Truth Social is going nuclear—literally. Trump Media & Technology Group announced Thursday it will merge with TAE Technologies, a leading nuclear fusion company, in an all-stock transaction valued at more than $6 billion. The surprise deal sent DJT shares soaring 35% in early trading.
The merger would create one of the first publicly traded nuclear fusion companies, combining Trump Media's public listing with TAE's cutting-edge energy technology.
Deal Structure
Under the agreement, shareholders of each company will own approximately 50% of the combined entity on a fully diluted basis. Based on Trump Media's trailing 30-day volume-weighted average share price, the transaction values each TAE share at $53.89.
The combined company will be led by co-CEOs: Devin Nunes, Trump Media's current chief executive, and Michl Binderbauer, TAE's CEO. The board will include Donald Trump Jr. among its nine members.
What TAE Technologies Brings
TAE Technologies isn't a speculative startup—it's a 27-year-old company with serious backing. The firm holds 1,600 patents and has raised more than $1.3 billion from investors including Google, Chevron, and Goldman Sachs. TAE has collaborated with Google Research for over a decade on fusion science.
Beyond fusion, TAE operates an energy-storage business and a life sciences unit developing cancer treatments using biologically targeted radiotherapy.
The Fusion Power Ambition
The combined company plans to site and begin construction on the world's first utility-scale fusion power plant (50 megawatts electric) in 2026, subject to required approvals. If successful, it would represent a historic breakthrough in clean energy.
Fusion power—the same process that powers the sun—has been "20 years away" for decades. But recent advances in plasma physics and computing have accelerated timelines. TAE claims its approach is distinct from competitors, using a different plasma configuration that may prove more practical for commercial deployment.
Why Trump Media?
The strategic logic is... unconventional. Trump Media's core business is Truth Social, a social media platform. The connection to fusion energy is not immediately obvious, though the combined company will retain all existing businesses including Truth Social, Truth+, and the planned Truth.Fi financial services platform.
What Trump Media does offer is a public listing and access to capital markets. TAE gets public market liquidity without going through a traditional IPO process—similar to a SPAC merger but with an operating company as the acquirer.
Market Context
Through Wednesday, DJT stock was down 69% for the year even as the S&P 500 gained 14%. The fusion announcement may be an attempt to change the narrative and give investors something beyond social media to value.
The deal is expected to close in mid-2026, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
The Bottom Line
The Trump Media-TAE merger is one of the stranger corporate combinations in recent memory. Whether it makes strategic sense depends entirely on TAE's fusion technology actually working—a bet that major investors have been willing to make. For DJT shareholders, it's a pivot from meme stock to moonshot. Time will tell if fusion power proves more valuable than social media engagement.
