The new Manhattan Projects: 50x cheaper energy, the race to space, and bitcoin
Apr 23, 2025
auto_awesome
Isaiah Taylor, founder of Valor Atomics, aims to revolutionize energy with modular giga-sites for cleaner and cheaper production. He shares insights from his family's ties to the Manhattan Project and discusses why innovative nuclear solutions stalled in the West. The conversation dives into the potential of robotics and AI in energy, the need for regulatory reforms, and how decentralization can boost national resilience. Taylor also explores Bitcoin's role in a changing economy and advocates for real-world engineering over software-centric approaches.
The podcast discusses the need for innovation in energy economics, especially in nuclear energy, to reverse the negative learning curve observed since the 1970s.
Isaiah Taylor highlights the importance of private entrepreneurial efforts, like those of SpaceX, in driving advancements traditionally managed by government, fostering modern 'Manhattan projects'.
Valor Atomics aims to achieve unprecedented energy cost reductions through efficient modular reactor designs, targeting prices as low as $0.03 per kilowatt-hour in the near future.
Deep dives
The Shift in Energy Costs
Energy prices had been decreasing consistently until the mid-1970s, after which they began to rise significantly. This shift indicates a broken tendency in energy economics, as it seems logical for energy to become cheaper over time with advancements in technology and production methods. Nuclear energy, in particular, has seen a negative learning curve, where the industry has become less efficient in constructing reactors. The historical context emphasizes the need for innovation and changes in business practices to bring down the costs of energy production.
Innovation in Nuclear Engineering
The conversation points to a recognition that nuclear technology has not progressed significantly in the West, despite a solid understanding of its physics and engineering principles. The focus is now shifting from technological breakthroughs to improving business and economic frameworks to facilitate the construction and deployment of nuclear reactors. By adopting standardized designs and smaller-scale reactors, businesses can repeat manufacturing processes more efficiently, ultimately driving down costs and enabling quicker installation. This strategy aims to revive the nuclear sector in the United States by addressing both reactor design and site management.
Modern-Day Manhattan Projects
There is a belief that several modern 'Manhattan projects' are underway, driven more by private entrepreneurs than government initiatives. For instance, organizations like SpaceX represent this shift toward private ventures taking on large-scale engineering challenges that were once the domain of governmental programs. Entrepreneurs are increasingly seen as the catalysts for technological advancement, while government can play a supportive role through regulatory flexibility and financial incentives. By facilitating such innovation, potential breakthroughs in energy production and other sectors may emerge.
The Vision for Nuclear Energy
Valor Atomics, a company focused on building nuclear reactors, aims to produce energy at prices significantly lower than current market rates, targeting potential costs as low as $0.03 per kilowatt-hour within a decade. This vision relies on leveraging the efficiency of small modular reactors constructed in multiples at dedicated sites, which can optimize resources and infrastructure. By concentrating reactors in a single location, economies of scale can be achieved, leading to a more streamlined energy production process. This approach highlights the potential for a significant transformation in the nuclear industry, ultimately benefiting consumers with cheaper energy prices.
Challenges and Risks in Nuclear Regulation
Current challenges in the nuclear sector largely stem from regulatory hurdles that slow down the construction of new reactors. Historical regulatory frameworks have led to accumulated inefficiencies, resulting in stagnation rather than progress in the nuclear field. Legal actions are being pursued to address the misalignment between current regulatory practices and the original intent of legislation that sought to liberalize nuclear oversight. The discourse emphasizes the urgency of reestablishing American leadership in nuclear technology to prevent rivals such as China and Russia from dominating the global market.
Energy production is broken—and rebuilding it could unlock a new era of abundance. In this episode, we sit down with Isaiah Taylor, founder of Valor Atomics, to explore how cheap energy can reshape the world. Isaiah shares his family’s history with the Manhattan Project, why nuclear innovation stalled in the West, and how Valor is building modular giga-sites to produce cleaner, cheaper energy at scale. We discuss how robotics, AI, and manufacturing are shifting cost curves, the future of energy demand, and why decentralization is key to national resilience. Isaiah also shares his thoughts on bitcoin, the dangers of regulatory bloat, and how restoring antifragility to America’s legal system could unleash a new industrial boom.
SUPPORT THE PODCAST: → Subscribe → Leave a review → Share the show with your friends and family → Send us an email podcast@unchained.com → Learn more about Unchained: https://unchained.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=TBF-podcast-description → Book a free call with a bitcoin expert: https://unchained.com/consultation?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=TBF-podcast-description → Buy bitcoin in an IRA—sign up today and get your first year free: unchained.com/frontier → Watch the video premiere of Bitcoin, Not Crypto: https://unchained.com/frontier
TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 - Intro 1:04 - Isaiah Taylor’s Manhattan Project family history 3:18 - Secrecy inside America’s Secret City 5:37 - Why America needs new Manhattan Projects today 7:39 - How Valor Atomics is rethinking nuclear reactors 10:01 - How a nuclear reactor really works 13:38 - Why building reactors became a legal and talent problem 16:59 - How AI is pushing investors toward hard tech 18:59 - The future of energy: exponential demand and production 21:46 - Why energy prices have been broken since the 1970s 26:06 - Valor’s giga-site model to transform energy markets 30:27 - Could machines create an infinite energy feedback loop? 33:57 - Humanity’s mission: garden the universe 36:19 - Will money still matter in a post-scarcity world? 40:34 - How regulatory bloat crushed American industry 48:10 - Why Isaiah Taylor is suing the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
WHERE TO FOLLOW US: → Unchained X: https://twitter.com/unchained → Unchained Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/unchainedcom → Unchained Newsletter: https://unchained.com/newsletter → Joe Burnett’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/IIICapital → Jose Burgos (Director of Media Production) on Twitter: https://x.com/DeFBeD → Isaiah Taylor’s Twitter: https://x.com/isaiah_p_taylor
Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts
Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.
