1937 Particle Accelerator Relocated; CFS Fusion Raises $1.8B in Largest Round Since 2021

What happened

The Westinghouse Atom Smasher, the world's first industrial Van de Graaff particle accelerator built in 1937, has been relocated from Forest Hills to Cranberry Township after a decade of decay. In parallel, Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) announced its largest funding round since 2021, raising $1.8 billion to accelerate commercialization of its SPARC fusion demonstration machine and the ARC grid-scale fusion power plant in Virginia.

Why it matters

Preserving the Atom Smasher keeps visible historical engineering achievements that inspired practical advances in nuclear power, medical X-rays, and radar—a reference point for current hardware developers tackling today's manufacturing challenges. For fusion energy, CFS's $1.8 billion round represents the single largest funding round among fusion companies worldwide since CFS's own Series B in 2021; combined with $863 million raised last year, CFS has now raised $4 billion total, which is about 30 percent of all capital raised by the fusion industry to-date, cementing its position as the world's largest fusion company.

What to watch

CFS will use the funds to complete assembly of SPARC while advancing development of ARC at its Fall Line Fusion Power Station in Chesterfield County, Virginia. Separately, K2 Space announced a $500 million Series D at a $6.8 billion valuation and plans to introduce its 100kW Giga-class satellite in the second half of 2028; its next mission, Trinity, will launch multiple satellites in Q2 2027.