Disruptive Influence: Silicon Valley's Shake-Up of Nuclear Regulation

Disruptive Influence: Silicon Valley's Shake-Up of Nuclear Regulation

Last summer, a group of officials from the Department of Energy gathered at the Idaho National Laboratory, a sprawling 890-square-mile complex in the eastern desert of Idaho where the US government built its first rudimentary nuclear power plant in 1951 and continues to test cutting-edge technology. The meeting's agenda: charting the future of nuclear energy in the Trump era.

Leading the discussion was 31-year-old lawyer Seth Cohen, who had just entered government through Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency team. Despite his lack of experience in nuclear law or policy, Cohen brought a Silicon Valley mindset to the technical conversation about licensing nuclear reactor designs.

During the meeting, Cohen repeatedly downplayed health and safety concerns, even when staff brought up the topic of radiation exposure from nuclear test sites. His dismissive attitude toward longstanding regulatory practices has raised alarm bells among career nuclear experts.

{{IMAGE_PLACEHOLDER}}