via TechCrunch
AI Nuclear Power Firm Fermi Appoints New CEO
Fermi, the AI nuclear power company, has named a new CEO more than three months after co-founder Toby Neugebauer was removed from the top executive role. The company announced Wednesday that Lee McIntire, an independent board member, will take over as CEO. McIntire previously served as CEO of CH2M Hill and TerraPower, the nuclear power startup founded by Bill Gates.
Fermi America, co-founded by former U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, is developing an AI campus in Amarillo, Texas, called Project Matador. The project will eventually use nuclear reactors to power data centers, positioning the company at the intersection of two rapidly growing sectors: artificial intelligence and clean energy.
The CEO announcement, coupled with Monday's news that Fermi had signed TensorWave as its first binding customer lease for the Project Matador campus, has boosted the company's stock by nearly 23% since Monday. This marks a positive turn for the young company, which faced turbulence in April when Neugebauer and CFO Miles Everson were ousted. At the time, the company framed the executive shakeup—alongside plans for a corporate headquarters in Dallas—as part of its "Fermi 2.0" strategic evolution.
Marius Haas, Fermi's chairman of the board, expressed confidence in the new appointment: "Fermi's next chapter is a construction and power delivery story, and we believe Lee is the ideal executive to lead Fermi through that process. The job now is to build on schedule, on budget, and safely. Lee has spent 40 years delivering exactly this kind of large, complex project. He also knows Fermi from the inside, having served on our board through our latest period of growth, and he brings a reputation for integrity that Fermi's customers, employees, regulators, and neighbors can rely on."
Looking ahead to 2026, Fermi's leadership transition comes at a critical time as the demand for AI infrastructure surges and nuclear power gains renewed attention as a reliable clean energy source. With McIntire's extensive experience in large-scale projects and his familiarity with the company, Fermi appears well-positioned to navigate its next phase of growth and deliver on Project Matador's ambitious goals.