Rod D. Martin Profile picture
Founder/CEO, Martin Capital. "Philosopher Capitalist" - Guardian. Anti-Communist. Former SBC Executive Committee officer. Part of the team that started PayPal.

Aug 18, 10 tweets

🚨 BREAKING: Trump’s push for a nuclear renaissance is becoming reality.

Tennessee is about to host the first small modular reactor (SMR) in U.S. history—and it’s powering Google data centers.

This is HUGE. Here’s why 🧵👇

2/ The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) just signed a deal with Kairos Power to buy electricity from a small modular reactor (SMR) in Oak Ridge, TN.

⚡ 50 megawatts by 2030
⚡ Enough for 35,000 homes
⚡ Direct power to Google’s massive new AI data hubs

3/ This isn’t just another “green energy” promise. This is power that actually WORKS.

It’s the first real U.S. commitment to SMRs—advanced nuclear reactors that can be mass-produced, cheaper, safer, and deployed faster.

Game-changer for America’s grid.

4/ Why does this matter?

👉 China & Russia are racing ahead with next-gen nuclear.
👉 America has been stuck with 50-year-old plants & red tape.
👉 Trump signed the executive orders that jump-started SMR approvals.

We’re catching up.

5/ Kairos’s Hermes 2 plant is the first “Gen IV” reactor approved in the U.S. It's also the first U.S. non-light water reactor in 50+ years.

That means:

✅ Natrium-cooled tech
✅ More efficient fuel cycles
✅ Smaller, modular design

This is the Tesla moment for nuclear.

6/ And it’s not just about power.

DOE says it plainly: AI dominance depends on nuclear energy.

Why? Data centers like Google’s eat staggering amounts of electricity. Without new nuclear, America can’t stay #1 in AI.

7/ Let’s not forget the politics.

Democrats kneecapped nuclear for decades.

It took Trump’s May executive orders to cut NRC red tape, fund pilot projects, and set a target of 10 new reactors licensed by 2030.

This deal is proof it’s working.

8/ Tennessee is once again leading the way.

From Oak Ridge’s Manhattan Project legacy…

To today’s SMRs powering the digital economy…

Sen. Marsha Blackburn nailed it: “Advancing nuclear is essential to unleashing American energy.”

9/ Bottom line:

Trump’s “Big Beautiful Energy Plan” is here.

✅ Cheaper electricity
✅ Stronger AI dominance
✅ Energy independence
✅ Eliminating Democrat roadblocks
✅ Beating China & Russia at their own game

The nuclear renaissance has begun—it starts in Tennessee. 🇺🇸⚛️

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