United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) spinout company MuWave has secured £450,000 in seed funding to commercialize high-power microwave technology critical for heating fusion plasma and for applications in geothermal, space, and communications. The funding from the UK Innovation and Science Seed Fund (UKI2S) will accelerate the development of next-generation microwave sources, known as gyrotrons, born from the UK’s pioneering fusion research.
In the race to harness the power of the stars, a key piece of the puzzle is learning how to heat plasma to an astonishing 150 million degrees Celsius. The solution? Extremely powerful microwaves. A new UK spinout, MuWave, is now commercializing the cutting-edge microwave technology developed for this purpose, aiming to supply not only future fusion plants but a wide range of adjacent industries. The company announced it has secured £450,000 in initial funding to bring its high-power products to market.
The technology originated within the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), the organization leading the UK’s fusion energy program, including the development of the STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) prototype power plant. MuWave was founded in 2023 by a team of UKAEA engineers who saw the broader potential for their specialized expertise. “Finalising the spinout agreement with UKAEA marks a pivotal moment for us,” said Steven Craig, Co-founder at MuWave. “It’s a strong endorsement of the innovation we’ve developed.”
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This move is a direct part of UKAEA’s strategy to translate publicly funded research into commercial and economic benefits for the UK. “UKAEA’s world-leading science and innovation is creating jobs and economic opportunities,” stated Heather Lewtas, Chief Development Officer at UKAEA. The authority reports that solving the immense technical challenges of fusion consistently generates intellectual property with applications far beyond the lab.
For MuWave, the first market is the burgeoning fusion industry itself. The STEP prototype plant is expected to rely on high-power microwave systems for plasma heating. However, the company’s vision extends much further. The same core technology is applicable in areas like advanced geothermal drilling, where microwaves can fracture rock, in satellite communications, and in medical imaging.
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“Securing our initial funding is a huge milestone for us,” said Helen Webster, Co-founder at MuWave. “It validates the problem we’re solving and the passion behind our solution.” The seed investment from the UK Innovation and Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), managed by Future Planet Capital, is designed specifically to bridge the gap between deep science and commercial viability.
Mark White, Investment Lead for the Fusion Portfolio at UKI2S, emphasized the broader impact: “This is exactly the kind of deep-tech spinout UKI2S exists to back – turning national capability into long-term economic and industrial impact.” The fund recognizes that the foundational research for fusion energy often produces transformative secondary technologies.
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Beyond developing its own hardware products, MuWave is already offering consultancy services to both fusion and non-fusion organizations, leveraging its team’s specialized knowledge. This dual approach of product development and expert services provides a pathway to near-term revenue while building toward the manufacture of advanced gyrotron systems.
The launch of MuWave exemplifies a growing trend in the fusion sector: leveraging the extreme engineering demands of a star-in-a-machine to spin out viable companies that can address today’s industrial challenges. It’s a compelling model where the pursuit of a limitless clean energy source simultaneously seeds innovation with immediate, tangible benefits for the UK economy and its high-tech industrial base.
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