Realta Fusion Achieves Apparent First: Generates Electricity Directly from Fusion Reaction

Realta Fusion, a Wisconsin-based startup, has announced a significant breakthrough in the quest for clean energy, claiming to be the first private company to successfully generate electricity directly from a controlled nuclear fusion reaction. This achievement marks a crucial step forward, moving beyond the 2022 milestone that confirmed fusion reactions can produce more power than they consume, and now focusing on making these reactions economically viable. The company revealed that an experiment conducted on June 19 successfully powered a lightbulb using electricity harvested directly from WHAM, its demonstration fusion device. Kieran Furlong, co-founder and CEO of Realta Fusion, expressed the significance of this event to TechCrunch, stating, "We can take power from a plasma," and highlighting "what’s possible" through their innovative approach. This direct conversion method stands in contrast to traditional power generation, which typically relies on heat from fusion to produce steam that spins turbines. The direct electricity conversion method promises substantially higher efficiency. Furlong estimates that this approach is about 90% efficient, meaning it converts 90% of the potential energy into electricity. This is a dramatic improvement compared to the roughly 33% efficiency of steam turbines used in today's fission reactors. Realta's prototype electricity converter was attached to its reactor, where it successfully harvested "alpha power" – charged helium nuclei which constitute about 20% of the energy from deuterium-tritium fusion reactions – to generate multiple amps at 100 volts, enough to power several lightbulbs. This efficiency boost is critical for fusion startups, as every power plant consumes some of its output to operate. By making the process more efficient, Realta Fusion aims to accelerate its path to profitability. The company plans to use this directly converted electricity to heat the plasma within its reactor, effectively recirculating the power. Furlong projects that this circularity could increase a commercial-scale power plant’s total output by 20% to 30%, likening it to "spinning a flywheel of electricity." While Realta Fusion appears to be the first to publicly demonstrate direct energy conversion, other companies, such as Helion (backed by Sam Altman), also view this technology as central to their future plans, though they have yet to achieve a public demonstration. Realta Fusion previously secured $36 million in a Series A funding round in 2025 and is currently in the process of raising a new round, underscoring investor confidence in its groundbreaking technology and its potential to revolutionize the energy sector by making fusion power a more economically attractive reality.