Oklo Inc. (OKLO) shares climbed significantly on Wednesday, fueled by the company’s announcement of securing partnerships to deliver up to 750 megawatts (MW) of power to major U.S. data centers. This deal signifies a significant step for Oklo, showcasing the increasing reliance on nuclear energy as a clean and dependable power source for data centers, particularly in the face of the burgeoning artificial intelligence (AI) industry.
Oklo revealed that they have received Letters of Intent (LOIs) and are collaborating with two leading data center providers to deliver this substantial power capacity. These commitments amplify Oklo’s customer pipeline to an impressive 2,100 MW. Notably, Oklo, which counts OpenAI’s Sam Altman among its backers, plans to work alongside “one of the fastest-growing data center companies” to deploy powerhouses at select sites. The company has already established plans for locations in Idaho, Ohio, Texas, and Wyoming.
Jacob DeWitte, co-founder, and CEO of Oklo, remarked, “The strong customer response reflects confidence in Oklo’s clean, reliable, and affordable power solutions. Our approach helps enable customers to scale sustainably with reliable power aligned to their long-term goals.” Oklo emphasizes the ease with which customers can adopt nuclear power generation through its model, simultaneously generating a consistent revenue stream by selling power directly rather than power plants.
Oklo’s stock has been steadily rising in recent weeks as hyperscalers, major cloud computing providers, increasingly turn to nuclear power to meet the escalating energy demands of AI data centers. The momentum gained further traction last month when Google and Amazon announced their own small modular reactor (SMR) deals, igniting a rally in several nuclear-related stocks.
When DeWitte was questioned about Oklo’s potential to secure similar deals last month, he expressed optimism, stating, “We’re pretty excited about what’s to come. So there’s a lot more to come, frankly, on the horizon that we’re working towards. I think what we are seeing in these announcements are only the tip of the iceberg across the whole industry.” Oklo is scheduled to report its third-quarter financial results after the market closes on Thursday.
The rise of Oklo’s shares reflects a growing industry trend toward nuclear energy as a reliable and sustainable power source for the burgeoning data center sector, particularly as AI demands continue to escalate. This deal is a significant validation of Oklo’s innovative approach to nuclear power generation, positioning the company for continued growth and success in the future.
