Atomic Show #343 – Yasir Arafat, CTO Aalo Atomics

Atomic Show #343 – Yasir Arafat, CTO Aalo Atomics

From The Atomic Show by Rod Adams - Atomic Insights

April 16, 2026 · 45 min

About this episode

Yasir Arafat discusses Aalo Atomics' rapid development of nuclear reactors and their innovative approach to manufacturing.

Aalo Atomics is a three year old company that is focused on designing, manufacturing and deploying nuclear reactors. Their stated goal is to achieve an electricity production cost of less than $0.03 (3 cents) per kilowatt hour. It’s moving fast. It built a 40,000 ft² pilot scale manufacturing plant in Austin, TX in just one year. It plans to achieve initial criticality for Aalo-X, its first commercial scale reactor, in July 2026. That’s less than four months from now. The facility at the Idaho National Laboratory is completed, the reactor and primary systems have been installed. The reactor fuel is being manufactured by Global Nuclear Fuels in Wilmington, NC. The few remaining steps include the Department of Energy’s issuance of the final Documented Safety Analysis, fuel receipt and fuel loading. For many inside and outside the nuclear industry, Aalo’s pace seems to be almost impossible. Even for those who believe it is possible for nuclear systems to be designed, reviewed, licensed and constructed far faster than ever before, the accomplishments approach the incredible stage. For Atomic Show #343, Yasir Arafat , Aalo’s co-founder and Chief Technical…

People in this episode

Host: Rod Adams

Guest: Yasir Arafat

Topics covered

  • nuclear reactors
  • energy production
  • manufacturing
  • technology
  • innovation

Keywords

  • nuclear reactors
  • Aalo Atomics
  • energy cost
  • manufacturing plant
  • criticality

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Aalo Atomics, Global Nuclear Fuels

Places: Austin, TX, Idaho National Laboratory

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