Archive · 27 Sep 2025
Startup Claims Mercury to Gold Transformation via Fusion
Imagine a company wants to make gold, but instead of digging it up, they want to make it in a lab.
They use a special process called nuclear fusion, like the sun uses!
This company, Marathon Fusion, wants to turn mercury (a liquid metal) into gold.
They use a reactor, a place where they smash atoms together to make new ones.
The company says this process will turn mercury into a type of gold that can be used safely.
The scientist says it’s a sound process, but engineering it could be challenging.
It is similar to how lab-grown diamonds have become popular and more affordable, this technology wants to change how we get gold.
Marathon Fusion, a San Francisco startup, claims to convert mercury into gold using nuclear fusion.
The process involves transforming mercury into mercury-197, which then decays into gold-197.
The produced gold will be initially radioactive.
The digital twin model used by Marathon Fusion has yet to be validated against a real commercial fusion reactor.
Lab-grown diamonds show that the demand for synthetic precious metals can be great.
- Who
- Marathon Fusion, a San Francisco-based startup.
- What
- Claims to have made significant progress in converting mercury into gold using nuclear fusion.
- When
- Unspecified, but the research is ongoing and the academic paper is not yet peer-reviewed.
- Where
- The process is based on a fusion reactor, with the company based in San Francisco.
- Why
- To create gold and potentially revolutionize the energy and precious metals industries.
- Company
- Marathon Fusion
- Location
- San Francisco
- Process
- Nuclear fusion of mercury
- Result
- Mercury-197, which decays into gold-197
- Safety Concern
- Gold needs 14-18 years storage before use
- Lab Diamond Sales Growth
- Increased from 1% to nearly 20% between 2014 and 2024