---
title: "Helion, the Sam Altman-backed fusion startup, raises $465M to build a power plant for Microsoft"
url: https://daily.dev/posts/helion-the-sam-altman-backed-fusion-startup-raises-465m-to-build-a-power-plant-for-microsoft-5ccb6ds0c
source_url: https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/04/helion-the-sam-altman-backed-fusion-startup-raises-465m-to-build-a-power-plant-for-microsoft
type: article
source: "TechCrunch"
published: 2026-06-04T18:55:15.750Z
updated: 2026-06-04T18:55:37.855Z
tags: ["startup", "microsoft"]
reading_time: 3
upvotes: 0
comments: 0
language: en
---

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# Helion, the Sam Altman-backed fusion startup, raises $465M to build a power plant for Microsoft

**[TechCrunch](https://daily.dev/sources/tc)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments

## Summary

Helion, the fusion startup backed by Sam Altman, has raised $465 million in a Series G round led by Thrive Capital, valuing the company at $15.5 billion and bringing its total funding to $1.5 billion. The capital will help Helion complete Orion, its first fusion power plant, which it aims to deliver to Microsoft by 2028. Helion's approach is distinctive: rather than using steam turbines, it plans to harvest electricity directly from the magnets used to compress plasma, potentially improving efficiency — though some experts remain skeptical. The raise is part of a broader surge in fusion investment, with several other startups also closing large rounds in recent months, driven in part by AI companies' appetite for abundant, always-on power.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/04/helion-the-sam-altman-backed-fusion-startup-raises-465m-to-build-a-power-plant-for-microsoft>

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Tags: [#startup](https://daily.dev/tags/startup), [#microsoft](https://daily.dev/tags/microsoft)

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/helion-the-sam-altman-backed-fusion-startup-raises-465m-to-build-a-power-plant-for-microsoft-5ccb6ds0c)