Nuclear fusion race draws in Nobel-winning LED pioneer

Exclusive: Shuji Nakamura's U.S. startup Blue Laser Fusion pursues 'dream' energy source

Shuji Nakamura, left, and Hiroaki Ohta are co-founders of Blue Laser Fusion, a U.S. startup pursuing nuclear fusion energy.

RYOTARO YAMADA, Nikkei staff writer

July 23, 2023 02:58 JST

PALO ALTO, U.S. -- A new U.S. startup led by a Nobel Prize-winning electronics engineer aims to build a nuclear fusion reactor by around 2030, making it the latest company seeking to harness the power of stars.

Shuji Nakamura, a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, was one of three winners of the 2014 Nobel Prize in physics for the development of the blue light-emitting diode.