WEEX Labs: The Second Half of AI Turns Out to Be About the "Old Economy"?

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger recently shared a core insight during an interview on the No Priors podcast that upends established market perceptions: the AI bottleneck has long ceased to be solely about GPUs.

He pointed out that constraints within industrial systems, such as power supply, thermal cooling, new materials, and packaging manufacturing, are becoming the true choke points.

In fact, numerous reports indicate that data centers have an insatiable appetite for electricity. Grid expansion, the consumption of base materials like copper and rare earths, and the advanced manufacturing capacity required to package tens of billions of transistors together are emerging as the true "critical bottlenecks" constraining AI development.

Gelsinger's perspective reveals a clear investment theme—the second half of AI is not just about GPUs; it's a capital-intensive, long-cycle "physical infrastructure battle" primarily involving power, materials, and manufacturing.

This piece from WEEX Labs uses Intel's viewpoint as a starting point to dissect the key US stock targets under this trend, categorizing the core US stocks driving this theme.

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1. Power & Energy Grid: The "Lifeblood" of AI

Constellation Energy (CEGON) | Market Cap: ~$99 Billion

Core Business: Largest nuclear power operator and carbon-free energy producer in the US.

Key Advantage: Nuclear power is the only energy source capable of providing 24/7 zero-carbon "baseload power." As tech giants aggressively sign long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), CEG is the most direct beneficiary due to its vast nuclear fleet. With Q1 2026 revenue reaching $11.1 billion (significantly exceeding expectations), its valuation still has upside potential as PPAs continue to materialize.

GE Vernova (GEVON) | Market Cap: ~$300 Billion

Core Business: Global power equipment giant, core products include gas turbines, grid equipment, and energy storage systems.

Key Advantage: When renewable energy cannot meet the baseload demands of AI, natural gas power becomes a key transitional solution. GEV holds a dominant position in the global gas turbine market. At the end of Q1 this year, its gas power orders surged to 100GW, with year-end backlog orders expected to reach at least 110GW, providing strong earnings visibility.

Eaton (ETNON) | Market Cap: ~$164 Billion

Core Business: A global leader in intelligent power management, covering the entire chain "from grid to chip."

Key Advantage: Provides integrated solutions for power distribution, circuit protection, and liquid cooling for data centers. Driven by strong AI data center demand, both Q1 2026 revenue and profit exceeded expectations. The company raised its full-year organic growth guidance to 10% and expects EBITDA growth to climb to 18%-24% in the second half of the year.

Vistra (VSTON) | Market Cap: ~$56 Billion

Core Business: The largest non-regulated power producer and retail energy supplier in the US.

Key Advantage: Operates 44GW of generation capacity (including natural gas, nuclear, etc.), serving nearly one-third of Texas' electricity consumers. Recently signed a major nuclear power supply agreement with Meta and acquired Cogentrix, adding 5.5GW of natural gas capacity, making it a core beneficiary of the AI power surge.

Oklo (OKLOON) | Market Cap: ~$10 Billion

Core Business: A pioneer developer of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).

Key Advantage: Focuses on the "Aurora Powerhouse" fission power plant, utilizing a "Nuclear Power as a Service" long-term power sales contract model. Although in its early stages, it aligns with the long-term narrative of AI data centers requiring clean, reliable baseload power, commanding a high premium for its sector elasticity.

2. Data Center Physical Infrastructure & Thermal Management: The "Skeleton & Cooling" of AI

Vertiv Holdings (VRTON) | Market Cap: ~$138 Billion

Core Business: Undisputed global leader in critical data center infrastructure and liquid/thermal management solutions.

Key Advantage: As AI chip power consumption pushes boundaries, liquid cooling transitions from "optional" to "essential." Vertiv holds an order backlog of approximately $15 billion and collaborates on development with NVIDIA. It has recently completed two strategic acquisitions in thermal management, further solidifying its dominant position in high-performance computing cooling.

Equinix (EQIXON) | Market Cap: ~$110 Billion

Core Business: World's largest data center REIT, providing colocation and interconnection services.

Key Advantage: Operates 260 data centers across 71 global markets. As the "landlord" of AI computing infrastructure, Equinix directly benefits from demands to scale AI clusters. Higher power density translates to higher rental income per cabinet, achieving a "double hit" of increased rent and expansion.

CoreWeave (CRWVON)| Market Cap: ~$60 Billion

Core Business: Cloud infrastructure platform built specifically for AI workloads, offering GPU compute leasing, native AI cloud services, and data center colocation.

Key Advantage: Deeply integrated with NVIDIA, its clients include top AI players like OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, Google, and Microsoft. As of Q1 2026, its revenue backlog reached $99.4 billion, with full-year revenue guidance of $12-13 billion. As a specialized player focused purely on AI computing infrastructure, CoreWeave directly benefits from the era's shift from AI training to inference.

3. Critical Raw Materials: The "Bedrock" of AI

Freeport-McMoRan (FCXON) | Market Cap: ~$99 Billion

Core Business: One of the world's largest publicly traded copper producers.

Key Advantage: Copper is the "lifeblood" of the electrification era. From grid upgrades and transformer manufacturing to internal data center wiring, every facet of AI computing expansion requires vast amounts of copper resources. Against a backdrop of challenging new mine approvals, FCX, with its high-quality copper assets, is a long-term beneficiary of the super-cycle in copper demand driven by AI.

MP Materials (MPON) | Market Cap: ~$10 Billion

Core Business: Largest rare earth element producer in the Western Hemisphere, operating the only active large-scale rare earth mine in the US.

Key Advantage: Rare earths are core materials for AI robot servo motors, high-performance chips, and advanced packaging. In Q1 2026, the company achieved record production of neodymium-praseodymium oxide. As the only domestic scaled rare earth supply chain company in the US, MP perfectly aligns with the "supply chain security" strategy of Europe and the US, commanding a significant geopolitical premium.

Conclusion

Gelsinger's view shatters the illusion that "AI just needs more GPUs"—the boom in AI is deeply penetrating the physical world. Power, materials, and manufacturing are no longer traditional "old economy" sectors but the most fundamental bedrock supporting the skyscraper of AI.

Compared to pure concept stocks, these industrial giants offer greater resilience and long-term compounding growth potential. However, current valuations already reflect some optimistic expectations. Investors should conduct their own research (DYOR), considering factors like macro interest rates, execution progress, and geopolitical elements.