Oklo Inc. has cleared a major regulatory milestone for its Groves Isotope Test Reactor in Lockhart, Texas, after the U.S. Department of Energy granted startup authorization under the agency’s Reactor Pilot Program. The approval lets Oklo begin loading nuclear fuel, run startup testing, and move toward first criticality at the facility. The pace of the buildout stands out. Oklo went from breaking ground to DOE startup authorization in just over ten months, a span that included constructing the reactor facility, standing up the operating organization, training personnel, writing nuclear programs and procedures, and sourcing fuel and major equipment commercially.