UW Feature Stories
A&A professor Uri Shumlak elected American Physical Society Fellow
A&A’s Uri Shumlak has been elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society for his Z-pinch research.
UW Aero & Astro News
Plasma flows may provide the missing ingredient to a cheaper, more compact route to nuclear fusion
A&A’s has developed a smaller, cheaper method for thermonuclear fusion using a Z-pinch to compress flowing plasma..
UW Aero & Astro News
University of Washington spinoff, Zap Energy, on track to power the planet
Zap Energy, which spun off from the UW in 2017, is developing an exciting breakthrough in fusion energy technology.
UW Comotion
Graebner wins AIAA first place for Z pinch research
Undergraduate Michelle Graebner wins first for her work on the potential application of a Z pinch for space travel.
UW Aero & Astro News
A&A’s fusion energy labs receive $3.5M
The funding moves us closer to initial commercialization for cost-competitive fusion energy.
UW Aero & Astro News
Smythe Awarded ACE Fellowship
Jared Smythe awarded Aerospace Career Enhancement Fellowship.
UW Aero & Astro News
In the media
June 22, 2022 | GeekWire
More funding for fusion: Seattle startup lands $160M and reveals technology breakthrough
A&A spinoff Zap announces its newest prototype device has created plasma and it raised $160 million in new funding.
June 06, 2022 | The New York Times
A Big Step Toward Fusion Energy Is Hailed by a Seattle Start-Up
Zap Energy reached a milestone, putting the company within reach of the long-sought-after energy break-even point.
Dec 27, 2021 | IEEE Spectrum
Magnetic-Confinement Fusion without the Magnets
A&A spin off, Zap Energy, focusing on Z-pinch fusion reactor which promises a simpler approach to an elusive goal.
May 19, 2021 | Business Wire
Zap Energy Raises $27.5 Million to Advance Reactor Technology
Zap Energy has raised $27.5 million in Series B funding. The round was led by Addition, with participation from Energy Impact Partners, GA Capital and Fourth Realm, as well as existing investors Chevron Technology Ventures and LowerCarbon Capital.
May 19, 2021 | Geek Wire
Seattle startup Zap Energy lands $27.5M to build commercial fusion reactor without magnets
Zap Energy raised a $27.5 million Series B round to fuel development of its fusion reactor that “can become one of the key enablers for a sustainable global energy future,” according to its CEO Benji Conway.
August 16, 2020 | Green Car Congress
Chevron Invests in nuclear fusion start-up Zap Energy
Chevron Corporation invests in Zap Energy Inc., a Seattle-based start-up company developing a next-generation modular nuclear reactor with an innovative approach to advancing cost-effective, flexible, and commercially scalable fusion.
August 12, 2020 | Chevron
Chevron Invests in Nuclear Fusion Start-up
Chevron Corporation announces a Series A investment in Zap Energy Inc. This investment marks the 10th investment by Chevron’s Future Energy Fund, which was launched in 2018 to explore breakthrough technologies that enable macro decarbonization, the mobility-energy nexus, and energy decentralization.
November 15, 2018 | ARPA-E
Electrode Technology Development for the Sheared-Flow Z-Pinch Fusion Reactor
Zap Energy’s work will validate a new type of Z-pinch approach, enabling a low-cost, rapid development path towards economical fusion power.
2018 | Lowercarbon Capital
Zap Energy
Plasma confinement through sheared-flow-stabilized Z-pinch.