David Kirtley is a nuclear fusion engineer and CEO of Helion Energy, a company working on building the world&#8217;s first commercial fusion power plant by 2028.
Thank you for listening ❤ Check out our sponsors: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/sponsors/ep485-sc">https://lexfridman.com/sponsors/ep485-sc</a>
See below for timestamps, transcript, and to give feedback, submit questions, contact Lex, etc.
Transcript:
<a href="https://lexfridman.com/david-kirtley-transcript">https://lexfridman.com/david-kirtley-transcript</a>
CONTACT LEX:
Feedback &#8211; give feedback to Lex: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/survey">https://lexfridman.com/survey</a>
AMA &#8211; submit questions, videos or call-in: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/ama">https://lexfridman.com/ama</a>
Hiring &#8211; join our team: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/hiring">https://lexfridman.com/hiring</a>
Other &#8211; other ways to get in touch: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/contact">https://lexfridman.com/contact</a>
EPISODE LINKS:
David&#8217;s X: <a href="https://x.com/dekirtley">https://x.com/dekirtley</a>
David&#8217;s LinkedIn: <a href="https://bit.ly/4qX0KXp">https://bit.ly/4qX0KXp</a>
Helion: <a href="https://www.helionenergy.com/">https://www.helionenergy.com/</a>
Helion&#8217;s YouTube: <a href="https://youtube.com/HelionEnergy">https://youtube.com/HelionEnergy</a>
SPONSORS:
To support this podcast, check out our sponsors & get discounts:
UPLIFT Desk: Standing desks and office ergonomics.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/uplift_desk-ep485-sc">https://upliftdesk.com/lex</a>
Fin: AI agent for customer service.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/fin-ep485-sc">https://fin.ai/lex</a>
Miro: Online collaborative whiteboard platform.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/miro-ep485-sc">https://miro.com/</a>
LMNT: Zero-sugar electrolyte drink mix.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/lmnt-ep485-sc">https://drinkLMNT.com/lex</a>
BetterHelp: Online therapy and counseling.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/betterhelp-ep485-sc">https://betterhelp.com/lex</a>
Shopify: Sell stuff online.
Go to <a href="https://lexfridman.com/s/shopify-ep485-sc">https://shopify.com/lex</a>
OUTLINE:
(00:00) &#8211; Introduction
(03:00) &#8211; Sponsors, Comments, and Reflections
(11:35) &#8211; Nuclear fission vs fusion
(21:35) &#8211; Physics of E=mc^2
(26:50) &#8211; Is nuclear fusion safe?
(32:11) &#8211; Chernobyl
(38:38) &#8211; Geopolitics
(40:33) &#8211; Extreme scenarios
(47:28) &#8211; How nuclear fusion works
(1:20:20) &#8211; Extreme temperatures
(1:25:21) &#8211; Fusion control and simulation
(1:37:15) &#8211; Electricity from fusion
(2:11:20) &#8211; First fusion power plant in 2028
(2:18:13) &#8211; Energy needs of GPU clusters
(2:28:38) &#8211; Kardashev scale
(2:36:33) &#8211; Fermi Paradox
PODCAST LINKS:
&#8211; Podcast Website: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/podcast">https://lexfridman.com/podcast</a>
&#8211; Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://apple.co/2lwqZIr">https://apple.co/2lwqZIr</a>
&#8211; Spotify: <a href="https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8">https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8</a>
&#8211; RSS: <a href="https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/">https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/</a>
&#8211; Podcast Playlist: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrAXtmErZgOdP_8GztsuKi9nrraNbKKp4</a>
&#8211; Clips Channel: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/lexclips">https://www.youtube.com/lexclips</a>

Podurama

Home

Trending

Personal

Your Podcasts

New Episodes

My Files

Favourite Episodes

Tags (Folders)

Recently Played

Bookmarks

Followed Playlists

#485 – David Kirtley: Nuclear Fusion, Plasma Physics, and the Future of Energy

Lex Fridman Podcast

AI Chapters

AI Insights

Reviews