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Fusion energy startup TAE Technologies has raised over $150 million in an ongoing funding round, CEO Michl Binderbauer tells Axios Pro.

Why it matters: The company is working closely with Google, which is seeking advanced energy sources to power its hyperscale data centers.

Driving the news: The round has drawn investment from existing backers Google, Chevron and New Enterprise Associates. TAE began the raise last fall and expects to reach a final close in August. 

"If we raise another $50 [million] or so, that would probably be best," Binderbauer says, referring to the round as a Series 12. 

Follow the money: TAE, based in Foothill Ranch, California, has raised $1.2 billion since its launch in 1998, including $250 million in Series G funding during the height of the climate tech boom in 2022.

"TAE has built itself milestone by milestone," Binderbauer says, referring to the comparatively smaller current raise. 

"We are very much believers that we raise capital, we deploy, we learn something, and we earn our keep to raise more. That disciplined process has served us well."

Between the lines: The company has also started generating revenue through power management and life sciences spinoffs.

The big picture: TAE is a perceived frontrunner in fusion energy, aiming to begin generating electricity as soon as the 2030s.

The company this year achieved stable plasma at over 70°C million — required for generating fusion energy — in a machine it's calling Norm, replicating a milestone it had reached in a considerably larger, more expensive device named Norman.

It expects to complete its sixth demonstration reactor, Copernicus, by next year. A subsequent machine, Da Vinci, would be the first to generate net electricity, producing more electricity than it consumes, if successful.

What we're watching: TAE's long-running partnership with Google.

Exclusive: Fusion energy developer TAE raises $150M

Google, Chevron and NEA joined the ongoing round.

A person in a blue T-shirt and white hardhat holds a tool against a large, metal cylindrical machine with a red ring like a target.

A technician works on the exterior of TAE's "Norm" machine.  Photo: Courtesy of TAE Technologies

Fusion energy startup <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="TAE Technologies" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/pro/climate-deals/newsletters/2022/07/20/climate-emergency-impact?chunk=2&amp;utm_term=twsocialshare#story2" data-vars-content-id="9b146aa4-c34e-43be-bfde-e91cba92f62e" data-vars-headline="Exclusive: Fusion energy developer TAE raises $150M" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/pro/climate-deals/newsletters/2022/07/20/climate-emergency-impact?chunk=2&amp;utm_term=twsocialshare#story2" target="_self">TAE Technologies</a> has raised over $150 million in an ongoing funding round, CEO Michl Binderbauer tells Axios Pro.Why it matters: The company is working closely with Google, which is seeking advanced energy sources to power its hyperscale data centers.

Exclusive: Fusion energy developer TAE raises $150M

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