Business Development Associate

WHO WE ARE Proxima Fusion is Europe’s fastest-growing fusion company and the continent’s best-funded fusion player, as well as the first spin-out from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP). Backed by over €650M and powered by a growing team across Munich, Zurich, and Oxford, we are developing the hardware and infrastructure needed to deliver the world’s first commercial stellarator fusion power plant. Our concept advances the most mature fusion technology out there, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, through two next-generation machines: Alpha and Stellaris. Our work combines stellarator optimization, advanced computation, machine learning, and high-temperature superconducting magnets to unlock higher-performance designs that were previously out of reach. Turning these designs into a functioning fusion power plant requires excellence and ownership across every discipline, from physics and engineering to software, manufacturing, law, and business functions. WHY JOIN PROXIMA FUSION - You will get to work on some of the most complex tech challenges to bring abundant, safe, clean energy to the world. - You'll get to join and learn from an exceptional selection of accomplished and driven individuals. - Do your life’s best work and enjoy the journey. - Get to show that big things are possible in Europe when you assemble the best talent. YOUR IMPACT Proxima will sell fusion electricity in the late 2030s. Proxima's Business Development team finds and executes business opportunities on the way there: inorganic (acquisitions, minority stakes and joint ventures in businesses synergetic with Proxima) and organic (new product lines built from Proxima assets). You will own opportunities along our Business Development playbook, from market scan to a clear go/no-go from leadership, with an initial focus on inorganic deals. You will work directly with the Business Development Lead and the Head of Business Operations, within the CFO organization, and alongside engineering, finance, legal, and supply chain teams. WHAT YOU WILL DO - Own the front of the deal funnel: Build market reports, competitive landscapes, and company mappings that shape where Proxima invests. - Drive clear decisions: Build decision memos and business cases that lead to a go/no-go from the leadership team and board, pulling in our engineers to ground the analysis in technical reality. - Run deal workstreams: Lead expert calls, reference checks and data room screening. - Strengthen the function: Contribute roadmap and communication, and systematically deploy AI tools to speed up research, screening, and drafting. - Source new opportunities: Attend conferences and industry events, and feed new ideas into the pipeline, including organic ones over time. WHO YOU ARE - Deal execution experience: 2-3 years in tier-1 strategy consulting, private equity, venture capital, or a fast-paced startup, ideally with exposure to industrials, energy, or advanced manufacturing. - Technical fluency: STEM degree (engineering, physics, mathematics or similar), or a demonstrated ability to work fluently with technical teams on technical topics. - Standalone problem-solving and judgement: You take an ambiguous question, structure it, run the analysis, and come back with a recommendation, without waiting to be told how. - Modeling and writing craft: Strong market modeling and memo-writing skills; you can build a valuation, a business plan, and a two-page decision document that leadership actually reads. - Clear communication: Fluent in English (written and spoken), comfortable in front of founders, suppliers, and senior stakeholders; German is a plus. - Startup mindset: Proactive, detail-oriented, comfortable with pace and ambiguity, and excited by fusion energy and the industrial base behind it. INTERVIEW PROCESS - Recruiter Interview (30-60 min) - Technical Screening (30 min) - Technical Panel (3x60 min) *This role sits at "L2" of our framework, please inquire during the recruitment process for further information. At Proxima Fusion, our mission is bold: making limitless clean energy a reality. To get there, we need a high-performing, diverse team that brings different perspectives, challenges assumptions, and builds together with purpose. We know that diversity of thought and experience leads to better ideas, stronger execution, and a more resilient team. We don’t look at how you identify, what you look like, who you choose to worship or what ethnicity you are. We care about what you can bring to the table.