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Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by philipkglass on Friday January 14, 2022 @02:38PM (#29939258)
I mean that they've never been at an organization that actually builds reactors or reactor components. Building working machines, at scale, at a price that customers can afford, is hard even if you're not in a heavily regulated industry. I'd also be skeptical of the chances for a pair of people to successfully move from graduate research in solar technology at MIT to commercializing a new solar cell design through their startup.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by jjoonathan on Friday January 14, 2022 @02:43PM (#29939320)
Hah, it's the opposite of "you need 5 years of experience in a 3 year old technology": they need X years of experience in an industry that has been dead for the last 40.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by rfdave on Friday January 14, 2022 @02:47PM (#29939381)
Looking at the number of failed kickstarters for physical objects that are multiple orders of magnitude less complicated than a nuclear power plant with new technology might be instructive.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by sbierwagen on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:15PM (#29941228)
China's been building new reactors, poach some of those project managers.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by readams on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:01PM (#29941047)
There aren't any organizations that build reactors though. You'd have to go to France or China.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by PeterisP on Friday January 14, 2022 @08:17PM (#29942647)
Even if you really had to go to France or China to get some experts (which is not the case) it would be quite reasonable to expect that they do so; using a combination of modern inventions such as airplanes and money it should be possible to get some of them across the ocean.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by bigthymer on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:07PM (#29941136)
Doesn't Westinghouse build nuclear reactors?

https://www.westinghousenuclear.com/new-plants/engineering-c...

Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by readams on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:10PM (#29941169)
They're hoping to get to build some. Not in the US of course.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by philipkglass on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:33PM (#29941432)
They're building reactors in the state of Georgia:

https://info.westinghousenuclear.com/blog/shaping-the-future...

Other companies that manufacture nuclear components in the US include Areva, General Electric, and Framatome. But Westinghouse is the only company that has a new reactor design currently under construction in the US.

Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by count on Friday January 14, 2022 @05:40PM (#29941503)
The US is still fielding new nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers. So, they ARE building new power plants, just...not commercial ones.
Re:Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators by epistasis on Friday January 14, 2022 @09:06PM (#29942904)
France does not appear to have the expertise either, Flamanville and Olkiluoto have been disasters.

Plus, it's really not clear how they could translate their organizational skills to entirely different culture. Maybe it would work, but it's certainly not a sure thing.