Just Weeks After Enron's Return, the Company Has Launched a New Thermonuclear Egg

When a company goes out of business the way that Enron did, you don't usually expect them to come back. So the return of Enron was a surprise to many, at least until they realized that the company's return appears to be some sort of elaborate joke from the men who brought you the "birds aren't real" meme.

Now, Enron is out with its first new product, the Enron Egg, and many want to know whether this is actually a real thing. Here's what we know about the Enron Egg, and whether it really uses nuclear energy to power homes.

According to its official announcement, the Enron Egg is "the world's first at-home nuclear reactor." A five-minute clip from Enron CEO Connor Gaydos, who also invented the fake conspiracy theory "birds aren't real," sees him introduce the product and explain that it will revolutionize the energy, independence, and freedom industries.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have harnessed the power of the atom," Connor says in the video. "Introducing the Enron Egg, the world's first micro-nuclear reactor for residential suburban use."

Connor further explained that the egg has the ability to power a home for 10 years continuously.

The Enron website further claims that the egg is a "compact nuclear reactor that uses Uranium-Zirconium Hydride (U-ZrH) fuel rods to generate heat through nuclear fission."

"This heat is transferred via a 3D-printed Inconel heat exchanger, powering a turbine to generate electricity. A closed-loop cooling system ensures safe operation without environmental contamination," the explanation continues.

No price is listed for the egg, but Enron claims that it is "significantly more affordable than traditional energy systems."

While this all might sound very official, the product, like the company itself, is a parody.

The news that Enron was relaunching came in early December, 23 years after the company declared bankruptcy in a massive fraud scandal. As the company's website makes clear, though, this relaunch is a "protected parody" and everything that they produce should be taken that way.

The Enron Egg is never actually going to become available for sale, because at-home nuclear power is probably not a good idea, given how dangerous nuclear meltdown can be.

There are those in the world of energy who have advocated for an increased use of nuclear energy in light of the climate crisis, but even those people are not suggesting that we bring nuclear energy into each home individually. Instead, the idea would be to build large-scale nuclear reactors that could power entire communities, and would be managed by specialists who understand how to prevent a meltdown.

While that is very much an open debate, Enron is not going to sell you an egg that will power your home for 10 continuous years. Instead, they're going to poke fun at all the companies promising to revolutionize your lives, even as you continue to wake up every day and feel depressed about the state of the world.