Microsoft cofounder and America's largest private farmland owner Bill Gates ranks 43rd on the 2025 Land Report 100 with 275,000 acres, but his influence extends far beyond agriculture.
In June 2024, Gates made headlines by breaking ground on what he described as "the most advanced nuclear facility in the world." Situated on 44 acres in Kemmerer, Wyoming, the TerraPower Natrium reactor represents a significant leap in nuclear innovation, according to the Land Report.
Gates highlighted the reactor's sodium-cooled design on his Gates Notes blog, stating it "will bring safe, next-generation nuclear technology to life in Wyoming. It's a huge milestone for the local economy, America's energy independence and the fight against climate change."
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Nuclear energy advocates emphasize that modern advancements have significantly reduced risks associated with meltdowns, such as the Three Mile Island incident. Instead, the new technologies promise a clean and sustainable energy source that could play a pivotal role in mitigating climate change.
Gates, a longtime proponent of nuclear energy, traces his commitment to a scientific paper he read nearly two decades ago outlining the transformative potential of Natrium reactor technology.
"The design was far safer than any existing plant, with the temperatures held under control by the laws of physics instead of human operators who can make mistakes," Gates wrote on his blog. "It would have a shorter construction timeline and be cheaper to operate. And it would be reliable, providing dependable power throughout the day and night.
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"As I looked at the plans for this new reactor, I saw how rethinking nuclear power could overcome the barriers that had hindered it – and revolutionize how we generate power in the U.S. and around the world."
Gates founded TerraPower in 2008, inspired by the groundbreaking scientific report he had read a few years earlier. The company's innovative theories and designs took a significant step toward becoming reality in 2024 when the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) accepted TerraPower's construction permit application for review.
"This step may sound bureaucratic but is, in fact, a huge deal and the first time something like this has happened with a commercial nonlight water reactor in more than 40 years," Gates wrote.
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He elaborated that the NRC review process, which is expected to take a couple of years, is critical for moving forward. Once approved, construction on the actual nuclear reactor can begin.
Meanwhile, TerraPower will continue building the nonnuclear components of the facility.
"Construction will begin (in 2025) on the so-called ‘energy island,' which is where the steam turbines and other machinery that actually generate power will sit," Gates wrote. "The plant hopefully will come online in 2030."
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