@scalzi @ehud This is a terrific technical achievement that should be celebrated. That said, I’m willing to bet a substantial sum that when we get practical grid-connected fusion power plants, they won’t be using NIF’s approach (nor will they be tokamaks). There are a large number of private firms that are pursuing more practical, scalable, commercializable approaches. (And let’s not forget that NIF’s real job is nuclear weapons research, not practical fusion.)