RTX Ventures, the venture capital arm of RTX, has completed a minority investment in Denver-based laser fusion company Xcimer Energy Corporation. The companies also signed a teaming agreement to explore how Xcimer's pulsed-laser technologies could be integrated into RTX defense systems. The collaboration is intended to support new directed energy capabilities for the United States military against airborne threats.
Strategic Investment and Teaming Agreement
The investment strengthens Xcimer's laser fusion energy roadmap, which received formal approval from the United States Department of Energy in June. That approval covered the company's fusion pilot power plant design under the Department of Energy's Milestone-based Fusion Development Program. It positions Xcimer as a frontrunner in the race to commercialize laser fusion power.
Under the teaming agreement, RTX and Xcimer will examine the integration and containerization of Xcimer's pulsed-laser technologies into RTX defense systems. The companies aim to provide the United States military with new directed energy capabilities that can defeat airborne threats. This effort combines Xcimer's deep laser expertise with RTX's decades of experience developing combat-proven defense technologies.
Shared Technical Challenges
Both laser fusion and laser defense require a laser that fires pulses repeatedly and reliably at a low cost per joule. Such a system must also be mass-manufacturable, maintainable, energy efficient, and dependable in operational conditions. Xcimer's excimer laser system is designed to meet these goals while delivering longer-range performance and greater effectiveness than current directed energy systems.
Conner Galloway, co-founder, chief executive officer, and chief science officer at Xcimer, emphasized the urgent need for affordable and scalable directed energy systems as the United States accelerates next-generation air defense development. He said excimer-based laser technology offers performance, speed, and inherent scalability at a fraction of the cost and complexity of today's systems. Galloway added that the investment from RTX Ventures will help accelerate development and prove these advantages in real-world testing.
Leadership Views and Company Momentum
RTX Chief Technology Officer Juan de Bedout explained that RTX invests in and partners with companies that have the potential to disrupt the aerospace and defense industry. He said such partnerships spur innovation and augment the company's own development efforts. De Bedout noted that Xcimer's pulsed-laser technology aligns with RTX expertise in advanced sensing, command and control, and air defense.
Xcimer Energy is building large, high-powered lasers to enable commercial fusion energy and transform air defense. The Denver-based company expects to deliver fusion energy to the grid by the mid-2030s and has raised nearly $200 million from investors including Hedosophia, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Emerson Collective, and Prelude Ventures. Xcimer received the largest laser fusion award from the Department of Energy's Milestone-based Fusion Development Program.
RTX is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, and employs more than 180,000 people globally. The company advances aviation, engineers integrated defense systems for operational success, and develops next-generation technology solutions and manufacturing. With 2025 sales of more than $88 billion, RTX brings substantial scale and defense integration experience to the collaboration.
The partnership between RTX and Xcimer brings together venture-backed laser innovation and decades of defense integration experience. It reflects growing interest in directed energy systems that can be produced affordably and scaled for real-world military use. The collaboration may accelerate both the commercialization of laser fusion energy and the development of next-generation air defense capabilities.