AI Enters the Nuclear Arena: Diablo Canyon’s Pioneering Step

Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant introduces AI to navigate complex regulatory documents, marking a first in the U.S. nuclear energy sector.

California’s Diablo Canyon power plant just made history by being the first in the U.S. to bring artificial intelligence into the nuclear energy scene. Meet Neutron Enterprise—this AI isn’t here to take over the world (at least not yet), but to help workers dig through mountains of technical docs and regulations. We’re talking about saving a whopping 15,000 hours a year that would otherwise be spent eyeballing paperwork. Not too shabby, right?

Under the hood, Neutron Enterprise runs on eight NVIDIA H100 graphical processors (yeah, the kind that makes your gaming rig look like a toy). And because nuclear stuff is super sensitive, it keeps everything in-house—no cloud shenanigans here. Brought to life by Atomic Canyon, a plucky startup from San Luis Obispo, this AI’s starting with document retrieval. But let’s be real, it’s probably just the opening act for AI’s role in nuclear facilities.

Of course, tossing AI into the nuclear mix isn’t without its critics. Some folks in power suits (and lab coats) are waving red flags, calling for tighter rules to keep things in check. Their worry? That we might lean too hard on this tech without enough guardrails. Fair point.

Trey Lauderdale, the big boss at Atomic Canyon, is quick to reassure everyone that Neutron Enterprise is more of a sidekick than a superhero—it’s not making the big calls. But the idea of AI getting more involved in nuclear ops? That’s stirring up some serious chat about safety, who’s watching the watchers, and how much we’re cool with machines running the show.

As Diablo Canyon tiptoes into this brave new world, the nuclear biz and its overseers are all eyes. Because let’s face it, this is just the first chapter in the AI-meets-nuclear saga. Buckle up.