Key takeaways
- Sam Altman resigned from Helion's board to facilitate potential OpenAI partnership.
- Altman remains a significant investor in Helion and recused from negotiations.
- The move simplifies governance for future collaborations between the companies.
- Helion aims to provide zero-carbon electricity through fusion technology.
- Altman's investment in Helion, $375M in 2021, was his largest single investment.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has stepped down from the board of fusion startup Helion Energy as the two companies begin exploring a potential partnership at scale, posts on X by Altman and Helion CEO David Kirtley have revealed.
“As Helion and OpenAI start to explore working together at a significant scale, it is difficult for me to be on both boards,” Altman wrote.
He said that he will continue to hold a financial stake in Helion and will remain recused from any negotiations, adding that stepping down helps simplify governance for both companies.
“This decision enables Helion and OpenAI to explore future partnerships to bring zero-carbon, safe electricity to the world, which Helion is perfectly poised to deliver,” Kirtley said.
According to him, Altman had played an integral role in Helion’s development since joining the board in 2015. “He has pushed me and the Helion team to dream big, build with urgency, and focus on the thing that matters most: deploying fusion for our customers as quickly as possible to fully satisfy the world’s need for clean and abundant energy,” he added.
Helion, founded in 2013 by Kirtley alongside John Slough, Chris Pihl and George Votroubek, has raised more than $1 billion to date, including a $425 million Series F round in January 2025 that valued the company at $5.4 billion.
In 2021, Helion raised $500 million, with $375 million coming directly from Altman, his single-largest investment and the remainder from other existing backers.
