| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Nuclear fuel |
| Founded | January 2024 |
| Founders | Scott Nolan, Lee Robinson [1] |
| Headquarters | California, United States |
Key people |
|
| Products | Low-enriched uranium (LEU), high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) |
| Website | GeneralMatter.com |
General Matter is an American nuclear-fuel company developing domestic uranium enrichment capabilities for low-enriched uranium (LEU) and high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU). The company is focused on reducing U.S. dependence on foreign enrichment suppliers and supporting the deployment of advanced nuclear reactors. Reuters writes that it is on "a mission to help end Russia's monopoly on a type of more-enriched nuclear fuel." [3]
General Matter was founded in January 2024. Engineer and venture-capitalist Scott Nolan, a former employee of SpaceX and partner at the Founders Fund, was co-founder. [1] [4] When at SpaceX, Nolan helped to develop the Merlin engine systems and the Dragon capsule. [5] General Matter was incubated at the Founders Fund. Nolan left his position at the Founders Fund to focus on General Matter. [6] In April 2025, the company raised about US$50 million in a Series A funding round led by Founders Fund. Peter Thiel joined the company’s board of directors following the investment. [1] Lee Robinson, another founding member, is noted as having worked in intelligence. [6] Bloomberg reports that Robinson "previously led energy investments for the Defense Department's Defense Innovation Unit." [1]
In 2024, the United States Department of Energy (DOE) selected General Matter as one of the companies to participate in its program to develop domestic HALEU enrichment capacity. [7]
The company was among six firms competing for an LEU contract valued at up to $3.4 billion. The Economist notes that this contract was granted at the end of the Biden administration. [6]
General Matter is born out of the tech sector's as well as the government's effort to achieve more autonomy in nuclear fuel. Russia currently supplies about 35% of the United States' nuclear fuel, including nearly all of its HALEU, under a sanctions waiver set to expire in 2028. This has prompted efforts to secure alternative sources. [6]
In the Letter of Intent submitted to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on 2 December 2024, Nolan stated that, "General Matter has been awarded an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract by the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) under Solicitation No. 89243223RNE000031 [...] "This award specifically supports the DOE-NE’s strategic objectives of securing a domestic supply chain of HALEU to support the continued development of advanced reactors and to strengthen US leadership in nuclear technology. As a DOE-NE HALEU IDIQ awardee, General Matter’s anticipated scope of responsibility under future task orders includes the enrichment, storage, and transportation of HALEU". [8]
The company’s operations focus exclusively on uranium enrichment — converting uranium hexafluoride (UF₆) into enriched uranium — while leaving mining, conversion, and fabrication to other suppliers. [4] The official website of General Matter states that, "Uranium hexafluoride molecules are separated based on the uranium isotope present. This refining process is used to increase the concentration of U-235 from it’s natural state (0.7%) to be useful for nuclear energy as LEU (3-5%), LEU+ (5-10%) or HALEU (10-20%). General Matter performs only this enrichment step." [9]
Although the firm describes its technology as "novel" and "scalable" specific details about the enrichment process have not been publicly disclosed. [4] [3] Nolan only disclosed that, like SpaceX, the firm is "going back to first principles."
It is noted by The Economist that General Matter faces a range of challenges, including competition with established players such as Centrus Energy, Urenco USA and Orano USA. The rivals also point out that, General Matter has not yet applied for a licence from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, a process that typically takes several years to complete. Developing HALEU supply chain is also capital-intensive. [3] [6]
Critics of HALEU use argue that its high enrichment level poses a potential weapons risk and recommend capping enrichment at 10–12%. Nolan said his company will defer to regulators in determining the appropriate level. [3]
In August 2025, General Matter signed a lease agreement with the DOE to develop a commercial uranium enrichment facility at the former Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant site in Paducah, Kentucky. [10] [11]
The proposed facility, valued at approximately US$1.5 billion, will redevelop a 100-acre parcel of the site and could create around 140 full-time jobs. [12] Construction is expected to begin in 2026, with operations projected to start between the late 2020s and as late as 2034. The project represents the largest single private investment in western Kentucky's history. [11] [13] [14]