BlackRock Calls 2026 the Year of AI Infrastructure and Asset Tokenization

• The company links AI growth to electricity and data center constraints and expects a long investment cycle in infrastructure.
• Stablecoins and tokenization are named as key drivers for the crypto market.
• The report also notes the acceleration of institutional access to Bitcoin through ETFs.

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BlackRock has published a thematic forecast for 2026, highlighting two key trends. These are the acceleration of AI development against a backdrop of growing geopolitical competition and the increasing dependence of the digital economy on physical infrastructure.

The document emphasizes that the AI boom has already moved from the experimental phase to the scaling phase, but this is precisely what makes infrastructure a key bottleneck.

The company noted that the availability and reliability of electricity are becoming critical factors for new capacity. At the same time, the need to modernize networks and build facilities will support investment demand.

The authors also estimate that total investment in infrastructure, from energy to data centers needed to scale AI, could exceed $100 trillion by 2040.

In their opinion, services require more and more computing power, which, in turn, relies on energy, transmission networks, and equipment. Therefore, the forecast includes supply chains and projects that increase the sustainability of digital and energy infrastructure alongside the topic of AI.

A separate section is devoted to investments in the artificial intelligence industry.

The report states that AI is an extremely “capital-intensive field” and is developing simultaneously through public markets and private financing. As indicators, the report cites data on AI companies raising approximately $150 billion in 2025, as well as major deals, including OpenAI’s round of approximately $40 billion.

AI market: growth in private investment and decline in IPO activity. Data: BlackRock.

The cryptocurrency part of the forecast is built around the idea that the market is “maturing” through practical use.

BlackRock emphasizes stablecoins and tokenization, linking them to settlements and financial infrastructure. The report states that transaction volumes in “stable coins” are growing faster than spot trading volumes in crypto assets.

According to experts, this indicates a shift in focus from pure trading to payments and settlements.

Against this backdrop, Ethereum is singled out in the document. According to the authors’ estimates, more than 65% of tokenized assets are on this network, which allows it to be considered as the basic infrastructure layer for tokenization.

The role of Ethereum in the tokenized asset ecosystem. Data: BlackRock.

According to the document, stablecoins are a special case of tokenization, where the underlying asset is fiat currency. At the same time, further expansion is possible through other asset classes.

Finally, BlackRock notes the growth of institutional interest in Bitcoin through exchange-traded products.

The report notes that the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) fund has set a record for the pace of fundraising. It reached $70 billion in assets under management in 341 trading days.

Representatives of the financial giant attribute this to the fact that thematic ideas, including AI and crypto assets, are becoming not only a narrative but also an independent structure for portfolios.

As a reminder, we wrote that, according to BlackRock, investments in AI infrastructure development could exceed $500 billion by 2026.