AI and bond markets are becoming increasingly interconnected as artificial intelligence reshapes capital demand, market structure, and investing approaches across fixed income. As inflation regimes shift and traditional diversification dynamics evolve, investors are rethinking the role bonds play in portfolios.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido speaks with Jeff Rosenberg, Senior Fixed Income Portfolio Manager at BlackRock Systematic, about how AI and bond markets are evolving together. They explore how the rise of artificial intelligence is driving a new wave of capital investment, influencing real interest rates, and increasing debt issuance as companies finance AI infrastructure through bond markets.

The conversation also examines how AI and bond markets intersect at the investment level. Rosenberg explains how advances in machine learning and generative AI are enhancing systematic investing, improving tools like sentiment analysis, and enabling deeper insights across thousands of issuers, central banks, and global markets.

Finally, they discuss how modernization in fixed income — including electronic trading and the growth of bond ETFs — is transforming liquidity and price discovery. Together, these shifts are creating new opportunities and challenges for investors navigating a more complex and data-driven bond market.

Key insights in this episode:

00:00 Introduction to AI and Bonds

02:20 From GFC to Post COVID - How bond markets have changed over time

03:31 Bonds Beyond Ballast

05:20 Inflation, rates, and diversification challenges

06:53 Debt issuance and AI financing trends

08:42 Generative AI Toolkit - using AI in fixed income investing

10:14 ETFs and Price Discovery

12:33 Systematic Investing and Data-Driven Strategies at Scale

14:43 The Future of Bond Markets and AI and Technology

17:04 Wrap Up and Disclosures

Sources: Stock-Bond Diversification Offers Less Protection From Market Selloffs, IMF article, February 2026; “On Secular Stagnation in the Industrialized World”, Paper released by Harvard and Bank of England, 2019; “Financing the AI boom: from cash flows to debt”, BIS Bulletin paper, January 2026; ‘AI is eating software’ and it is redefining supply chain decision-making as a result”, Supply Chain Management Review article, 2026; How AI is transforming Investing”, BlackRock 2026; The economic potential of generative AI: The next productivity frontier”, McKinsey 2026; “40 years of innovation in pursuit of alpha”, BlackRock, 2025; “Key Trends in Credit Markets for 2025” Barclays 2025

AI and bond markets, fixed income investing, AI investing, bond market trends, systematic investing, capital markets, interest rates, bond ETFs

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

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Private markets are moving from the sidelines of institutional portfolios into the mainstream of wealth management. As companies stay private longer and financing increasingly happens outside public exchanges, investors are beginning to rethink how broad the traditional investment universe really is. The shift is raising a new question for portfolios: should investors be looking beyond public markets to access the full range of opportunities across capital markets?

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido speaks with Jon Diorio, Head of Product and Alternatives for BlackRock’s U.S. Wealth Business, live from the Future Proof Citywide conference in Miami. Together they explore why interest in private markets has accelerated in recent years, how access for individual investors has expanded, and what’s driving greater adoption among financial advisors.

They also discuss how private markets differ from public markets — including liquidity considerations, longer investment horizons, and the potential role of what’s often called an “illiquidity premium.” The conversation explores how private equity, private credit, infrastructure, and real estate investments may fit within diversified portfolios, why education and due diligence remain essential, and how the industry is evolving to integrate private assets more seamlessly into modern portfolio construction.

Key insights from this episode:

00:00 Introduction

02:11 What are private markets and alternatives and Why Now?

03:09 Why companies are staying private longer

04:54 How access to private markets has expanded

06:46 Are Private Markets for Everyone?

08:33 Liquidity, time horizons, and the illiquidity premium

11:33 How advisors integrate private markets into portfolios

13:58 Challenges and due diligence in private markets

15:21 Next Steps and Wrap Up

16:59 Outro and Disclosures

Sources: Bloomberg as at 12/31/2025, BlackRock US Wealth Survey Internal

private markets investing, private equity, private credit, alternatives investing, portfolio diversification, capital markets, wealth management, investment strategies

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

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Alternative investing is moving from a niche allocation to a core portfolio conversation. As volatility returns, interest rates reset higher, AI accelerates capital spending, and fiscal deficits expand, investors are reassessing what diversification really means. In a world where stocks and bonds can move together and macro forces dominate markets, traditional portfolio frameworks are under pressure.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido revisits conversations with investors and strategists across BlackRock to explore why alternative investing is gaining renewed attention. From private equity, private credit, and infrastructure to hedge fund strategies, gold, and digital assets, the episode examines how alternatives are being used to broaden return drivers and navigate today’s regime shift in capital markets.

The discussion highlights how structural megaforces — including AI buildout, geopolitical fragmentation, and fiscal expansion — are reshaping opportunity sets. Private markets offer exposure to long-duration capital themes and potential illiquidity premia, though with liquidity tradeoffs and manager dispersion. Hedge fund strategies aim to capture rising market dispersion through flexible long/short and systematic approaches. Infrastructure sits at the center of AI-driven energy demand and essential services. Meanwhile, gold and digital assets are increasingly viewed as monetary alternatives with distinct risk-return profiles. As portfolio construction evolves beyond the traditional 60/40 model, alternative investing is becoming part of a broader shift toward expanding diversification tools in volatile markets.

Check out the previous episodes featured in this episode in this playlist on Alternative Investments: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4Fe8VwKyG5FPYekFFSksbI

Key insights from this episode:

00:00 Introduction

01:08 Why traditional diversification has become harder in AI-driven markets

03:22 Defining Alternative Investing

04:00 How private markets have grown — and what tradeoffs they introduce

06:04 Infrastructure The AI Buildout: Where infrastructure investing connects to AI and energy demand

08:37 Liquid Alternatives & Hedge Fund Strategies

12:12 Systematic Alpha In Volatility

13:36 How gold and digital assets fit into the evolving diversification toolkit

18:38 Rethinking Portfolio Mix

19:22 Wrap Up And Next Episode

Alternative investing explained, private equity, private credit, hedge fund strategies, infrastructure investing, AI capital spending, portfolio diversification, 60/40 portfolio shift, digital assets, bitcoin investing, gold investing, capital markets outlook, alternative investing

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Emerging markets are back in focus in 2026 — not just as a cyclical trade, but as investors reassess performance leadership, diversification, and where growth is showing up in a shifting global paradigm. After a long stretch of disappointing returns, emerging markets have started the year strongly, alongside record interest from global investors. But the case for EM today is less about a single story — and more about dispersion across countries, sectors, and themes.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido is joined by Alex Brazier, Global Head of Investment and Portfolio Solutions, and Sam Vecht, Portfolio Manager on BlackRock’s Global Emerging Markets Equities team. Alex shares what he’s hearing from investors across the U.S. and Europe, including the role of flows, sentiment, and portfolio positioning. Sam brings a bottom-up perspective on how emerging markets have evolved over the past two decades — and why market pricing hasn’t always reflected economic progress.

Together, they explore why emerging markets may play a different role in portfolios today: providing exposure to distinct parts of the AI buildout, offering potentially different valuation and earnings dynamics than developed markets, and responding differently to U.S. dollar moves. The conversation also highlights where opportunities may be emerging beneath the surface — from under-owned regions like Latin America and parts of the Middle East, to shifting sentiment around India — while underscoring the reality that EM remains volatile, cyclical, and highly heterogeneous.

Key moments in this episode:

00:00 Introduction

01:56 Why emerging markets are drawing renewed investor attention in 2026

04:58 Two Decades of Underperformance

06:16 Explaining The Diversification Mirage

10:31 Where emerging markets can broaden portfolios — and where correlations still matter

13:00 How Investors Can Get Exposure To Emerging Markets

16:55 How dispersion across regions is driving more selective, active approaches

19:09 Conclusions and Next Episode

Sources: BlackRock, data based on 1,245 EMEA survey submissions in February 3rd rapid response client call; BlackRock calculated using Aladdin data; “World Economic Outlook, Global Economy in Flux, Prospects Remain Dim”, IMF, October 2025; Bloomberg as at Dec 2025; BlackRock, Global Business Intelligence, as at 20 Feb 2026; BlackRock, Morningstar, Aladdin. Portfolio average allocation based on 166 Europe-domiciled Morningstar moderate-risk multi-asset FoF portfolios, positioning as of 31 December 2025. Global index refers to MSCI All Country World Index.

Emerging markets, Emerging markets investing, Capital markets, Global diversification, AI investing, U.S. dollar, Latin America equities, India markets, Middle East markets, Global portfolio strategy

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

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The K-shaped consumer is redefining the outlook for the U.S. economy. While overall spending remains resilient, growth is increasingly concentrated among higher-income households, creating widening gaps across income levels. As policy shifts, AI adoption, and healthcare innovations reshape behavior, the consumer landscape is becoming more uneven.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido is joined by Lisa Yang, Portfolio Manager and Co-Head of the Consumer Industry Group within BlackRock Fundamental Equities, to assess the state of the U.S. consumer heading into 2026. From wage growth and labor market dynamics to fiscal policy, tariffs, and immigration, Lisa explains how macro forces are influencing spending patterns — and why resilience is strongest at the high end. The conversation also explores structural shifts shaping stock market trends, including the rise of value-focused retailers, the impact of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs on food and apparel demand, and how AI-driven “agentic commerce” could transform retail media and brand discovery. As capital markets digest these changes, understanding the nuances of consumer behavior is critical for investors.

Key insights from this episode:

02:11 Introducing The "Two Speed Consumer"

04:26 Yellow Flags Ahead - Why the U.S. Consumer Remains Resilient But increasingly K-shaped

05:46 Policy Shocks 2026 - How fiscal policy and tariffs could widen income-driven spending gaps

08:45 Why Value Retailers and Discounters are Outperforming

12:01 GLP One Ripple Effects - How GLP-1 Drugs Are Reshaping Grocery, Apparel, and Beauty categories

14:40 How AI Will Change Shopping Trends - What agentic commerce means for retailers, brands, and advertising models

17:43 Other Trends Watchlist - Why Health and Wellness Remains A Durable Long-term Consumer Trend

20:02 Conclusions

K-shaped economy, U.S. consumer spending, AI in retail, GLP-1 drugs, capital markets, stock market trends, consumer investing, megaforces

Sources: “Advance Monthly Sales for Retail and Food Services” February 2026, United States Census Bureau; US Bureau of Economic Analysis (PCE data); FRED 2026, Bureau of Labor Statistics; Wage Growth Data, January 2026, Federal Reserve of Atlanta; Tax refunds per Morgan Stanley, Piper Sandler estimates; “US food outlook 2026”, Bernstein; “GLP-1 Boom Accelerates Nationwide Shift in Size Curves, Putting $5 Billion in U.S. Apparel Retail Inventory at Risk, According to New Impact Analytics Study”, Global Newswire, September 2025

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

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Skilled trades are becoming one of the most important — and overlooked — drivers of the global infrastructure boom. As trillions of dollars flow into energy systems, transportation networks, telecoms, and AI data centers, the constraint is no longer just capital — it’s labor. The scale of the infrastructure buildout is historic, but delivering it depends on the availability of trained workers.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido is joined by Claire Chamberlain, Global Head of Social Impact and President of the BlackRock Foundation, and Sandra Lawson, Managing Director in Global Corporate Affairs, to explore why skilled trades are central to the next phase of infrastructure investing. With an estimated $85 trillion in global infrastructure investment needed over the next 15 years, demand for electricians, HVAC technicians, grid specialists and plumbers is accelerating.

Claire and Sandra explain how apprenticeship-based career pathways offer paid training, competitive wages, and the prospect of long-term financial stability — while also highlighting the growing supply-demand imbalance in the labor market. The conversation explores how philanthropy, employers, unions, schools, and policymakers can work together to expand training capacity and modernize workforce development. As megaforces like AI and infrastructure reshape capital markets, human capital will be just as critical as financial capital in determining long-term economic success.

Key moments:

00:00 Introduction and meet the guests

02:13 WWhat the $85 trillion infrastructure opportunity means for labor markets

03:54 Why AI and infrastructure are increasing demand for specialized workers

04:45 Why Are These Skilled Jobs Good Jobs?

07:15 Training Pipeline Worker Shortage

08:43 Philanthropy as Catalyst For The Infrastructure Skilled Trades Requirement

10:41 What success looks like for workforce development in an infrastructure-driven economy

12:56 Rethinking Going to College vs Apprenticeships and Skilled Trades

15:25 How collaboration among employers, unions schools, and philanthropy can expand training capacity

17:19 Wrap Up and Disclosure

Skilled trades, infrastructure investing, workforce development, capital markets, AI infrastructure, megaforces, economic growth, energy transition

Sources: “On the record: Infrastructure and the opportunity in skilled trades”, BlackRock 2026

Written Disclosures In Episode Description:

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Powering AI is no longer just a technology story — it’s an energy and infrastructure story reshaping capital markets and the global economy. As artificial intelligence scales from training to real-world inference, electricity demand is accelerating at a pace few anticipated.

In this episode of The Bid, host Oscar Pulido is joined by Will Su from BlackRock’s Fundamental Equities Group to examine how powering AI is transforming utilities, natural gas markets, renewables, and nuclear power. With data centers expanding rapidly and gigawatt-scale facilities coming online, the AI build-out is driving a structural shift in U.S. electricity demand after more than a decade of stagnation.

Will explains why the energy sector sits at the center of AI investing. From the rise of “bring your own power” models to the growing role of natural gas as a dispatchable, scalable fuel source, the infrastructure required to support AI represents one of the largest capital investment cycles in modern history. The conversation also explores renewables, battery storage, and nuclear power — including the limits of restarts and the long timeline for new reactor construction.

Key moments:

00:00 Introduction Power Is Knowledge: AI’s Exponential Energy Appetite

02:31 From Tokens to ‘Yottaflops’: Why Smarter Models Need More Electricity

05:04 Training LLMs vs. Inference: The Next Wave of AI Power Demand

06:45 Data Centers at City Scale: How Big Is the Load?

11:15 Bring Your Own Power (BYOP): Why Natural Gas Is Back in Focus

16:04 Renewables Reality Check: Solar Momentum, Wind Headwinds, and Batteries

19:14 Nuclear’s Comeback - Restarts Now, New Builds Later

21:26 Can AI Beat Humans at Investing? Man + Machine as the Edge

23:33 Wrap-Up, What’s Next

Key insights from this episode:

· Why natural gas has emerged as a key “here and now” fuel for AI infrastructure

· How renewables and battery storage fit into the AI electricity mix

· The long-term outlook for nuclear power and reactor construction

· What “bring your own power” means for hyperscalers and utilities

· How electrification and reshoring intersect with AI investing

· Why the relationship between compute and energy is reshaping stock market trends

Powering AI 2.0, AI investing, infrastructure, capital markets, energy transition, utilities, stock market trends, megaforces

Sources: “From CES 2026 to Yottaflops: Why the AMD Keynote Highlights a Turning Point for AI Compute”, AMD 2026; “The Industrial Revolution, coal mining, and the Felling Colliery Disaster”, Lancaster University, 2026; Bureau of Economic Analysis data 2026; “Stargate's First Data Center Site is Size of Central Park, With At Least 57 Jobs”, Bloomberg 2026; “Energy Demand from AI”, IEA 2026; “Scaling bigger, faster, cheaper data centers with smarter designs”, McKinsey 2025; EEI 2024 Review; “Data Centers Ditching the Power Grid, Mark Carney's Viral Speech, and Some Joy”, Clearview Energy; “2024 North American Energy Inventory”, IER;

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Thematic investing is increasingly shaping how investors interpret markets heading into 2026, as artificial intelligence, geopolitical fragmentation, and infrastructure constraints intersect across the global economy.

Jay Jacobs, Head of U.S. Equity ETFs at BlackRock, joins Oscar to discuss why mega forces are becoming harder to ignore—and harder to diversify away from—than in past market cycles. Their conversation explores how AI investing is evolving from a growth narrative into one focused on usage intensity, how national security considerations are reshaping the definition of defense, and why physical infrastructure is emerging as a critical market constraint.

Key insights include:

· Why thematic investing is gaining relevance alongside sector and style frameworks

· How AI usage intensity reframes the AI investment conversation

· Where infrastructure and energy constraints may influence adoption timelines

· How geopolitical fragmentation is expanding the definition of defense

· Why overlapping mega forces may shape market outcomes into 2026

Key moments in this episode:

00:00 Introduction to Thematic Investing in 2026: AI and Market Forces

00:40 The Rise of Thematic Investing

01:43 Deep Dive into AI's Market Impact

05:22 Understanding Token Consumption

07:55 Evaluating AI Investments

11:12 Geopolitical Fragmentation and Defense

13:51 Infrastructure's Evolving Role

16:42 Future of AI and Broader Implications

18:38 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Thematic investing, AI investing, Capital markets, Infrastructure, Megaforces, Stock market trends, Geopolitical fragmentation, Defense spending

Sources: iShares Thematic Outlook, 2026

This content is for informational purposes only and is not an offer or a solicitation. Reliance upon information in this material is at the sole discretion of the listener. Reference to any company or investment strategy mentioned is for illustrative purposes only and not investment advice. In the UK and non-European Economic Area countries, this is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the European Economic Area, this is authorized and regulated by the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets. For full disclosures, visit blackrock.com/corporate/compliance/bid-disclosures.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.