Exclusive: Nuclear-battery maker with defense contracts raises $50 million

• "With great power competition rising, the ocean floor, Arctic, and lunar surface are becoming the front lines of global security and economic progress — but they remain energy deserts," CEO Tyler Bernstein told Axios.

Follow the money: The Series B was led by Hanaco Ventures. Other backers include Seraphim, Balerion Space Ventures and Vanderbilt University.

• The company's inked contracts with the U.S. Defense Department and NASA totaling tens of millions of dollars.

How it works: Zeno's batteries convert the decay of radioactive material into thermal and electrical power.

• It showcased a prototype at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
• It also locked in a strontium-90 fuel supply from the Energy Department. Applications range from subsurface operations on Earth to satellites in space.

The intrigue: John Richardson, a former chief of U.S. naval operations, joined Zeno's board of directors.

Go deeper: U.S. Army seeks better batteries as it battles the cold