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Question
Does fusion use lasers?
Some fusion does — inertial confinement uses lasers to compress fuel. Kronos uses magnetic confinement instead, holding the plasma in a magnetic field.
"Does fusion use lasers?" is really a question about which approach. Kronos is firmly magnetic; see inertial confinement fusion for the laser-based alternative.
Questions & answers
Does fusion energy use lasers?
It depends on the approach. Inertial confinement fusion (ICF) uses powerful lasers to compress and ignite a tiny fuel pellet in a nanosecond burst — that's the method used at facilities like the National Ignition Facility. Kronos uses the other main approach, magnetic confinement, which holds the plasma steadily in a magnetic field and uses no lasers to confine it.
Why does Kronos use magnetic confinement instead?
Magnetic confinement runs continuously in steady state, which suits a firm, always-on power plant. Inertial confinement is inherently pulsed. The two solve the same problem in opposite ways.
Wait — isn't the Kronos wall 'laser-fused'?
That's a manufacturing step, not confinement. The hafnium-carbide first wall is fabricated using lasers, but the plasma itself is confined magnetically, not by lasers.