Blackstone's Jon Gray Sees Real Estate, AI Infrastructure as Top Opportunities Amid Global Uncertainty

NEW YORK — Blackstone President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Gray told more than 700 clients that real estate is entering a period of renewed opportunity, driven by declining new construction, lower debt costs, and a broader investor search for stability amid global disruption. Gray made the remarks at a Blackstone client event, a transcript of which was published June 5, 2026.

"I think real estate is going to really get a tailwind here as people look for terra firma," Gray said. "They're nervous about the disruption, they're nervous about dislocation. There's been this sharp decline in new building, debt costs have come down, and then I think capital will begin to rediscover this area. It has certainly been a laggard for the last four years — one of the least bubbly parts of the economy."

Industrial Real Estate Leads Blackstone's Property Outlook

Among property types, Gray singled out logistics as his preferred segment of the real estate ecosystem. "I would say logistics is my favorite part of the real estate ecosystem," he said, without specifying individual assets or markets. Blackstone's broader portfolio includes approximately 13,000 real estate assets globally, according to the event transcript.

Gray did not address office or retail real estate directly during the published portion of his remarks, focusing instead on the structural forces he believes will lift real estate broadly — including reduced supply from a slowdown in new construction and improving financing conditions as interest rates stabilize.

AI Infrastructure and Data Centers Drive Investment Strategy

A significant portion of Gray's forward-looking commentary centered on artificial intelligence infrastructure as a high-conviction opportunity. He said Blackstone expects to sign six gigawatts of data center leases in 2026, which he characterized as representing approximately $100 billion in data center value, with an additional $200 billion in chips expected to be deployed by hyperscalers into those facilities.

"$300 billion is the size of the Finland economy," Gray said, framing the scale of AI-related capital expenditure. "Now that won't all happen this year, but it just gives you a sense of what's going on in the ground, which is very bullish."

Gray pushed back on concerns about overbuilding in the data center sector, arguing the opposite risk is more pressing. "I would argue today the opposite is the risk — the political pushback, which is growing, the shortage of power, the shortage of turbines, the shortage of memory chips, and the almost exponential growth in demand means these data centers, once you get them built, are gonna be incredibly valuable," he said.

To capitalize on that demand, Blackstone recently launched BXDC, a company focused on data center assets led by Nick Pell, which Gray indicated had recently IPO'd. Gray described the vehicle as addressing a gap in the market: "There are hundreds of billions of data centers being built. There are going to be trillions, ultimately, I think. And yet, there's no natural home for them today. These are great long-term assets. They're leased to the biggest companies in the world."

New Platforms Span AI Deployment and Compute Infrastructure

Gray outlined four new initiatives announced in the weeks leading up to the client event. In addition to BXDC, Blackstone announced a joint venture with Anthropic called Anthropic Service Co., designed to help portfolio companies deploy AI tools across workflows including financial reporting and compliance. The venture also includes other investment firms with portfolio companies.

The firm also announced a partnership with Google around the company's tensor processing units, or TPUs, creating a new entity aimed at offering compute-as-a-service using Google's chip infrastructure. Gray described the opportunity as analogous to the emergence of competing cloud platforms alongside Amazon Web Services. "Nobody's saying NVIDIA's going away. We're investing in a ton of NVIDIA data centers, neoclouds, but there's room for more players," he said.

A fourth initiative, BXN1, consolidates Blackstone's investments in high-growth companies under a single platform led by Jas Khaira. Gray compared the consolidation to the earlier formation of BXCI, Blackstone's credit unit led by Gilles, which combined previously separate credit strategies. "The idea is we're doing these high-growth companies — N of one companies, very special businesses — and we were doing it in different business units. So let's put it together under one roof," Gray said.

Macro Backdrop: Economy Healthy Despite Geopolitical Headwinds

Gray acknowledged near-term pressures from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which he said has pushed oil prices, energy prices, and long-term Treasury yields higher. However, he characterized the broader economic picture as healthy, noting that Blackstone's private equity portfolio companies posted double-digit revenue growth in the first quarter of 2026.

On inflation, Gray said shelter and rental housing costs are running well below government data — roughly a third lower than the government's reported 3% growth figure — and that wage growth has decelerated from approximately 5% two years ago to around 3%. He also cited an expected productivity boost from AI as a positive force over the medium term.

Gray identified several geographies where Blackstone sees elevated deployment opportunities, including the United States — particularly the middle of the country — as well as India, Japan, and Gulf Cooperation Council countries. He cited favorable conditions around capital formation, taxation policy, and risk appetite in those markets.

On the risk side, Gray warned that AI-driven disruption poses a material threat to software, professional services, and information services businesses, drawing a parallel to the decline of legacy retail operators following the rise of e-commerce. "We remember what happened to the Yellow Pages 20-plus years ago — that's now going to happen in a whole range of industries," he said.

Secondaries and Private Credit Round Out Opportunity Set

Beyond real estate and AI infrastructure, Gray highlighted secondary market investments and large-scale private credit solutions as additional areas of focus. He said the volume of secondary sellers is expected to grow, benefiting Blackstone's secondaries business, which he referenced as led by Vern Perry. On the credit side, he pointed to large corporate financing transactions tied to AI infrastructure needs — spanning both investment-grade and non-investment-grade structures — as an area of interest for deploying private capital at scale.

Gray also identified defense as a growth sector, particularly in Europe, where he said government defense spending is projected to rise from roughly 1.5% of GDP to as much as 5% of GDP across some economies.

Sources

Blackstone. "Blackstone's Jon Gray Addresses 700+ Clients | May 2026." Published June 5, 2026. https://www.blackstone.com/insights/article/blackstones-jon-gray-addresses-700-clients-may-2026/