Cumulative investment in fusion energy jumped by 30% between June and September to €13bn ($15.1bn) from €9.9bn, with the US and China dominating the landscape, according to a report by the European Union’s F4E Fusion Observatory.

Data from the Observatory showed the US as clear leader in the fusion energy space, taking 53% of global funding, or €6.9bn, with China holding a 34% share of investments at €4.4bn. Some way behind, lies the EU with a global share of roughly 5% of global funding, with Germany accounting for 85% of that capital.

This divergence was also creating a rise of “fusion unicorns”, the report said, with four companies in the US and China – Commonwealth Fusion Systems, China Fusion Energy Co, NEO Fusion and TAE Technologies – all exceeding €1bn in global private investment.