Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ:DJT) has agreed to merge with fusion power developer TAE Technologies in an all-stock transaction valued at more than US$6 billion.
Under the terms of the agreement announced Thursday (December 18), shareholders of Trump Media and TAE will each own roughly 50 percent of the combined entity on a fully diluted basis once the transaction closes, which the companies expect to occur in mid-2026.
Trump Media will serve as the holding company for a portfolio that will include Truth Social, Truth+, TAE Technologies, TAE Power Solutions, and TAE Life Sciences.
The merger pairs Trump Media, best known for operating the Truth Social platform associated with US President Donald Trump, with a privately held fusion company that has spent more than two decades developing alternative nuclear technologies.
TAE Technologies says it has raised more than US$1.3 billion in private capital from investors including Google, Goldman Sachs, Chevron Technology Ventures and Sumitomo Corporation of Americas.
Management of the combined company will be shared. Devin Nunes, chairman and chief executive of Trump Media, and TAE chief executive Michl Binderbauer are set to serve as co-CEOs following completion of the deal.
Michael Schwab, founder and managing director of Big Sky Partners, is expected to become chairman of a nine-member board.
Trump Media said the transaction is designed to leverage its access to public capital to accelerate the commercialization of fusion power.
“Trump Media & Technology Group built uncancellable infrastructure to secure free expression online for Americans, and now we’re taking a big step forward toward a revolutionary technology that will cement America’s global energy dominance for generations,” Nunes said in the company press release.
Nunes further described fusion as “the most dramatic energy breakthrough since the onset of commercial nuclear energy in the 1950s.”
TAE, which has built and operated five fusion reactors during its research phase, said recent technical advances have reduced the size, cost and complexity of its systems, bringing them closer to commercial deployment.
As part of the transaction, Trump Media has agreed to provide up to US$200 million in cash to TAE at signing, with an additional US$100 million available upon the initial filing of the merger’s registration statement.
The companies said the combined group plans to identify a site and begin construction of a first utility-scale fusion power plant, targeted at roughly 50 megawatts of electrical output, in 2026, pending approvals.
Shares of Trump Media surged more than 30 percent in pre-market trading following the announcement.
Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.