Blue Wave recognized with IAEA innovation award

The International Atomic Energy Agency presented its 2025 Global ISOP Innovation Award for AI to Blue Wave AI Labs, Constellation, and the Southern Company subsidiary Southern Nuclear for the companies' collaborative work on Blue Wave's ThermalLimits.ai. The technology is an AI application that provides accuracy in online thermal limit forecasting for boiling water reactors.

According to Blue Wave, this application "enables powerful predictive capability into crucial operating limits-ensuring compliance with technical specifications, enabling reduced reload fuel costs, and eliminating operational challenges."

About ISOP: ISOP, the International Network on Innovation to Support Operating Nuclear Power Plants, was formed "to increase collaboration and experience sharing in the field of innovation for the nuclear industry," according to the IAEA's website.

The annual ISOP Innovation Awards are presented to recognize innovative developments within the nuclear power industry and showcase practical applications of technologies that have been successfully implemented in operating nuclear power plants. There are several categories of these awards, including AI/ML/LLM (artificial intelligence, machine learning, large language models), advanced manufacturing, and robotics and drones.

AI framework: The ThermalLimits.ai technology is based on Blue Wave's nuclear-grade AI framework, which operates more precisely than general-purpose LLMs, according to the company. The framework leverages physics-informed ML and deep neural networks trained on historical fuel cycle data, core simulator outputs, and real-time instrumentation feedback. The result reduces prediction biases by up to 75 percent, compared with traditional methods. With an average bias of less than 0.75 percent for key metrics, the tool prevents unplanned derates, optimizes fuel usage, and minimizes risks like premature coast down.

Reliable AI: Gina Pattermann, Blue Wave CEO, said the award "emphasizes the place of Blue Wave's nuclear-grade AI applications in the future of nuclear energy." She continued, "Our collaboration demonstrates how precise, reliable AI can drive safety and operational efficiency, paving the way for more abundant and affordable nuclear energy."

Bryan Hanson, Constellation's chief generation officer, added, "By leveraging the power of artificial intelligence, we can enhance our ability to deliver more clean, reliable megawatts to American families and business. AI can be seamlessly integrated into plant operations to enhance forecasting accuracy; reduce operational risks; and operate our nuclear fleet at the highest levels of safety, efficiency, and reliability.""

Pete Sena, Southern Nuclear chair, president, and CEO, said, "We are proud to be recognized as part of the collaborative work between companies leading the industry in pioneering AI for nuclear power plants."