Strategic Nuclear Energy, with Jordan Bramble (CEO of Antares)

In the wake of new executive orders elevating nuclear energy as a national security priority, there’s growing momentum—and urgency—behind advanced fission technologies. Few are better positioned to talk about this shift than Jordan Bramble, co-founder and CEO of Antares Nuclear, a startup building microreactors for defense and space. In this episode of Valley of Depth, we explore the strategic, technical, and geopolitical dimensions driving the nuclear renaissance. We cover: • Why microreactors are built for strategic energy and not just the grid • The real story behind public support for nuclear energy • How Antares plans to deploy sub-megawatt nuclear systems on U.S. military installations • The challenges of fuel supply, regulation, and capital • Why China is pulling ahead and what the U.S. must do to catch up • Nuclear-powered space assets and propulsion • Why Jordan believes venture-scale outcomes are coming to nuclear energy • Chapters • 00:00 - Intro 00:56 - Payload Pro 01:39 - State of fission 03:38 - Is renewed nuclear interest driven by political or environmental factors? 05:23 - Are small modular reactors (SMRs) going to replace large, conventional nuclear reactors? 07:31 - Is nuclear still a controversial topic? 09:27 - Cultural legacy of nuclear in media 11:49 - Antares and how Jordan got into nuclear 14:16 - What does 1 Megawatt mean? 15:53 - Game changing environments for Antares's SMR 19:30 - Terrestrial business model 20:39 - Nuclear fuel supply chain 21:35 - Current state and future prediction of fuel pipeline 23:42 - Safety in contested environments 26:49 - Hardest technical challenges 29:52 - What will it take to get to their first electron 31:23 - Competition 34:27 - US vs its adversaries 36:29 - Navigating regulatory guidelines 38:10 - Impact of Trump's Executive Orders 40:03 - NRC 41:12 - Are we living in a VC renaissance for nuclear? 44:05 - What drives Jordan to work on nuclear? 46:30 - For those afraid of nuclear • Show notes • Jordan’s socials — https://x.com/jordanbramble Antares’ socials — https://x.com/AntaresNuclear Antares’ website — https://boomsupersonic.com/ Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace Ignition’s socials — https://twitter.com/ignitionnuclear / https://www.linkedin.com/company/ignition-nuclear/ Tectonic’s socials — https://twitter.com/tectonicdefense / https://www.linkedin.com/company/tectonicdefense/ Valley of Depth archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/ • About us • Valley of Depth is a podcast about the technologies that matter — and the people building them. Brought to you by Arkaea Media, the team behind Payload (space), Ignition (nuclear energy), and Tectonic (defense tech), this show goes beyond headlines and hype. We talk to founders, investors, government officials, and military leaders shaping the future of national security and deep tech. From breakthrough science to strategic policy, we dive into the high-stakes decisions behind the world’s hardest technologies. • Payload: www.payloadspace.com • Ignition: www.ignition-news.com • Tectonic: www.tectonicdefense.com