Oklo Appoints Two New Board Members Following Chris Wright’s Confirmation as U.S. Secretary of Energy

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 24, 2025--

Oklo Inc. (NYSE: OKLO), an advanced nuclear technology company, has appointed Daniel Poneman and Michael Thompson to its Board of Directors. Their addition strengthens the company’s leadership team with deep expertise in nuclear technology and technology financing.

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“We welcome Daniel and Michael to our Board of Directors,” said Oklo Co-founder and CEO Jacob DeWitte. “Their extensive experience and passion for our mission will be helpful as we work to advance the large-scale deployment of Oklo Aurora powerhouses, nuclear fuel recycling, and the development of our radioisotope production facilities.”

​“Nuclear energy needs to play a major role in meeting the world's growing energy needs,” said Caroline Cochran, Co-Founder and COO of Oklo. “We are developing advanced fission technologies to deliver on its potential, and the expertise of Daniel and Michael will help us achieve our goals.”​

About the New Board Members

Daniel B. Poneman has decades of experience in the U.S. nuclear industry across both public and private sectors. He served as Deputy Secretary of Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy from 2009 to 2014. Mr. Poneman later became President and CEO of Centrus Energy Corp. from 2015 to 2023, where he played a key role in launching the first U.S.-technology enabled domestic uranium enrichment production since 1954.

Michael Thompson has over 25 years of experience investing in and advising technology companies. Since 2017, he has served as CEO and Managing Partner of Reinvent Capital, a private investment fund focused on technology. Prior to that, he was the Founder and Managing Director of BHR-Capital, a New York-based hedge fund.

Mr. Poneman will serve on the Nominating & Governance Committee, and Mr. Thompson will serve on the Audit Committee of Oklo’s Board.

About Oklo Inc.: Oklo Inc. is developing fast fission power plants to deliver clean, reliable, and affordable energy at scale, establishing a domestic supply chain for critical radioisotopes, and advancing nuclear fuel recycling to convert nuclear waste into clean energy. Oklo was the first to receive a site use permit from the U.S. Department of Energy for a commercial advanced fission plant, was awarded fuel from Idaho National Laboratory, and submitted the first custom combined license application for an advanced reactor to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Oklo is also developing advanced fuel recycling technologies in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. National Laboratories.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes statements that express Oklo’s opinions, expectations, objectives, beliefs, plans, intentions, strategies, assumptions, forecasts or projections regarding future events or future results and therefore are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements.” The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “can,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements include all matters that are not historical facts. They appear in a number of places throughout this press release and include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, the benefits of the proposed acquisition, results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and the markets in which Oklo operates. Such forward-looking statements are based on information available as of the date of this press release, and current expectations, forecasts and assumptions, and involve a number of judgments, risks and uncertainties.

As a result of a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, the actual results or performance of Oklo may be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. The following important risk factors could affect Oklo’s future results and cause those results or other outcomes to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements: risks related to the development and deployment of Oklo’s powerhouses; the risk that Oklo is pursuing an emerging market, with no commercial project operating, regulatory uncertainties; risks related to acquisitions, divestitures, or joint ventures we may engage in; the potential need for financing to construct plants; market, financial, political and legal conditions; the effects of competition; risks related to accessing HALEU and recycled fuels; risks related to our supply chain; risks related to power purchase agreements; risks related to human capital; risks related to our intellectual property; risks related to cybersecurity and data privacy; changes in applicable laws or regulations; the outcome of any government and regulatory proceedings and investigations and inquiries; the risk that the acquisition of Atomic Alchemy fails to produce the expected benefits; and those factors in the other documents filed by Oklo from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties of the other documents filed by Oklo from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release and in any document incorporated by reference are based on current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on Oklo. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting Oklo will be those that Oklo has anticipated. Oklo undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

Michael Thompson

Daniel B. Poneman

The only Black, all-female unit to serve in Europe during World War II, commonly known as the Six Triple Eight, will be presented Tuesday with the Congressional Gold Medal, following a long-running campaign to recognize its efforts.

The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion was credited with solving a growing mail crisis during its stint in England and, upon its return, serving as a role model to generations of Black women who joined the military.

The unit cleared out a backlog of about 17 million pieces of mail in three months, twice as fast as projected. It would go on to serve in France before returning home. And like many Black units during World War II, its exploits never got the attention afforded its white counterparts — until now.

At a ceremony scheduled to be held in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol Visitor Center, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and others will present the medal to the family of the unit commander, Lt. Col. Charity Adams Earley.

Kim Guise, senior curator and director of curatorial affairs at the National WWII Museum, said there are only two women living from the 855 who served in the unit.

“That really shows how long this recognition took,” Guise said. “It is really important to recognize the accomplishments of these women and what they went through to serve their country in war time.”

Wisconsin Rep. Gwen Moore, who co-sponsored legislation to award the medal to the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, called it a long overdue honor for the women in the unit.

“These heroes deserve their dues, and I am so glad their story is being told,” Moore, a Democrat, told The Associated Press on Monday. “I am especially honored to ensure my constituent Ms. Anna Mae Robertson and the many others who served with her are recognized for their selfless service.”

In 2022, Congress voted 422-0 to bestow its highest honor on the 6888th.

"It’s overwhelming,” retired Maj. Fannie Griffin McClendon, who lives in Arizona, told the AP after the vote. “It’s something I never even thought about it.”

McClendon joined the Air Force after the military was integrated and retired in 1971. She was the first female to command an all-male squadron with the Strategic Air Command.

The 6888th was sent overseas in 1945, when there was growing pressure from African-American organizations to include Black women in what was called the Women’s Army Corps, and allow them to join their white counterparts overseas.

“They kept hollering about wanting us to go overseas so I guess they found something for us to do overseas: take care of the mail,” McClendon said. “And there was an awful lot of mail. ... They expected we were gonna be there about two or three months trying to get it straightened out. Well, I think in about a month, in a month and a half, we had it all straightened out and going in the right direction.”

The 6888th toiled around the clock, processing about 65,000 pieces of mail in each of the three shifts. It created a system using locator cards with a service member’s name and unit number to ensure mail was delivered.

Over the years, the unit’s story started to gain wider recognition. A monument was erected in 2018 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to honor it, and the 6888th was given the Meritorious Unit Commendation in 2019. A documentary, “The Six Triple Eight,” was made about the unit's exploits. In 2024, Tyler Perry directed a movie for Netflix about the unit, starring Kerry Washington.

Associated Press writer Michael Casey contributed to this report.

FILE - World War II veteran Maj. Fannie Griffin McClendon, a member of the World War II 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, poses for a photo at her home on June 10, 2021, in Tempe, Ariz. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)

FILE - In this image provided by the National Archives, members of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, an all-female, all-Black unit formed during World War II, are shown in an undated Department of Defense photo. (National Archives via AP, File)