Focused Energy Strengthens Leadership Team to Accelerate Industrialization of Laser Fusion

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Focused Energy is advancing the industrialization of laser fusion and expanding its executive leadership team. Debbie Callahan has been appointed Chief Strategic Officer (CSO), while Omar Biabani assumes the role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO). The world-leading laser fusion company is focused on developing industrially scalable, high-precision fusion targets and the laser systems precisely matched to them.

Debbie Callahan played a key role in the historic laser fusion breakthrough achieved at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in Livermore in December 2022, when net energy gain was demonstrated for the first time. She subsequently joined Focused Energy, where she served as Target Design Lead, driving the development of fusion targets and optimizing these fuel capsules for mass production. In her new role as CSO, Callahan will focus on translating further scientific advances at Focused Energy into industrial applications.

She will work closely with Omar Biabani, Focused Energy’s newly appointed CTO. In this role, Biabani is responsible for the technological roadmap toward a laser fusion power plant. He previously served as Vice President of Product Development at ASML and brings extensive experience in scaling highly complex technologies for industrial deployment. Biabani is recognized for his ability to translate ambitious scientific concepts into scalable engineering roadmaps.

Bay Area Plays Key Role in First Laser Fusion Power Plant in Germany

Together with energy provider RWE as a strategic partner and additional industry collaborators, Focused Energy is developing Germany’s first laser fusion power plant at the former Biblis nuclear power plant site, with the goal of completion by 2035.

The San Francisco Bay Area, where Focused Energy operates its U.S. subsidiary in Redwood City, plays a central role in this effort. Core activities in the region focus on artificial intelligence and digital development. AI, digital twins, and advanced simulations are fundamentally changing both the pace and methodology of fusion energy industrialization—widely regarded as the most complex engineering project humanity has ever undertaken.

“By combining AI engines with real-time data from the National Ignition Facility and existing simulations, we are significantly accelerating predictive analytics—a key factor in the industrialization of fusion energy,” said Thomas Forner, CEO of Focused Energy.