Oklo plans to acquire radioisotope firm Atomic Alchemy for $25 million in shares

Oklo Inc. has that it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Atomic Alchemy Inc., a U.S.-based radioisotope production company. The two companies announced a strategic partnership earlier this year.

"The proposed acquisition is expected to enable Oklo to significantly broaden its impact, as our fast reactor and fuel recycling technologies allow us to produce radioisotopes as a coproduct," said Jacob DeWitte, cofounder and chief executive officer of Oklo, on November 14 . "By incorporating radioisotope production into our fuel recycling process, Oklo is establishing a complementary revenue stream and contributing to a more resilient radioisotope supply chain."

Not just for radiopharmaceuticals: Atomic Alchemy, founded in 2018, wants to enter the U.S. radioisotope supply chain for health care, industry, research, and defense applications.

The company's plans include neutron transmutation doping (NTD) of silicon using neutrons produced in a nuclear reactor to transmute some atoms in an ingot of silicon into phosphorus. Atomic Alchemy and Oklo "believe NTD offers a superior method for semiconductor doping because an entire ingot can be doped prior to wafering; the dopant is distributed uniformly throughout the ingot; large volumes of semiconductor material can be irradiated in batches; the process can be used on more than one type of semiconductor; and NTD allows for fine-tuning the amount of dopant added. Given the current high level of demand for state-of-the-art semiconductors, we believe NTD capabilities may be transformative to the semiconductor industry."

Sam Altman, chair and board member of Oklo, commented on the proposed acquisition: "I deeply believe in the importance of abundance and reliable energy for the future, and Oklo's proposed acquisition of Atomic Alchemy opens the door for nuclear technology to play an even greater role in solving critical energy, medical, and industrial challenges."

More on the partnership: DeWitte spoke about the acquisition during a November 14 conference call on Oklo's third quarter results. He said the two companies have a long history together. "Back in 2018 when Atomic Alchemy was founded, I provided due diligence support to venture capitalists to help them understand the potential for radioisotopes," DeWitte said. "We've stayed in close touch with Atomic Alchemy over the years and formed a strategic partnership that we announced earlier this year focused on supporting technology and market sector advancement. Through our work we have realized that there are massive synergies between our technologies and overall business approach and believe we can achieve more traction on market and technical advancements if Atomic Alchemy were part of Oklo."

He added that Atomic Alchemy's radioisotope production technology "can utilize unique nuclides sourced from nuclear fuel recycling processes for fast reactors and existing used nuclear materials."

Transaction details: Oklo proposes to acquire Atomic Alchemy for $25 million in an all-stock transaction, with Oklo shares-expected to be subject to multiyear lock-ups-issued to existing shareholders of Atomic Alchemy. Oklo says the proposed transaction "is expected to have minimal immediate impact on Oklo's operating cost structure, and the proposed transaction is not expected to impact Oklo's previously announced 2024 outlook."

Craig Bealmear, Oklo's chief financial officer, said in the earnings call that definitive acquisition agreements are expected in early December, with a target to close in early 2025.