AI nuclear power firm Fermi appoints new CEO Lee McIntire
Original: AI nuclear power firm Fermi finally has a new CEO
Why This Matters
Leadership stability and the first binding customer lease signal a key execution phase for AI-driven nuclear power infrastructure.
Fermi, the AI nuclear power company co-founded by former U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, has named Lee McIntire as CEO on August 12, 2026 — more than three months after co-founder Toby Neugebauer was fired from the role. McIntire previously served as CEO at CH2M Hill and TerraPower.
Fermi has appointed Lee McIntire as its new CEO, ending a leadership vacancy that began in April 2026 when co-founder Toby Neugebauer and CFO Miles Everson were pushed out of the company. McIntire, who had been serving as an independent board member, previously held chief executive roles at engineering firm CH2M Hill and Bill Gates-founded nuclear startup TerraPower. Fermi America, co-founded by former U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, is developing an AI campus in Amarillo, Texas called Project Matador, which plans to use nuclear reactors to power data centers. The CEO announcement came alongside news that TensorWave had signed as the first binding customer lease for the Project Matador campus — contributing to a nearly 23% rise in Fermi's stock since Monday. Board Chairman Marius Haas stated: 'Fermi's next chapter is a construction and power delivery story, and we believe Lee is the ideal executive to lead Fermi through that process.' The company had previously framed its April executive shakeup, along with a new corporate headquarters in Dallas, as 'Fermi 2.0.'