This 12-Year-Old Boy Is The Youngest To Build Nuclear Fusion Machine, Earns World Record | Photo | Viral News

Last Updated:February 16, 2026, 18:27 IST

Aiden McMillan set a Guinness World Record by becoming the youngest person to achieve nuclear fusion.

He began working on the project when he was just 8. (Photo Credit : X/ Dexerto)

At an age when most children play video games or usual field sports like football, basketball or cricket, a 12-year-old boy from Dallas, Texas, has amazed people around the world with his scientific invention. He successfully built a functional reactor and achieved nuclear fusion. His accomplishment, that too, at such a young age, has left everyone impressed.

Aiden McMillan, a class 7 student in the Dallas Independent School District, set a Guinness World Record as the youngest person to achieve nuclear fusion. According to a report by NBC News, the young boy’s interest in science began at a very young age. He began studying nuclear physics and the complex theories behind fusion energy during the COVID-19 pandemic when he was just eight years old.

Aiden McMillan Received Help From A Non-Profit Organisation

For nearly two years, he studied how nuclear fusion works and tried to understand its science. After learning the basics, he began building small prototypes of his fusion device and slowly improved it over time. What followed next was a series of trial and error, persistence and problem-solving. And in this journey, he was not alone. Aiden received support from Launchpad, a nonprofit organisation in West Dallas that helps students work on advanced science and engineering projects.

While speaking to the above-mentioned media outlet, the 12-year-old shared that his journey had been anything but easy. At different stages, he faced multiple challenges, overcame them, and again encountered new problems. “I mean, I loved the project, but I also kinda hated it,” he shared. Over the course of four years, Aiden faced several setbacks, made many changes to his design and followed strict safety measures while working on the project.

Aiden McMillan Says It Was His “Project Of Interest”

“It doesn’t make me jump higher. It doesn’t make me write faster. It doesn’t do anything for me, and to be honest, it’s really just a project of interest, but in the grand scheme of things, like fusion as a whole, in my opinion, is the energy of the future,” Aiden explained, as he shared that the project was driven by his curiosity.

Speaking about her son’s project, Aiden’s mother shared that she was initially worried about the safety risks involved. She made sure to fully understand the dangers and how they would be managed before allowing her son to continue.

The big breakthrough in his project came when Aiden’s device successfully produced neutrons, confirming that nuclear fusion had taken place. FYI, Nuclear fusion takes place when two light atomic nuclei combine to form a single heavier one and release a massive amount of energy. This process is significant because it has the potential to provide an inexhaustible, clean energy source without the radioactive waste associated with traditional nuclear power.

Internet Reacts To Aiden McMillan’s Invention

Once Aiden’s invention caught attention online, people praised his talent. “Nice, that’s pretty cool- 12 YEARS OLD?? BRO I WAS DRAWING COWS PURPLE AT 12,” said one user.

A different person said, “A 12-year-old building a fusion reactor is incredible dedication and intelligence. These amateur fusors don’t produce net energy, but the engineering knowledge at that age is wild. If Guinness confirms it, that’s a lifetime achievement already locked in before middle school ends.”

“America’s education system focuses more on creativity, invention, building stuff and research work. In India, focus is still mostly on how to land a job at Apple, Google or Facebook as a software engineer,” another person mentioned.

“Aiden McMillan started researching nuclear physics at 8 years old during lockdown while the rest of us were just making sourdough bread. He deserved to be recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records,” added someone else.

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