The collaboration builds the first digital twin of a stellarator fusion power plant and leverages world leading AI, physics, and engineering for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission
KEARNY, N.J., June 08, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Thea Energy, Inc., a technology company advancing the stellarator for the commercialization of an abundant source of baseload fusion power, today announced collaborations to develop a digital twin model for its “Helios” fusion power plant. Using the latest in artificial intelligence (AI) and computational tools, Thea Energy will work with NVIDIA and Synopsys, two leaders in the AI-driven digital transformation of industries, as well as the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to analyze and scale vast datasets, rapidly evolve Thea Energy’s plant designs, and stress-test system operation in a workflow that outpaces traditional tools.
This collaboration aligns with the U.S. DOE’s Genesis Mission which is focused on leveraging AI to fast-track scientific advancement. A core priority of the Genesis Mission is accelerating the development of baseload fusion power with AI to address challenges highlighted in the DOE’s Fusion Science and Technology Roadmap. Thea Energy is using AI to bridge simulation and real-world system operational data, closing critical gaps to build the Helios digital twin faster and with orders of magnitude less capital compared to traditional models.
“This is a critical public-private collaboration, where Thea Energy is leveraging AI to build systems on time and on budget, keeping us on track to delivering on-demand, abundant fusion power by 2035,” said David Gates, Ph.D., Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Thea Energy. “Our planar coil stellarator architecture also utilizes AI for its software controls to continuously reoptimize the system and correct for wear-and-tear. With this collaboration, we are expanding our AI applications to include multifaceted device modeling at the click of a button. With the Helios digital twin, we can shorten development cycles and essentially run the system before we even put a shovel in the ground. We are committed to expanding this ecosystem further with partners that share our vision for building the most reliable, scalable, and maintainable fusion power plants.”
Through these collaborations:
- NVIDIA will accelerate and integrate Thea Energy’s models, codes, and real-world data into a digital twin platform using NVIDIA Omniverse libraries. Powered by NVIDIA AI infrastructure, this platform will allow Thea Energy to analyze power plant performance in real-time at an unprecedented rate and scale.
- Synopsys will deliver leading simulation software expertise to integrate data into a unified multiphysics framework. This Ansys simulation-driven, AI-accelerated approach allows for the rapid evaluation of Thea Energy’s breeding blanket system, where the blanket converts energy from fusion and protects the magnet systems.
- ANL will contribute expertise in neutronics analysis and blanket design as well as data that will be integrated into the Helios digital twin to bridge the knowledge gap in commercial blanket systems and ensure high efficiency energy conversion.
- PPPL will supply key knowledge spanning plasma modeling and computational tools, specifically, high-fidelity codes required to simulate complex plasma behaviors under power-plant-relevant conditions.
John Josephakis, Global Vice President of HPC and Supercomputing at NVIDIA, added, “AI and accelerated computing are helping scientists and engineers bring complex simulations, operational data and 3D visualization into shared digital twins that can improve how next-generation energy systems are designed. Thea Energy’s Helios work is a strong example, using GPU-accelerated AI with OpenUSD and NVIDIA Omniverse to help bring fusion plant data and simulation results into an interactive environment for faster design exploration and decision-making.”
Steve Pytel, Senior Vice President of Product Management at Synopsys, added, “We are developing the Helios digital twin to be more than a model. It will be an analytical tool with the potential to further derisk Thea Energy’s path to fusion on the grid. Our high-fidelity simulation solutions reveal complex interactions with photorealistic detail, enabling engineers to predict behavior and evaluate system performance. These insights play a vital role in optimizing Helios for continuous and reliable energy generation.”
John Tramm, Ph.D., Computational Scientist at ANL, added, “By launching a high-speed simulation platform, powered by advanced GPU acceleration, we are streamlining neutronics data analysis. With Thea Energy, we look to bridge the gap between large-scale physics simulations and practical engineering iteration and for the first time, complex datasets required to train AI surrogate models on real-world blanket design challenges can feed into the Helios digital twin and provide rapid feedback. This process fundamentally alters the workflow for major power plant components, accelerating the deployment of fusion energy.”
Nate Ferraro, Ph.D., Deputy Head of PPPL’s Theory Department, added, “PPPL is using AI to accelerate research and through public-private collaborations with industry leaders, we can help to eliminate uncertainty on the path to commercially viable fusion power. We’re integrating the ‘brain’ into the Helios digital twin by supplying industry leading expertise alongside plasma simulation codes and verified data sets. These data sets will train an extremely high-fidelity surrogate model for Thea Energy that informs the Helios digital twin.”
Thea Energy is on track to operate Helios in the 2030s following “Eos”, its large-scale demonstration system which will create power-plant-relevant, steady-state fusion. Eos will directly benefit from the breakthroughs highlighted in the Company’s Helios design, including its digital twin.
About Thea Energy, Inc.
Thea Energy, Inc. is commercializing scalable and economical fusion energy systems via its planar coil stellarator architecture. Thea Energy’s stellarator power plants will uniquely provide an abundant and safe source of zero-emission energy for the future of humanity. The Company has utilized arrays of mass-manufacturable magnets and dynamic software controls to reinvent the stellarator.
Thea Energy spun out of Princeton University and Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory in 2022 to commercialize the stellarator, a mature magnetic confinement fusion architecture. The Company was selected as an inaugural awardee of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program following a detailed merit review process, and is also supported via six Department of Energy INFUSE awards. Thea Energy is currently collaborating with leading national labs, academic institutions, and industrial partners to commercialize fusion energy on the fastest and most efficient path.
To learn more about Thea Energy’s mission, visit thea.energy and follow us on LinkedIn and X.
Contact
Madeline Joanis
maddy@thea.energy
