If the new secretary of energy decides to make significant investments in nuclear energy development, he could pursue two initiatives this commentary discusses that focus on supporting and accelerating promising developments in nuclear energy. First, negotiations with TVA could advance its SMR project that has been in development but is not yet in construction, and in the process help create a new reactor option that could be deployed by US utilities and other nations. Second, Secretary Wright could partner with private high temperature reactor consortiums involving hyperscalers and industrial entities in a similar payment-for-milestones manner used by NASA with SpaceX. Both initiatives could help scale up new dispatchable nuclear energy options domestically and for export to meet growing energy demands for affordable, reliable energy while minimizing land use, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.