Full-Time

Chemist

Posted on 5/5/2025

General Matter

General Matter

11-50 employees

Uranium extraction, conversion, and enrichment services

Compensation Overview

$80k - $170k/yr

+ Stock Options

Los Angeles, CA, USA

In Person

Category
Lab & Research (1)
Requirements
  • Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, or a related field (graduating students and recent graduates encouraged to apply)
  • Knowledge of mass spectrometry techniques (e.g., ICP-MS, TIMS, SIMS) and experience with analytical instrumentation
  • Basic proficiency in wet chemistry techniques, including sample digestion, titration, and precipitation methods
  • Excellent problem-solving skills and ability to work in a highly regulated environment
  • Ability to work extended hours and weekends as necessary
Responsibilities
  • Mass Spectrometry Analysis: Conduct isotopic analysis and trace element detection using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometry (TIMS), and Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS)
  • Chemical Process Monitoring: Apply analytical chemistry techniques to ensure the quality and safety of nuclear fuel cycle materials
  • Method Development: Assist in developing and validating sample preparation, digestion, and separation techniques for nuclear material analysis
  • Data Analysis & Reporting: Interpret mass spectrometry results and collaborate with process engineers and operations support to optimize facility operations
  • Laboratory Safety & Compliance: Maintain adherence to radiation protection, hazardous material handling, and chemical safety protocols
  • Collaborative Research & Development: Work alongside senior scientists and engineers on projects aimed at improving fuel cycle efficiency and waste minimization

General Matter provides domestic uranium enrichment services to power plants and government entities, producing LEU and HALEU for nuclear reactors. It handles the full fuel cycle—from uranium extraction through conversion and enrichment—to deliver fuel that supports energy production and national energy security. The company differentiates itself with a focus on domestic production and a leadership team from nuclear, technology, and finance to improve reliability and urgency, reducing dependence on international sources. Its goal is to support the United States’ nuclear power capacity by supplying secure, affordable enriched uranium for reactors and aligned with national energy objectives.

Company Size

11-50

Company Stage

Early VC

Total Funding

$50M

Headquarters

California, Kentucky

Founded

2024

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Secured $900M DOE contract in January 2026 for 10-year HALEU production.
  • Signed August 2025 lease for $1.5B Paducah plant targeting 2030 operations.
  • Selected in October 2024 among four DOE awardees for domestic enrichment services.

What critics are saying

  • Centrus undercuts with proven centrifuges, capturing 60-80% HALEU share in 12-24 months.
  • Paducah remediation delays shift operations from 2030 to beyond due to contamination.
  • DOE withholds $900M payments if scalability fails, causing cash burn in 12-24 months.

What makes General Matter unique

  • General Matter develops proprietary scalable uranium enrichment technology for LEU and HALEU.
  • First privately funded U.S. company leasing Paducah site for commercial enrichment facility.
  • Peter Thiel-backed startup founded in 2024 by SpaceX veteran Scott Nolan.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(k) Retirement Plan

Stock Options

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Health Savings Account/Flexible Spending Account

Professional Development Budget

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

9%

1 year growth

-20%

2 year growth

0%
ExchangeMonitor
Jan 5th, 2026
Three companies awarded $2.7 billion in uranium enrichment orders, DOE says

Three companies awarded $2.7 billion in uranium enrichment orders, DOE says. The Department of Energy said Monday it was awarding $2.7 billion total in task orders to three companies with the goal of strengthening domestic uranium enrichment over the next ten years. American Centrifuge Operating, a Centrus company, and General Matter are both receiving $900 million to create a domestic high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) enrichment capacity. Orano Federal Services is receiving $900 million to expand the U.S. domestic low-enriched uranium (LEU) capacity. DOE signed HALEU and LEU contracts with six total companies late in 2024. DOE's Monday press release said developing domestic production capacity for both will ensure an adequate fuel supply for the nation's 94 commercial reactors and future deployments of advanced nuclear reactors. The Donald Trump administration has issued a number of executive orders aimed at strengthening the domestic nuclear fuel cycle, including uranium enrichment and conversion as well as domestic uranium production. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright emphasized the importance of domestic uranium production in a hearing in June, mourning that there is "no American-owned enrichment based in the United States of America" today, and that he strives to build "commercial enrichment in the United States." The Joe Biden administration has also worked to increase American domestic uranium enrichment capabilities with a ban on Russian-imported uranium that will begin in 2028.

Gizmodo
Jan 5th, 2026
US awards Peter Thiel-backed nuclear startup $900M to boost domestic uranium enrichment

The US Department of Energy has awarded $2.7 billion to three companies to strengthen domestic uranium enrichment capabilities. General Matter, a nuclear startup backed by Peter Thiel, will receive $900 million, alongside equal amounts for American Centrifuge Operating and Orano Federal Services. The funding, distributed over 10 years through milestone-based task orders, aims to reduce dependence on Russian fuel supplies, which currently control 44% of global uranium enrichment capacity and provide 35% of US nuclear fuel imports. The awards will also support domestic production of high-assay low-enriched uranium for advanced reactors. The initiative addresses surging electricity demand from AI data centres, as tech giants including Microsoft, Google and Meta expand their infrastructure. The funding was allocated in a 2024 government bill during the Biden-Harris administration.

National Association of Manufacturers
Aug 14th, 2025
Powering America's Nuclear Comeback

Just this month, California-based General Matter announced that it would construct an enrichment facility in Kentucky on the site of a former U.S. government enrichment plant, saying it "can produce at a lower cost the type of enriched uranium sought out by developers of advanced nuclear reactors."

OilPrice.com
Aug 8th, 2025
General Matter to Build $1.5 Billion Uranium Plant in Kentucky

Critical minerals startup General Matter announced ambitious plans this week to construct a $1.5 billion uranium enrichment facility at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in McCracken County, Kentucky, as the Trump administration seeks to reduce reliance on rare earths from China.

Lexington Herald Leader
Aug 6th, 2025
'Atomic city of the future': Uranium enrichment facility signs lease in Paducah

General Matter, a California-based company, said Aug. 5 it will build a $1.5 billion facility in Paducah at the U.S. Department of Energy's former Gaseous Diffusion Plant.

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