Dr. Hideki Yukawa, a Nobel laureate who conducted groundbreaking research on the structure of atomic nuclei. Dr. Yukawa’s work provided the spark for fusion R&D in Japan, and research institutes around the country have continued to play a leading role in developing fusion technology.
Inside the sun and the stars, nuclei of light atoms like hydrogen collide and “fuse” to form heavier nuclei, producing large amount of energy through fusion. Scientists have spent almost a century understanding how this process works to build a reactor to replicate this process on Earth.
Fusion energy has the potential to solve the energy and environmental challenges we’re currently facing. The primary fuels for the reaction are found in seawater. The reaction does not produce carbon dioxide. Unlike nuclear fission, there is no danger of a severe reaction occurring, nor is there the issue of high-level radioactive waste.
For these reasons and more, research institutes around the world have been developing fusion to usher in a new generation of clean energy. Japan has been at the forefront thanks to the work of Dr. Hideki Yukawa, a Nobel laureate who conducted groundbreaking research on the structure of atomic nuclei. Dr. Yukawa’s work provided the spark for fusion R&D in Japan, and research institutes around the country have continued to play a leading role in developing fusion technology.
STORY
The dawning of a new era of fusion energy
Fusion energy R&D gained immense traction thanks to international scientific cooperation through ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor). The origins of ITER can be traced back to a 1985 Cold War era summit between the leaders of the US and the USSR.
Scientists and engineers from around the world collaborated on ITER’s design, which was finalized in 2000. While there have been significant developments in fusion R&D, these cannot be incorporated into the design. To capitalize on these advancements, multiple private sector fusion startups began appearing on the scene after 2015. Over the past 10 years, ITER and private sector startups have co-existed side-by-side with the common goal to bring fusion energy to humanity as soon as possible. More private sector startups are launched each year, and the dawn of a new industry is just around the corner.
Scientists and engineers from around the world collaborated on ITER’s design, which was finalized in 2000. While there have been significant developments in fusion R&D, these cannot be incorporated into the design. To capitalize on these advancements, multiple private sector fusion startups began appearing on the scene after 2015. Over the past 10 years, ITER and private sector startups have co-existed side-by-side with the common goal to bring fusion energy to humanity as soon as possible. More private sector startups are launched each year, and the dawn of a new industry is just around the corner.
STORY
Kyoto Fusioneering’s launch and the dawn of a new energy industry
Kyoto Fusioneering Ltd, Japan’s first fusion startup, began as a spinout from Kyoto University in October 2019. The co-founders – Satoshi Konishi, Taka Nagao, Richard Pearson and Shutaro Takeda—believe that fusion is the ultimate energy solution for humankind and that it is no longer a dream. To make this dream a reality, a new energy industry must be forged. To that end, Kyoto Fusioneering is focused on addressing fusion’s toughest engineering and technology challenges. Kyoto Fusioneering researches, develops and designs innovative fusion technologies while providing engineering solutions to both private fusion enterprises and publicly funded fusion programmes at global research institutes.
Satoshi Konishi, KF’s co-founder, acted as the Chair for the International Coordinating Committee for the ITER Blanket programme. The engineering expertise he gained through decades of work in fusion has laid the technological foundation for technology being used in research institutes around the world.
Satoshi Konishi, KF’s co-founder, acted as the Chair for the International Coordinating Committee for the ITER Blanket programme. The engineering expertise he gained through decades of work in fusion has laid the technological foundation for technology being used in research institutes around the world.
