The White House’s new science and technology strategy elevates nuclear energy to a critical technology for national security, while also emphasizing the need for a survivable and credible nuclear deterrent.
The August 2026 National Security Science and Technology Strategy identifies nuclear energy as one of 12 “key enabling technologies” that the White House says agencies should prioritize to maintain U.S. technological leadership. The strategy says nuclear technology should support national security applications, alongside advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, hypersonics, semiconductors and space technologies.
The strategy’s definition of nuclear energy encompasses advanced fission reactors, fusion energy, space nuclear power and propulsion, and high-temperature and radiation-resistant materials.
The document also specifically connects nuclear energy to national security infrastructure and industrial capacity. Federal agencies are directed to prioritize nuclear among technology areas for early- and mid-stage research and development, including through public-private partnerships. The strategy also calls for expanding cooperation with allies on nuclear energy and related technologies.
Nuclear power is also tied to the strategy’s broader emphasis on technological resilience. The administration says the United States must reduce vulnerabilities in critical technology supply chains and increase domestic production and development capabilities.
The strategy also identifies maintaining “survivable and credible nuclear deterrent forces” as a priority for countering strategic threats to the homeland. It points to the nuclear triad — ballistic-missile submarines, intercontinental ballistic missiles and bombers — as an example of technological redundancy designed to ensure that no single adversary breakthrough can defeat the U.S. deterrent.
The strategy does not prescribe specific nuclear weapons programs or funding levels. Instead, it establishes nuclear energy and technologies supporting nuclear deterrence as components of a broader national security science and technology agenda, with additional technology-specific strategies expected to follow.