Syed Bahauddin Alam, assistant professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering (NPRE) at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign, was quoted as an expert voice in MIT Technology Review in an article examining how next-generation nuclear reactors will reshape waste management strategies.
The article, “What do new nuclear reactors mean for waste?” (March 18, 2026), part of MIT Technology Review’s Explains series, brings together a select group of experts spanning industry leadership, federal policy, and nuclear innovation. Experts quoted alongside Alam include a Senior Vice President at TerraPower, a former Chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and a former senior official at the U.S. Department of Energy. Alam is the only early-career voice featured in this group.
In the article, Alam identifies a central challenge emerging from advanced reactor design: the shift toward nontraditional fuels and coolants fundamentally alters the nature of nuclear waste. “Unusual materials will create unusual waste,” he noted, emphasizing that systems such as TRISO-fueled and molten-salt reactors introduce new material forms that require new approaches to waste characterization.
Dr. Alam was also cited in Bloomberg for his analysis of the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence (AI), where he noted that “the acceleration of AI is pushing our energy infrastructure to the limit,” highlighting the increasing role of nuclear energy as a reliable, low-carbon solution for emerging computational demands.
Alam was appointed to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) committee on Foundation Models for Scientific Discovery and Innovation: Opportunities Across the Department of Energy. He has been named as the National AI leader in the University of Illinois’s official response to White House AI Action Plan.
The full article is available at MIT Technology Review: https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/03/18/1134345/advanced-nuclear-reactors-waste/
About MIT Technology Review
MIT Technology Review is a bimonthly magazine wholly owned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Founded in 1899, it is one of the oldest and most authoritative technology publications in the world, with a global readership spanning industry leaders, policymakers, and the scientific community. Its editorial mission is to bring rigorous, independent analysis of emerging technologies and their broader implications for society.