Full Name
Dr. Richard Pearson
Job Title
Co-Founder & Chief Innovator
Company
Kyoto Fusioneering UK
Speaker Bio
Richard is the co-founder of Kyoto Fusioneering, a Japanese headquartered company dedicated to advancing global fusion by commercialising next-generation technologies—including plasma heating systems, tritium fuel cycle technologies, and breeding blankets for tritium production and power generation.
Richard has helped the company raise over $100 million in private capital and expand to a 150-person, multinational operation. In that time he has helped shape the company’s innovation strategy (technology-to-market), cultivating key global stakeholder relationships across the public and private sectors, and supported R&D efforts. He now oversees the company’s external affairs and is charged with fostering a broader fusion industry ecosystem.
Richard holds a PhD in Fusion Engineering and Innovation from The Open University (UK) and an MSc in Nuclear Engineering from Imperial College London. He is known for his expertise in systems thinking, innovation theory, and commercialisation of fusion, and is also an accomplished public speaker, highlighted by his inaugural TEDx talk in 2022. Alongside his commercial work, Richard actively bridges research and policy for greater industry impact.
He serves as a Senior Research Associate (visiting) in the School of Physics at the University of Bristol, UK; as Field Editor for Private Fusion & Commercialisation at the Journal of Fusion Energy; as a Board member of the UK Fusion Industry Taskforce; and as an elected member of the IEEE Fusion Technology Committee.
Richard has helped the company raise over $100 million in private capital and expand to a 150-person, multinational operation. In that time he has helped shape the company’s innovation strategy (technology-to-market), cultivating key global stakeholder relationships across the public and private sectors, and supported R&D efforts. He now oversees the company’s external affairs and is charged with fostering a broader fusion industry ecosystem.
Richard holds a PhD in Fusion Engineering and Innovation from The Open University (UK) and an MSc in Nuclear Engineering from Imperial College London. He is known for his expertise in systems thinking, innovation theory, and commercialisation of fusion, and is also an accomplished public speaker, highlighted by his inaugural TEDx talk in 2022. Alongside his commercial work, Richard actively bridges research and policy for greater industry impact.
He serves as a Senior Research Associate (visiting) in the School of Physics at the University of Bristol, UK; as Field Editor for Private Fusion & Commercialisation at the Journal of Fusion Energy; as a Board member of the UK Fusion Industry Taskforce; and as an elected member of the IEEE Fusion Technology Committee.
Speaking At
