President Trump’s social media company, which recently expanded into streaming and cryptocurrency, is now looking to become a fusion power company.
Trump Media & Technology Group and TAE Technologies, a fusion power company, said Thursday that they had agreed to an all-stock merger valued at more than $6 billion.
The deal would be a total transformation for Trump Media, the struggling parent company of Truth Social, the social media platform that has struggled to gain market share beyond serving as the main online megaphone for President Trump. Trump Media’s stock has been flagging — having fallen some 70 percent this year before the merger announcement.
The announcement provided a jolt to Trump Media’s shares, which rose 25 percent in premarket trading. President Trump is the company’s largest shareholder, owning just over a 50 percent stake. His shares are held in a trust managed by his eldest son, Donald Jr., who is a Trump Media board member.
Mr. Trump did not immediately comment on the deal on Truth Social.
The merger would create one of the world’s first publicly traded nuclear fusion companies, according to a news release from the companies. TAE Technologies, according to a company news release, has received financial backing from Google, Chevron and Goldman Sachs, among others.
Some tech companies are looking at fusion, a still-experimental technology, as a clean energy alternative that could help provide the enormous amounts of electricity needed by A.I. data centers.
The deal is likely to draw scrutiny, as it would indirectly put a company owned by Mr. Trump in competition with other firms looking to power and profit from the A.I. revolution.
Jonathan Wolfe is a Times reporter based in London, covering breaking news.
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