Record-breaking funding: €130M Series A is Europe’s largest private investment round in fusion energy to date.
Fusion leadership goal: Proxima aims to bring Europe’s first stellarator-based fusion power plant online by 2031.
Strategic shift in energy: Signals Europe’s move from fossil dependence to technological energy sovereignty.
Proxima Fusion, the fastest-growing fusion energy startup in Europe, has raised €130 million ($150 million) in Series A funding, marking the continent’s largest-ever private fusion investment round. The round was co-led by Cherry Ventures and Balderton Capital, with backing from prominent climate and tech investors including UVC Partners, DeepTech & Climate Fonds, Lightspeed, and redalpine, among others.
This brings the company’s total funding to over €185 million ($200 million) in combined public and private capital. The financing will accelerate its plan to deliver the world’s first commercial fusion power plant based on stellarator technology, with a full demonstration system, Alpha, set to begin operations in 2031.
“Fusion has become a real, strategic opportunity to shift global energy dependence from natural resources to technological leadership,” said Francesco Sciortino, CEO and Co-founder. “Proxima is perfectly positioned to harness that momentum by uniting a spectacular engineering and manufacturing team with world-leading research institutions.”
Founded in April 2023, Proxima is a spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP), and maintains close collaboration with IPP through a public-private partnership. The company leverages Europe’s extensive public investment in fusion and existing industrial supply chains to accelerate the transition from research to commercial energy production.
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Proxima’s approach is built on the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator experiment, employing a simulation-driven engineering model with cutting-edge high-temperature superconducting (HTS) technology. Earlier this year, in partnership with IPP and KIT, Proxima unveiled Stellaris, the first peer-reviewed stellarator design integrating physics, engineering, and maintenance. It has been hailed as a milestone for the global fusion industry.
“Proxima Fusion combines Europe’s scientific edge with commercial ambition, turning world-class research into one of the most promising fusion ventures globally,” said Filip Dames, Founding Partner at Cherry Ventures. “This is deep tech at its best, and a bold signal that Europe can lead on the world stage.”
The new capital will fund the development of the Stellarator Model Coil (SMC) by 2027, a key hardware milestone to validate HTS technology. Additionally, Proxima is negotiating with several European governments to finalize a site for Alpha, its demonstration facility, which will aim to prove net energy gain (Q>1)—a critical step toward commercial viability.
“Stellarators aren’t just the most technologically viable approach to fusion energy—they’re the power plants of the future,” said Daniel Waterhouse, Partner at Balderton Capital. “Proxima has firmly secured its position as the leading European contender in the global race to commercial fusion.”
Proxima’s operations span Munich (HQ), the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland, and the Culham fusion campus in the UK, with a growing team of over 80 experts. With this round, the company takes a decisive step toward energy sovereignty, industrial competitiveness, and a carbon-neutral economy for Europe.
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