Welcome to AI Collision 💥,
In today’s collision between AI and our world:
- Build baby build… OK wannabe Trump
- Nuclear stocks still popping off
- Michelin’s 10-fold productivity boost
If that’s enough to get the nuclear stocks popping, read on…
AI Collision 💥
“Build baby build.”
🤢
These are the words of Prime Minister Keir Starmer when talking about the government’s plan to make it much easier to build mini nuclear reactors across the UK.
Fundamentally, it should be easier to build nuclear energy in the UK. So from that perspective, anything that achieves that is good. However, leave the wannabe-Trump slogans at home please prime minister.
As the government and nuclear industry knows, the time to go from approval to actual power generation from a nuclear plant takes decades.
It’s not all dissimilar to a mining site, where the process from discovery to product can take equally as long.
But that’s also why modern governments have always been so shockingly disorganised with long-term policy like nuclear energy. They know that anything they put in place is most likely to be ruined by either the opposition or some spud that gets into power within their own party while they’re in some cushy diplomatic role (or on the board of a tech company) in a decade’s time.
So when the flavour of the day is nuclear energy – and it very much is, which I’ll show you in a moment – then yes, you can expect the government who is desperately flagging in the polls to spin up a new policy to get money, jobs and votes flowing.
For the current government, that’s a new nuclear strategy.
Or at the very least the ability for reactors (SMRs) to get built faster and easier in the UK.
It also probably helps that one of the world’s leaders in SMR technology happens to be Rolls-Royce (RR) – so it wouldn’t be a stretch to think it’s been pushing on the PM at some point too.
The key argument for these nuclear reactors is conveniently boiled down to something the size of a drinks can.
However, the question remains, who wants to live with a small modular reactor in their backyard?
Or at worst, who wants to live next door to one?
Because whether we like it or not, someone will have to. Or maybe SMRs occupy existing infrastructure that’s no longer being put to use… like coal plants.
The thing is, the worry for most people is if it’s easier to get nuclear reactors built, where will they exist?
No one is going to want even the safest reactor in their backyard. Unless they don’t have a choice…
You see, the government never wins from this. They try to get more built, and then the opposition or some other party pushes back. Fears of meltdowns, Fukushima, Chernobyl, coming to a village near you.
It’s the hardest PR job in the world, making people see the benefits of nuclear. That’s why the government has it all wrong. They should be leaning on “Big Tech”, the AI companies, to get it done.
I’ve got an interesting poll on this today (I’d love to get your thoughts on that later). But I think depending on who breaks the news makes a huge difference to where and how nuclear reactors get built.
And it’s Big Tech that’s driving the nuclear story anyway. The idea that to power their AI data centres, they will need SMR technology, rebooting of old nuclear plants and an abundance of nuclear energy has not gone away.
If anything, the realisation of AI and nuclear going hand in hand is ramping up. It’s why you look at the three leading “new nuclear” stocks’ performance over the last year and the numbers are astounding.
There’s Oklo (OLKO) up 348% in the last year, NuScale (SMR) up 715% in the last year and Nano Nuclear Energy (NNE) up 832% in the last year.
These are all SMR related, each looking to develop their own unique style of SMR. And it’s sending them skywards.
Are they overvalued? Maybe. Is the “nuclear AI” story overhyped? Could be. But also, will these AI data centres suddenly start operating on coal or oil energy? No. They’ll use some wind and some solar, but neither on their own or combined are powerful or reliable enough. The short answer is that for AI data centres to work, they need nuclear. So there’s very likely more room to run for these nuclear AI stocks. And it means the government better get their act in gear. Because if they can’t get these new nuclear technologies built, then Big Tech is going to take their AI data centres elsewhere.
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Boomers & Busters 💰
AI and AI-related stocks moving and shaking up the markets this week. (All performance data below over the rolling week).
Boom 📈
- BigBear.ai (NYSE:BBAI) up 109%
- Gorilla Technology (NASDAQ:GRRR) up 36%
- Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) up 8%
Bust 📉
- Amesite (NASDAQ:AMST) down 11%
- Oddity Tech (NASDAQ:ODD) down 10%
- Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) down 10%
From the hive mind 🧠
- This is why science is cool. Show this to your kids, grandkids or anyone. This is what we can do with modern tech and with AI. Unlocking the secrets of thousands of years ago.
- Microsoft has a list of around 300 case studies of companies implementing AI. This one I found interesting, because how does a tyre company find a 10-fold increase in productivity? Here’s how.
- The EU will get left behind if they continue to regulate and not innovate. You are now starting to see European leaders scramble as this realisation hits them squarely in the face.
Artificial Polltelligence 🗳️
I have a theory that even if the government were to announce new nuclear reactors, and that it would lower energy costs for everyone it would still be negatively received. However if that same announcement came from a different source… eg one of the “Magnificent Seven”, then it would get the public stamp of approval.
What do you think?
Weirdest AI image of the day
ChatGPT’s random quote of the day
“Simple things should be simple, complex things should be possible.”
— Alan Kay, 1984
Thanks for reading, and don’t forget to leave comments and questions below,
Sam Volkering
Editor-in-Chief
AI Collision
