As artificial intelligence drives an unprecedented surge in energy demand, major technology companies are pouring investment into nuclear power — but a growing number of those firms are sidestepping the voluntary safety body that has long served as the industry's primary watchdog, raising serious concerns among regulators and industry veterans alike.
A Uniquely Privatised Landscape
Unlike most nations, where nuclear energy is managed as a public sector responsibility under direct state oversight, the United States operates through a largely privatised model. That structure has come under renewed scrutiny as Silicon Valley accelerates its push into nuclear energy to power the vast computing infrastructure required by the AI boom.
The key safety body at the centre of the debate is the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO), established in the aftermath of the 1979 partial meltdown at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island facility. That incident, which released radioactive materials into the surrounding environment, prompted the industry to create the INPO as an independent watchdog tasked with ensuring safety compliance across all US nuclear plants.
Historically, membership of the INPO — though technically voluntary — was considered a given. Every nuclear plant operator in the country joined without exception. That consensus is now breaking down.
Startups Balk at Compliance Costs
A recent investigation by Politico's E&E News found that a growing number of nuclear energy startups are choosing not to join the INPO, citing the organisation's oversight demands and the financial burden of compliance. Industry experts warn that this reasoning misses the point entirely: rigorous safety standards are the purpose of such requirements, not an obstacle to be minimised.
Research also suggests that INPO membership is economically rational over the long term, as the organisation helps identify potential operational problems early, preventing costly shutdowns and disruptions.
"These entities are businesses, and they're trying to make money. Any infrastructure that you put around that entity that is not directly contributing to its bottom line, it's going to be questioned," said Scott Morris, an industry consultant and former Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) official.
White House Policy Adds to Concerns
The trend is not driven by the tech sector alone. The Trump administration has made a domestic nuclear revival a key policy priority and has actively sought to roll back existing safety regulations in order to accelerate the sector's growth. An executive order issued in May of last year directed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to reassess foundational safety standards — including the long-standing radiation exposure model and the principle of keeping exposure "as low as reasonably achievable" — in pursuit of restoring American leadership in nuclear energy.
In a further complication, the federal government has simultaneously delegated additional responsibilities to the INPO as part of a broader NRC reorganisation. This means that for startups opting out of INPO membership, regulatory requirements that were once enforced at the federal level are now effectively optional.
"The NRC has delegated some of its regulatory authority, so to speak, to INPO, specifically in the realm of operations and maintenance training programs. The NRC and INPO are not duplicative; they're complementary," Morris explained.
Broader Risks Beyond Safety
Analysts note that safety is not the only concern stemming from the rapid privatisation of the nuclear sector. Critics have pointed to the risk of chronic understaffing among lean startup operations and the prospect of public subsidies being used to underwrite what are ultimately private commercial ventures — with profits flowing to shareholders rather than back to taxpayers.
As the United States races to expand its nuclear capacity in response to surging AI-driven energy needs, the debate over who bears responsibility for oversight — and what happens when that oversight is absent — is becoming increasingly urgent.
