Nuclear battery manufacturer raises $50M in latest venture capital funding round
Zeno Power has designed, built and tested the first-ever commercially developed radioisotope heat source, with help from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The milestone means Zeno Power is on track to begin delivering radioisotope power systems, or RPSs, to customers in 2025. Pictured is the PNNL team removing the Z1 heat source from transfer port.
A nuclear battery company with ties to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland has raised $50 million in its latest round of venture funding as it works to develop reliable power sources for use in space and deep sea exploration.
Zeno Power already holds $60 million in contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense and NASA to develop its nuclear batteries, according to a release. The company plans to grow its labor force to 100 employees in Seattle and Washington D.C. and invest in manufacturing to scale production and meet customer demand.
“With great power competition rising, the ocean floor, Arctic and lunar surface are becoming the front lines of global security and economic progress – but they remain energy deserts,” said Tyler Bernstein, Zeno Power’s CEO and one of its co-founders, in a statement. “With this round of funding, we’re on track to demonstrate full-scale systems in 2026 and deliver the first commercially built nuclear batteries to power frontier environments by 2027.”
Zeno’s nuclear batteries convert the natural decay of radioactive material into thermal and electrical power, offering reliable power in areas where solar power or batteries fail.
