Microsoft is spending $1.6 billion to restart a nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island. Amazon is pouring $20 billion into a nuclear-powered data center campus. Google signed a deal for 500 megawatts of power from reactors that don’t exist yet.
Not a sci-fi pitch. That’s the actual state of Big Tech’s energy strategy right now — and honestly, it tells you just how desperate the AI power problem has gotten.
AI’s electricity appetite is getting out of control
One number explains everything: U.S. data centers consumed 183 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in 2024. That’s over 4% of the country’s total power consumption. And it’s accelerating — fast.
The International Energy Agency projects global data center electricity demand will double to roughly 945 TWh by 2030. AI-optimized facilities are the main driver, with their demand alone expected to quadruple in that timeframe.
Put that in human terms. A single AI-focused hyperscaler — think Microsoft Azure or AWS — uses as much electricity annually as 100,000 households. Virginia, the data center capital of the U.S., already devotes 26% of its total electricity supply to these facilities. Twenty-six percent! For buildings full of GPUs.
You can build all the solar farms you want. AI models need power 24/7, and the sun doesn’t care about your training run schedule.
Why nuclear? Because nothing else checks every box
It comes down to three things:
- Baseload power (meaning always-on, consistent electricity output) that runs 24/7 regardless of weather
- Carbon-free generation that satisfies corporate net-zero pledges
- High energy density — a nuclear plant produces enormous power from a small footprint
Solar and wind are great. But they’re intermittent. Battery storage helps, but at the scale these companies need — we’re talking gigawatts, not megawatts — it’s nowhere near enough. Natural gas is reliable but blows up your emissions targets.
Nuclear is the only source that delivers all three. Always on, zero carbon, massive output. That math is why every major cloud provider is now writing very large checks to nuclear companies.
Who’s buying what: a company-by-company breakdown
The sheer scale of these deals is worth seeing in one place:
| Company | Nuclear Partner(s) | Deal Size | Technology | Target Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | Constellation Energy | $1.6B, 20-year PPA | Restart of Three Mile Island Unit 1 | 835 MW |
| Amazon | X-energy | $500M financing round | Gas-cooled SMR | Part of $20B+ campus |
| Kairos Power | Multi-year agreement | Fluoride salt-cooled SMR | Up to 500 MW | |
| Meta | Oklo, TerraPower, Vistra | Multiple deals | SMRs + existing plants | 6.6 GW by 2035 |
A few things jump out from this table.
Microsoft took the most pragmatic route — restart an existing reactor that’s already built. No waiting for new technology. Amazon is hedging with both new SMR tech and massive campus investment. Google is betting on a specific next-gen design. And Meta? Meta’s going biggest of all, targeting 6.6 gigawatts (GW) — enough to power roughly 5 million homes.
What are small modular reactors, and why do they matter?
You’ll notice “SMR” keeps showing up. Small modular reactors are exactly what they sound like: nuclear reactors that are smaller than traditional plants and designed to be built in factories, then shipped to site.
Traditional nuclear plants generate 1,000+ megawatts (MW) and cost $10-20 billion. A decade to build, minimum. SMRs generate 50-345 MW per unit, cost less individually, and — in theory — can be deployed faster because they’re factory-assembled. Think IKEA, but for nuclear reactors. (Okay, dramatically more regulated IKEA.)
Here are the key players right now:
- NuScale Power: The only SMR design with full NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) certification. Ready to deploy but hasn’t built a commercial unit yet.
- TerraPower (backed by Bill Gates): Building the Natrium reactor — a 345 MW sodium-cooled fast reactor with molten salt energy storage. NextEra Energy partnered with TerraPower in late 2025 for a fleet rollout targeting 2.5-3 GW.
- Kairos Power: Developing fluoride salt-cooled reactors for Google.
- X-energy: Gas-cooled SMR design, backed by Amazon’s $500M investment.
- Oklo: Compact fast reactor design, partnered with Meta.
The U.S. Department of Energy selected 10 companies in early 2026 to fast-track advanced reactor development. The goal? First criticality by July 4, 2026. Yes, really.
The awkward truth: none of these SMRs are running yet
Here’s where you need to pump the brakes on the hype. Not a single commercial SMR operates anywhere in the United States today. NuScale has NRC certification but no operating plant. TerraPower’s Natrium is still in development. Kairos Power’s reactor for Google is years from generating a single watt.
The DOE’s July 2026 criticality target for at least three reactors is wildly ambitious — and most industry analysts are skeptical it’ll happen on schedule.
So what does this mean? Microsoft’s Three Mile Island restart is the only deal likely to deliver power in the near term (expected by 2028). The SMR-based projects from Google, Amazon, and Meta are probably looking at the early 2030s — if everything goes right.
That’s a big “if.” Nuclear projects have a long history of cost overruns and schedule delays. The question isn’t whether these companies want nuclear power. It’s whether the nuclear industry can actually deliver it on time.
What this means for the energy grid — and your electricity bill
Here’s the part that might actually affect you. When tech companies buy up nuclear capacity, that power isn’t available for everyone else.
Consumer Reports found that data center growth is already putting upward pressure on electricity prices in regions with high concentrations of these facilities. If Big Tech locks up gigawatts of nuclear generation through long-term contracts, that’s less clean baseload power available for residential and industrial users.
And then there’s water. AI data centers can drink up to 5 million gallons per day for cooling. Nuclear plants need cooling water too. Stack both in the same region and you’ve got a real problem — something communities in water-scarce areas are already pushing back on.
The bigger picture: Big Tech is reshaping the nuclear industry
Zoom out for a second. For decades, the nuclear industry couldn’t find customers willing to sign long-term contracts. Utilities were risk-averse. Public opinion was mixed at best. Financing? Brutal.
Now the richest companies on Earth are writing 20-year power purchase agreements and funding reactor startups directly. Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta have collectively committed to more than 10 GW of new nuclear capacity in the U.S. alone.
That’s a fundamental shift. Big Tech isn’t just buying nuclear power — it’s becoming the financial backbone of the entire nuclear renaissance. Without these contracts, most SMR startups would struggle to raise a dime. With them, there’s suddenly a viable path from prototype to commercial deployment. The irony is thick: the companies burning through the most electricity might end up funding the clean energy infrastructure everyone benefits from.
Whether that path leads to operating reactors by the early 2030s or gets bogged down in regulatory delays and construction headaches — that’s the trillion-dollar question.
FAQ
How much electricity do AI data centers use?
U.S. data centers consumed 183 TWh in 2024, over 4% of total U.S. electricity. Global data center demand is projected to double to ~945 TWh by 2030, with AI being the primary driver.
Why are tech companies choosing nuclear over solar or wind?
Nuclear provides 24/7 baseload power that doesn’t depend on weather conditions. Solar and wind are intermittent and can’t reliably deliver the constant, massive power loads AI data centers need without prohibitively expensive battery storage at scale.
What is a small modular reactor (SMR)?
An SMR is a nuclear reactor that generates 50-345 MW per unit — much smaller than traditional 1,000+ MW plants. They’re designed for factory assembly and faster deployment, though no commercial SMR operates in the U.S. yet.
Which company has the largest nuclear deal?
Meta leads with 6.6 GW of nuclear capacity targeted by 2035 through deals with Oklo, TerraPower, and Vistra. That’s enough to power roughly 5 million homes.
When will these nuclear projects actually produce power?
Microsoft’s Three Mile Island restart is the nearest-term project, expected around 2028. Most SMR-based projects won’t deliver power until the early 2030s at the earliest.
Are there any SMRs operating in the U.S. right now?
No. NuScale Power has the only NRC-certified SMR design, but no commercial unit has been built yet. The DOE is pushing to fast-track several designs with a target of first criticality in 2026, but that timeline is considered aggressive.
Will nuclear-powered data centers affect electricity prices?
Potentially, yes. When tech companies lock up nuclear generation through long-term contracts, that reduces clean baseload power available for other consumers. Regions with heavy data center concentration are already seeing upward pressure on electricity rates.
What are the environmental concerns with nuclear-powered data centers?
Beyond the standard nuclear waste question, the main concern is water usage. Both data centers and nuclear plants require significant cooling water. Stacking both in the same region could strain local water supplies, especially in areas already facing water scarcity.
What do you think about Big Tech’s nuclear bet? Is this the right move for AI’s energy future, or are these companies writing checks the nuclear industry can’t cash? Drop your thoughts in the comments below or subscribe to our newsletter for daily tech analysis.