Bloomberg Intelligence Podcast

Episode: "Trump Media Targets Nuclear Fusion Through Merger With TAE"
Date: December 18, 2025
Hosts: Scarlet Fu and Paul Sweeney
Key Guests: Simon Casey (Bloomberg News, Managing Editor for Energy & Commodities), Jake Silverman (Bloomberg Semiconductor Analyst), Poonam Goyal (Senior US E-Commerce & Retail Analyst), Rachel Fuwer (Bloomberg News, Restaurants)

Episode Overview

This episode delves into several headline market stories with deep-dive analysis. The main focus is Trump Media & Technology Group’s (DJT) surprising pivot to nuclear fusion through a merger with TAE Technologies, one of the more credible private fusion developers. The hosts and guests explore what this means for energy markets, the nuclear sector, and potential conflicts of interest given the Trump administration’s pro-nuclear agenda. The episode also covers Micron’s semiconductor performance amid the AI boom, activist activity at Lululemon, and strong results from Darden Restaurants.

1. Trump Media & Technology Group's Fusion Energy Pivot

Trump Media’s Surprise Merger with TAE

• Segment Start: 02:30
• Key Points:
  • Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT), best known for Truth Social, is merging with TAE, a longstanding and well-backed nuclear fusion company.
  • TAE has over two decades’ experience and big-name investors: Goldman Sachs, Google, and Chevron.
  • The deal injects ~$200 million in cash into TAE, positioning DJT as potentially the first publicly traded fusion company.
  • The move is characterized as a significant pivot—"a fusion company as much as they're a social media company or a crypto company" (Host 1, 03:01).
  • Fusion’s future: cheap, abundant energy, but commercial viability remains distant.

Notable Quote

"Yeah, I don't think anybody had this on their bingo card this morning. We certainly didn't."
– Host 1 (03:01)

Energy Policy & Conflicts of Interest

• Segment: 04:15
• Key Points:
  • Discussion of the unusual proximity of the company to administration policies, given Trump’s pro-nuclear, pro-fossil stance.
  • US power demand is soaring due to AI; nuclear is seen as crucial for meeting it.
  • Energy Secretary Chris Wright is "very pro-nuclear, being very vocal on that front" (Host 1, 04:34).
  • The deal raises unprecedented conflicts of interest between political office and corporate ambitions.

Notable Quote

"It's kind of amazing nevertheless to see this kind of deal this morning."
– Host 1 (05:26)

Assessing the Value of DJT’s Involvement

• Segment: 05:34
• Key Points:
  • DJT’s contribution: “the name, the ticker, and a cash pile.”
  • With limited revenue and staff but over $1B in cash, DJT is classified as a “meme stock” with potential to use cash for innovation.
  • Name recognition "goes a long way in 2025 and 2026" (Simon Casey, 06:13).

The Fusion Market: Still a Dream?

• Segment: 06:22
• Key Points:
  • TAE/DJT becomes the first public fusion developer; other competitors remain private.
  • Rising interest in nuclear, especially small modular reactors (SMRs) for data centers.
  • Trump administration is eager for nuclear innovation and lower cost of entry.

2. The Technical & Financial Realities of Nuclear Fusion

How Far Is Commercial Fusion?

• Segment: 07:23
• Key Points:
  • True commercial fusion is “decades off”—the science remains challenging.
  • TAE/DJT aims to start building the world's first utility-scale fusion plant in the upcoming year, but skepticism abounds: “We don’t even know if it can work at a commercial scale. They can pour the concrete... nothing to stop them doing that.” (Host 1, 07:53)
  • Potential costs are enormous and uncertain. For comparison, conventional nuclear fission plants have run $10B+.

Notable Quote

“It’s the future and it’s always been the future 30 years out, and it always will be 30 years out.”
– Host 1 (08:39)

Financing and Industry Outlook

• Segment: 08:19–09:12
• Key Points:
  • Large institutional investors may be interested if the project proves viable.
  • For now, mainstream interest is cautious—reliable returns are far from guaranteed.

SMRs: Closer to Reality, Still Far Off

• Segment: 09:16
• Key Points:
  • Small modular reactors are in use on submarines, carriers, but not yet at commercial land-based scale.
  • Regulatory reform is seen as crucial—an area where the Trump administration is active.
  • Manufacturing at scale for SMRs remains an unproven milestone.

Notable Quote

“The challenge there is actually possibly more regulatory and again, that’s something that the Trump administration is actively trying to address.”
– Host 1 (09:29)

3. Micron’s Roaring Comeback: AI and Semiconductors

Segment Start: 12:51

• Micron stock is up 200% this year, driven by demand for AI, particularly memory chips needed for data centers.
• Investors expected a more minimal outlook, seasonality explains some conservatism—but strong pricing and demand helped results.
• High-bandwidth memory (HBM), especially for Nvidia’s next-gen products, is a bottleneck due to supply constraints.

Notable Quote

“We tend to see something like seven to ten quarters, about two years plus of up cycles. And then… some sort of cyclical decline. AI is structurally limiting some of that.”
– Jake Silverman (14:30)

Cyclicality, Capacity, and Client Leverage

• AI spending is elongating cycles, but does not eliminate cyclicality.
• Micron’s production is split across Taiwan, Japan, Virginia, expanding in Boise, ID and Clay, New York.
• PC makers (Dell, HP) have less leverage as supply tightens, but benefit when cycles flip.

4. Lululemon: Activist Pressure and Innovation Stalls

Segment Start: 21:02

• Lululemon stock jumped (+6.5%) on news that Elliott Management has a $1B stake. The stock is still down 42% year-to-date.
• The company’s issues are mainly “execution missteps” and lost momentum in product innovation.
• Founder Chip Wilson (no longer management) exerts influence, criticizing strategy and saying innovation has stalled.

Notable Quote

“If you think about Lululemon in the past, it was all about product… leggings that made you feel good, leggings that performed. That’s how they made their mark.”
– Poonam Goyal (22:29)

The Battle for Leadership and Product

• A leader with past success at Ralph Lauren and Coach could drive needed turnaround.
• Innovation and staying ahead of trends—rather than just spending more—will be crucial.

5. Darden Restaurants: Resilient Sales Amid Inflation

Segment Start: 26:33

• Darden (Olive Garden, Longhorn Steakhouse) reported strong same-store sales and raised its forecast despite profit pressure from beef prices.
• Their core customers—mid to high income—are still spending, turning to casual dining as a treat relative to pricey fast casual options.
• Format innovation: smaller portions growing in popularity, possibly related to consumer health trends and GLP-1 drugs.
• Casual chains are faring better than fast food, where lower income customers are pulling back.

Notable Quote

“They see these restaurants as kind of a treat to them… you know, why don’t [I] just pay a little bit more and I can get a better experience at an Olive Garden.”
– Rachel Fuwer (27:20)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “Trump Media and Technology is now a nuclear fusion company. How does this work?” (Simon Casey, 02:30)
• “I think this will be the first fusion developer that's actually listed on a stock exchange.” (Simon Casey, 06:22)
• “It's not even first innings… the joke, it’s the future, and it always will be 30 years out.” (Host 1, 08:39)
• “Micron’s actually somewhat constrained in terms of their ability to supply just simply because they haven’t invested in that much additional capacity…” (Jake Silverman, 13:16)
• “It’s execution, right? It’s about staying ahead of trends and really innovating faster than competition.” (Poonam Goyal, 23:17)
• “I think with Olive Garden what we've seen today is the popularity of smaller portions…” (Rachel Fuwer, 30:13)

Conclusion

This episode unpacks a week marked by surprise moves and structural change: Trump Media’s headline-grabbing entry into public fusion markets, the lasting impacts of AI on tech manufacturing cycles, investors agitating for turnarounds at soft retail brands, and the resilience of the casual dining sector. Across all these themes, the fundamental questions were about the reality-vs-hype of bold pivots, who benefits from industrial change, and where the next round of true innovation will come from.