BlackRock Sees AI Investment Shifting to Energy and Infrastructure

Quick overview

The group said it will continue to back artificial intelligence in 2026, though with a stronger focus on the energy sector. Three years after its emergence and following rapid growth, the initial euphoria around the technology is beginning to cool.

BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, remains firmly convinced of artificial intelligence’s potential as a core investment theme heading into 2026. However, the focus is no longer solely on big tech. Instead, attention is shifting toward a broader ecosystem of opportunities surrounding the development of AI, the firm explained on Tuesday.

According to its Investment Directions report, investors seeking to capture AI-driven growth are increasingly reallocating capital toward sectors that are essential to its operation, particularly energy and infrastructure. This conclusion is based on a recent survey of BlackRock’s institutional clients, which points to a notable change in preferences across Wall Street.

Energy and infrastructure: the new AI play

In 2025, artificial intelligence and big tech companies were the undisputed stars of global equity markets, accounting for a large share of overall returns. But the multibillion-dollar race by firms such as Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet to build new data centers has begun to raise concerns. Questions around the future profitability of this capital spending, along with the rising debt required to finance it, are now a growing source of unease for investors.

That reassessment is evident in the data. Among the 732 companies surveyed by BlackRock in the EMEA region, only about one in five still view large U.S. technology firms as the most attractive way to invest in AI. By contrast, more than half said they prefer exposure through energy providers critical to powering data centers, while 37% identified infrastructure as their primary route into the AI boom.

Despite this strategic shift, outright skepticism remains limited. Only 7% of respondents believe artificial intelligence represents a market bubble, suggesting that despite adjustments in positioning, the broad investment consensus continues to view AI as a structural engine of long-term growth.

Artificial intelligence loses momentum on Wall Street

BlackRock’s stance fits into a wider market backdrop in which Wall Street’s dominant growth engine of recent years is beginning to show signs of fatigue. After a rally that pushed AI-related stocks up 78% in just three years, a growing share of investors is starting to look beyond the so-called Magnificent Seven and reposition within the broader S&P 500.

The initial enthusiasm for AI—led by Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia, Alphabet, Meta, and Tesla—has given way to a more cautious phase. While the technology remains potentially transformative, still-unfulfilled promises of sweeping economic change in the U.S., combined with fears of a bubble, are prompting many market participants to diversify. One clear signal of this shift is the 2% decline since late October in Bloomberg’s index tracking the seven major tech companies, contrasted with the stronger performance of the rest of the market over the same period.

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Ignacio Teson

Economist and Financial Analyst

Ignacio Teson is an Economist and Financial Analyst. He has more than 7 years of experience in emerging markets. He worked as an analyst and market operator at brokerage firms in Argentina and Spain.

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