Gundo Goes Nuclear

Happy Tuesday Brex Community,

Over the weekend, there was interesting news about an early stage VC backed startup, Valar Atomics, that is partnering up with the federal government. The unique thing about the news is three fold 1) this is only a 2 year old startup, rarely do you see a government partnership at this stage 2) this startup is building nuclear reactors for energy independence, very different than the popular AI trend 3) the startup is building out of an atypical startup hub, El Segundo, CA (aka Gundo).

The intersection of energy, manufacturing and defense is one of the most compelling areas that I’m tracking, there is a ton of momentum right now with both investors and builders. Related, the best conference I attended in 2025 was Reindustrialize in Detroit and it’s focusing on this space. The next one is coming up June, you have to apply and it is a must attend if you are operating or investing in these sector, I hope that I can make the cut again!

Lastly, there is an accelerator in the Gundo called Disciplus, there are currently taking applications, so if you are an early stage startup founder building in this space, definitely check it out.

Have a great week,

Shai Goldman

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Thrive started as a $10M fund in 2009 focused on seed stage startups, it’s been incredible to see them mature as a firm and this is a massive raise, which is great news for founders as there is more capital available for yours startups

Meet Massive and their CEO/Founder Jason Grad

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