Funding and Investment - Valar Atomics raised $130 million in its latest funding round, bringing its total fundraising to over $150 million [1][2] - The funding was backed by notable figures including Anduril Industries founder Palmer Luckey and Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar, along with venture capital firms Snowpoint Ventures, Day One Ventures, and Dream Ventures [1] Leadership and Governance - Doug Philippone, co-founder of Snowpoint and former head of global defense at Palantir, will join Valar's board of directors [2] Regulatory Environment - Valar is among several nuclear startups suing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) over its licensing process for small reactor designs, seeking a resolution following President Trump's executive order aimed at overhauling the regulator [3] - The lawsuit has been temporarily paused due to the government shutdown [3] Technology and Development - The Department of Energy selected Valar to participate in a pilot program to deploy at least three advanced test reactors by July 2026 [4] - Valar is developing reactor technology that utilizes helium as a coolant and operates at much higher temperatures than traditional plants, with plans for deploying hundreds of small reactors at a single site [4] - Valar broke ground on a site for a test reactor in September at the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab [5]