BlackRock Says Buy AI Energy Stocks Over Big Tech in 2026. Here Are 3 Top Picks.

There's no denying that technology stocks like Nvidia and Palantir were the powerhouse performers in the early days of the artificial intelligence (AI) trend. As the industry ages, however, new growth opportunities are surfacing. AI data centers are obviously among these newer opportunities.

As investment management firm BlackRock specifies, investors may want to first consider the companies supplying much-needed electricity to these data centers. That's where the most money is apt to be made from here, largely fueled by the 30-fold increase in their power consumption that Deloitte anticipates from U.S. AI data centers between 2024 and 2035.

Here's a closer look at three of the best bets from this segment of the business.

Bloom Energy

One of the most promising aspects of small modular nuclear reactors (or SMRs) is that they can generate electricity right where it's needed, bypassing "the grid's" transmission lines. Although the upfront costs of deploying an SMR are high, in the long run, the option could be quite economical.

The only problem? It can take years to design and install a small-scale nuclear power plant. No such reactors have been deployed commercially in the U.S. yet. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence data centers need power now. Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE) offers something of a stopgap option -- though it could also serve as a permanent solution for data centers.

Bloom Energy's bread-and-butter business is onsite electricity production using hydrogen fuel cells. At one point, this technology was prohibitively expensive and logistically complicated. But as its cost has come down and availability has gone up, Bloom is proving that its clean alternative energy solutions are viable, particularly as site-specific options. Last quarter, it did $778 million worth of business, up 36% year over year, as institutions clamored for cost-effective and immediate answers to their power needs.

Analysts expect Bloom's growth pace to accelerate this year, too. Precedence Research forecasts that the broader solid oxide fuel cell industry will grow at an average annualized pace of nearly 27% through 2034, as this technology becomes more mainstream.

The kicker: Bloom Energy is profitable -- and it's one of the few names in the hydrogen fuel cell business that is. While this stock is outrageously expensive at more than 100 times this year's projected profit of $1.39 per share, this bottom line is expected to more than double next year on a second consecutive year of revenue growth in excess of 50%.

While the stock's lofty valuation has been an understandable near-term concern for some investors, any decent dip would arguably be a buying opportunity for a company that's on course to grow into its premium soon enough.

Constellation Energy

You may be more familiar with Constellation Energy (NASDAQ: CEG) than you think. The company that's working to restart one of the mothballed nuclear reactors at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island? That's Constellation.

The noteworthy part of the story, however, is why it's doing so. That reactor is being brought back into service to provide electricity for one of Microsoft's nearby AI data centers.

That's still just a sampling of the much bigger investor takeaway from this decision. Mostly, this restart underscores that nuclear power -- once deemed too dangerous as well as environmentally problematic -- is actually back in vogue. The U.S. Department of Energy expects the nation to quadruple its nuclear power output between now and 2050.

Image source: Getty Images.

More to the point for interested investors, if any one utility company is positioned to capitalize on nuclear's resurgence, it's Constellation Energy. It's already the U.S.'s leading name in nuclear power, with more than two-thirds of the electricity it produces ultimately being generated by nuclear fission. In fact, its nuclear power output is greater than the rest of the country's utility companies combined.

Given all this, it wouldn't be surprising if this particular utility stock performed like a growth stock rather than a value stock for the next several years. Analysts seem to somewhat expect it: Their average price target of $392.89 is more than 25% above the ticker's present price, and that's just a one-year target.

GE Vernova

Last but not least, add GE Vernova (NYSE: GEV) to your list of AI energy stocks to buy sooner rather than later.

Yes, this is one of the three spinoffs of General Electric, which began breaking itself up into more focused operations in 2022. GE Vernova is the former industrial titan's power production arm, selling natural gas turbines, hydropower equipment, nuclear reactors, wind turbines, and the like, as well as electrification solutions like grid optimization and energy storage.

There's nothing AI-specific about any of it. However, since the ongoing proliferation of artificial intelligence data centers is straining power grids in the U.S. and elsewhere, there's no denying that GE Vernova is at least indirectly benefiting from the dynamic behind the opportunity that BlackRock is touting.

The numbers bear this argument out. While GE Vernova's 2025 revenue of $38.1 billion was only 9% better than 2024's top line, total orders raced 34% higher to $59.3 billion, pumping the company's backlog up by $31.2 billion to a whopping $150 billion. That's roughly four years' worth of business lined up just waiting to be fulfilled. More deals will certainly be added in the meantime.

The only real concern here is GE Vernova's capacity to manufacture and deliver its heavy equipment fast enough. Of course, that's not exactly a bearish problem for the stock, particularly given that the company is wisely investing $600 million in factories and facilities over the next couple of years.

James Brumley has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bloom Energy, Constellation Energy, GE Vernova, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool recommends BlackRock. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.