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| AXIOM Corporation | ||
|---|---|---|
| Former Name | Axiom Dynamics (2044) | |
| Type | Megacorporation | |
| Traded As | AAXM | |
| Industries | Energy, aerospace | |
| Founded | 2044 (Axiom Dynamics) | |
| Founder(s) | Anthony Goodwood | |
| HQ Location | Seattle, Washington | |
| Key People | Max Richmond (CEO) | |
| Net Worth (₵) | ₵75.5 trillion | |
| Revenue (₵) | ₵31.2 trillion | |
| Equity (%) | 62.3%% | |
| Number of Employees | 15,200 | |
The AXIOM Corporation (NYSE: AAXM) is a British-founded American multinational conglomerate and megacorporation specializing in the energy and space industries. A pioneer in technology, AXIOM is most known for being the first (and remaining the largest) supplier of fusion power across the Sol system and is the largest corporation in the world by revenue and market cap, topping Fortune 500 charts for several years in a row. It provides dozens of enterprise-oriented services besides energy, including its own substantial PMC division, weapons manufacturing, R&D, aerospace, and financial services.
AXIOM was founded as Axiom Dynamics in 2044 by founder Anthony Goodwood, eventually pioneering the first fusion reactor in the world that produced a positive net energy rate and earning the ire and attention of several world governments, taking place at a crucial point in which oil and coal reserves had become too scarce for mass usage and amidst a critical shortage of fissile material such as uranium and plutonium.
Following a ten-year period of rapid expansion, AXIOM went public in 2054, trading as AAXM on the NYSE and quickly climbing up to top market charts. The company proceeded to grow to Fortune 500 top-10 status by 2061, becoming No.1 on several occasions; the latest streak of which was started in 2110 and continues to present day.
More than 80% of Earth's fusion energy generation -- making up more than 40% of Earth's total energy expenditure -- comes from AXIOM (or AXIOM partnered) reactors, its patented fusion reactors unmatched in efficiency and power output.
Due to this, AXIOM wields significant power over governments and corporations alike, rivaling the influences of superpowers such as the European Union and the United States. Its influence, coupled with allegations of lobbying and lawsuit dodging backed up by an army of top-tier attorneys, has led the legal world to refer to AXIOM as an "untouchable" company.
With a seat in the United Nations Security Council, AXIOM, along with Gansai Industries and Royal Arms Manufacturing, form the corporate triumvirate of United Nations Tier 1 defence partners. These companies are prioritised above all else, willingly or otherwise, for many defence contracts with the UN and its militaries. Despite this, however, their lucrative hold isn't infinite - smaller corporations have lately began to wiggle their way into contracts while simultaneously besting what the giants have to offer on their wide menus.
Departments
AXIOM operates multiple departments and branches under its corporate umbrella, each specializing in a different aspect of corporate operations that keep the company ticking. Most departments (besides the Energy and Security departments) were made as a result of corporate acquisitions.
Energy
The single-largest department of AXIOM and its largest source of income. AXIOM Energy operates, constructs and maintains the hundreds of AXIOM fusion reactors in service around the Sol system and on many starships. Possessing thousands of engineers, mechanics and physicists, AXIOM Energy also forms the second-largest employer of engineers on Earth and the largest employer of particle physicists. Contracts are plentiful but lucrative, and many vie for a position in the company.
However, AXIOM Energy has dipped its toes in fields other than fusion energy. Geothermal and hydroelectric power are secondary ventures of the company, which executives believe would provide supplemental power to assist its fuel-hungry reactors.
Solutions
With a mastery of electrical engineering and materials sciences, it was only natural for AXIOM to enter the energy storage industry as well. AXIOM Solutions (formerly AXIOM Energy Solutions) is a subdivision of the Energy department that manufactures batteries, (super)capacitors, and power cells in various sizes and capacities, ranging from household appliance batteries to gigawatt-level industrial power storage units. They are at the forefront of battery engineering and have over 3,000 patents relating to storage solutions.
Defence
AXIOM's weapons and munitions division. One of the first in pioneering directed-energy weapons such as the ALR-10, as well as combat hardsuits, later licensed to and improved upon by the Sol Defence Corps. The department takes a more experimental approach to weapon development than its contemporaries, opting for new technologies and innovation over tried-and-true iterated designs.
Medical
The biomedical wing of AXIOM focuses on medical products, pharmaceuticals, and machinery. While not nearly as advanced in the field of chemicals and pharmaceuticals as competitors like Praxis Biotech, AXIOM Medical retains an edge over others with its state-of-the-art medical machinery, such as surgical robots and scanners, owing to the company's expertise in engineering and design.
Logistics
AXIOM's logistics division is a mostly in-house wing of the company that runs its supply and materials network. AXIOM owns and operates three interplanetary cargo starships as well as one transport starliner, in addition to hundreds of smaller transport shuttles and thousands of ground vehicles. Its role is to source and deliver the exotic materials that AXIOM's products often require to work, such as lithium for tritium production or deuterium from seawater. While AXIOM lacks a mining division, its lucrative contracts with dozens of mining companies more than make up for it; all Logistics has to do is pick up their makings.
Stratford Shipyards
Stratford Shipyards is an interplanetary orbital shipyard company owned entirely by AXIOM, with locations in both Earth and Mars orbit. Stratford is an advanced, well-equipped shipbuilding company that is contracted by both civilian and government individuals and organizations alike, constructing various ships from yachts to destroyers to interstellar carriers. Stratford constructed the Ambassador-class of cruisers and, by extent, the Emissary.
Holdings
AXIOM's subsidiary holding company. Controls and regulates the dozens of subsidiaries under corporate control.
Subsidiaries
AXIOM additionally owns and operates many subsidiaries, companies which operate under their own hierarchy but ultimately answer to AXIOM when it comes to profits and ultimate decisions.
These subsidiaries are nested under AXIOM's holding group, AXIOM Holdings.
| Company Name | Sector | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ambrose Resorts and Casinos | Hospitality | A chain of hotels and resorts with locations all across the Sol system. | |
| Apex Insurance | Insurance | Private and commercial shuttlecraft insurance provider with comprehensive coverage plans. | |
| Whisperlink | Communications app | A smart device app that provides end-to-end encrypted communication using AXIOM's quantum servers. | |
| Infinicell | Batteries | Brand name of AXIOM Solution's household batteries, both disposable and rechargeable. | Not an actual company. |
| Swansong Publishing | Publishing company | A large literature publishing company that specializes in editing, publishing and marketing fiction novels. | |
| Peregrine Locomotive Manufacturing | Train manufacturing | Train manufacturing company that focuses on locomotives such as maglev trains. | |
| The Domicile Company | Construction & real estate | A vertically-integrated construction firm that builds low-cost housing at affordable prices. | |
| Cardinal Bank | Banking & financial | A large, multinational bank with over 1,500 locations and over 100 million clients. | |
| HNP Law | Law firm | A 300-strong multinational law firm with attorneys in over 30 countries. | |
| Spearhead Hospital | Private hospital | A chain of three large hospital campuses located in London, Port Tranquility, Luna, and Goodwood, Mars, respectively. | |
| Goodwood University | University | A large university in Rutherford City, Mars. |
History
AXIOM was founded as Axiom Dynamics by British founder Anthony Goodwood, as part of a private research firm dedicated to fusion energy construction. Earlier attempts to build a fusion reactor, notably those in the 2020s and 2030s, had failed to pick up meaningful usage besides research usage due to their negative net energy yields and the lack of materials capable of containing and sustaining the reactor without melting or succumbing to high temperatures.
As a senior researcher who had worked on the ITER and DEMO fusion reactor projects, Goodwood had broken off from the organisations along with his team to attempt to privatise fusion research and focus on energy generation rather than plasma physics.
It was during this time that fossil fuel reserves had finally mined their last drop of oil, after prices had already inflated to obscene proportions the countries of the Middle East with few reserve plans had suddenly found themselves strapped of resources. This lead to the Middle East Oil Crisis, an event which eventually led to nuclear war in the war-torn region.
After years of work, Axiom Dynamics had eventually displayed and demonstrated, to the European government and to the world, a working fusion reactor which is relatively inexpensive and generates more than twice the energy it produced. Utilising newly-invented coolant and alloys designed to withstand the heat brought on by the reactor, the EU had immediately ordered several such reactors to be built around the continent, eventually leading to reactors in England, Germany, Spain, Italy and Norway. These 1st generation Axiom reactors had eventually outclassed the existing fission reactors in place at the time -- especially in places such as Germany, where all nuclear reactors were dismantled prior.
Market deregulation following the Oil Crisis led to Axiom Dynamics usurping its position as an energy supplier and rapidly seizing the spotlight, growing to become a larger and larger company. Amidst this, high tax rates in its then-headquarters, London, prompted Axiom to move its headquarters to the United States and restructure as the AXIOM Corporation.
In the middle of this transition, however, Goodwood had disappeared from the public eye. Attempts to track him down had failed at the time but had eventually led to the discovery of his deceased body in a log cabin in Vermont. Investigations into his death had ruled to a suicide, due to blackmail from crumbling oil giants attempting to take the founder down with them. Such oil magnates were tried and imprisoned, but the damage was done.
The newly-minted AXIOM Corporation's board of directors had appointed its successor, then-CTO Charles Francisco, to be its new CEO. Francisco's doctrine prioritised diversification, and AXIOM's hefty budget was shortly thereafter spent acquiring new companies, much to the ire of antitrust advocates who had soon sued the company for monopolistic practices. However, this was overturned in court.
AXIOM went public in 2054 under the NYSE, trading as AAXM and offering a massive IPO. It quickly scaled the charts to become a highly lucrative stock and remains highly favourable to this day.
Francisco retired in 2088, leading to current CEO, Max Richmond, to take appointment. Richmond's own agenda prioritised AXIOM's interests to be geared towards the stars, having the company participate in talks with the United Nations to help found and fund the Final Frontier Project in 2090.
AXIOM played a key role in the making of the Escapade and Emissary.
Products and Services
Fusion Reactors
AXIOM is the largest supplier of fusion power across both Earth and Mars, powering almost 70% of Earth's energy in developed countries. Because of this, AXIOM can be stated to have a monopoly in perhaps the most essential service in human history - energy. AXIOM operates and subcontracts a total of 115 fusion reactors of varying output across six continents, supplying energy to nearly 5 and a half billion customers who use AXIOM power.
Owing to this, AXIOM's energy division (AXIOM Energy) employs thousands of engineers, construction workers and scientists to maintain, research and secure the power plants. A substantial amount of reactors are situated in remote areas due to environmental restrictions, and as a result workers in these plants either face long commutes or live in the facilities themselves in corporate dormitories.