As we head towards 2026, the case for a thematic approach to investing has never been more compelling. While passive index investing strategies have a place in investor portfolios, these strategies are typically weighted heavily to yesterday's winners, meaning that they are backward-looking. Thematic strategies, by contrast, are more forward-looking and intentional, and better suited to capturing growth from structural shifts and megatrends. In an era defined by rapid advances in technology and shifting global alliances, a thematic investment approach is the key to unlocking alpha.
In this article, we are going to highlight six powerful investment themes that could be worth exploring in 2026. From the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and humanoid robotics to the strategic resilience of nuclear energy and defense, these themes all have significant potential, and offer proactive investors a way to position their portfolios for growth.
Artificial Intelligence
AI has been the most dominant theme in the market for three years now. And there is a good chance that it will continue to shine in 2026. Realistically, the world is still in the early stages of a multi-year AI-powered technology revolution. According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the global AI market is set to be worth $4.8 trillion by 2033 – a 25-fold increase on the size of the market in 20231.
In 2026, investors can expect to see a number of exciting developments in the AI space including:
Sovereign AI investments: Countries may invest heavily in "Sovereign AI" to ensure that they are not dependent on the US or China when it comes to AI. Look out for substantial investments from countries in the Middle East, Europe, and Southeast Asia.
The deployment of AI agents: Expect to see more companies begin to use agentic AI solutions from the likes of ServiceNow, Salesforce, and Palantir. One recent survey found that almost 70% of global business leaders expect agentic AI to transform their operations in the year ahead2.
Operational efficiency: Early adopters of AI may start to demonstrate real productivity gains and material cost savings. Industries that could see results from AI include financial services, retail, manufacturing, healthcare, and logistics.
New AI chips: Nvidia will be launching its next-generation Vera Rubin chip in 2026. This is set to deliver a massive jump in inference capability (the ability of AI to reason and generate content).
Physical AI: 2026 could be a big year for physical AI as the convergence of "world models" and robotics accelerates. Expect to see more self-driving cars on the roads and new innovative robotics products.
It’s worth pointing out that within the AI theme, there are a number of sub-themes that could be worth exploring. One such sub-theme is Chinese AI. Today, China has AI technology that is on par with that of the West (powerful large language models, robotaxis, smart glasses, chips, etc.) as well as a government providing strategic support. Another sub-theme with potential is cybersecurity – the rise of AI agents is likely to increase demand for cybersecurity solutions as it is going to significantly increase the enterprise attack surface.
Humanoid Robotics
Zooming in on the physical AI space, the humanoid robotics theme has been simmering away quietly in the background for a while now. 2026 could be a breakout year as major players such as Tesla and XPeng move from controlled pilot programs to the first wave of mass production.
On Tesla’s Q3 2025 earnings call13, CEO Elon Musk said that the company is aiming to unveil an Optimus V3 prototype in early 2026. The production ramp up – designed to hit the company’s goal of producing one million Optimus robots annually – is expected to take place towards the end of 2026. Turning to XPeng, which has developed the IRON humanoid, it told investors at its AI Day14 event in November that it is targeting mass production preparation in April 2026. Its goal is full large-scale mass production by the end of 2026.
Investors should note that while humanoid robots seem like a futuristic concept today, the industry is expected to see prolific growth in the decades ahead. According to analysts at Citi Global Insights, the market could be worth up to $7 trillion by 2050 given the technology’s potential in home services and industrial settings3. Analysts at Goldman Sachs have said that in a “blue-sky” scenario – where innovation unfolds rapidly and demand soars – humanoid robots could become the next “must-have” devices4. So, those who get in early here could potentially be rewarded.
Nuclear Energy
If there’s one major obstacle to AI and robotics, it is power constraints. Today, the world simply does not have the grid capacity to support the sheer scale of the computing revolution taking place. This is where nuclear energy comes in. It can offer a clean, reliable source of power and with innovations such as Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and microreactors emerging, it’s the ideal power source for energy-intensive data centers and continuous AI workloads.
In the second half of 2025, Big Tech companies announced several major deals in the nuclear energy space. For example, Amazon announced a deal with Energy Northwest and X-energy to build an advanced nuclear energy facility featuring up to 12 SMRs in Washington state5. Meanwhile, Google announced a deal with NextEra Energy to revive the Duane Arnold Energy Center in Iowa to meet demand from data centers and AI6. Investors are likely to see more of these kinds of deals in 2026 as tech firms strive to secure the baseload power required to support AI.
Note that in December, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said that he expects to see "a bunch of SMRs” in the hundreds of megawatts range powering data centers within six to seven years7. Speaking on the “Joe Rogan Experience,” Huang identified energy, not chips, as the primary bottleneck for the next phase of AI growth and said that looking ahead, hyperscalers will most likely install and run their own SMRs in an effort to be self-sufficient. Huang’s prediction bodes well for companies such as NuScale Power, NANO Nuclear Energy, and BWX Technologies. All of these businesses are highly active in the SMR/microreactor space and are likely to benefit from rising interest in smaller nuclear power plants.
Big Banks
In 2025, the “Big Six” banks have collectively outperformed the “Magnificent Seven” tech stocks. And looking to 2026, many experts see the momentum in banking continuing. For a start, yield curves are steepening – yields on short-term US treasury securities are falling as interest rates are coming down while yields on longer-dated bonds remain elevated due to concerns in relation to inflation and the federal deficit. This backdrop has historically been profitable for the banks as reduced funding costs tend to drive net interest margins higher.
Additionally, we are starting to see a pickup in capital markets activity – in the third quarter of 2025, US banks posted very strong investment banking revenues. This activity could accelerate in the months ahead amid lower interest rates and deregulation under the Trump administration. It’s worth pointing out that in 2026, we could see some blockbuster IPOs – including those of SpaceX, Databricks, and Anthropic – benefiting the banks that operate in this area of financial services. Capital expenditures in AI infrastructure (data centers, chips, and energy) are also expected to drive revenues for the big banks throughout the year through significant debt and equity underwriting fees.
One other reason to be bullish on banks in 2026 is that many of these companies are automating their operations and cutting costs. After significant spending on AI in 2024 and 2025, banks are expected to see these investments pay off in 2026 through virtual assistants, automated compliance, AI-powered underwriting, and enhanced fraud detection. In November, Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf stated that the bank – which has reduced its headcount significantly in recent years – expects further headcount reductions in the near future8. Scharf highlighted AI as a significant driver for efficiency, stating that the bank plans to deploy AI tools gradually throughout 2026 and beyond.
Defense
Defense is another area of the market that has performed well in 2025 and could continue to outperform in 2026. At the 2025 NATO Summit in June, member countries committed to spending 5% of GDP on defense by 2035 (this new spending target is to be segmented, with at least 3.5% of GDP going towards “core defense requirements” and the remaining 1.5% going to broader defense and security-related investments). This was a pivotal moment for the transatlantic alliance, as 5% of GDP represents a huge jump from the previous benchmark of 2% of GDP. And it could lead to strong orders in 2026 for companies that operate in the industry.
In terms of where all this extra funding could flow to, some areas worth highlighting include:
Ammunition manufacturers: The 3.5% of GDP portion of NATO's new defense spending commitment aims to help member nations acquire and maintain the specific military assets and capabilities necessary for collective security. The goal is to replenish stockpiles – which have been drawn down as countries have provided support to Ukraine – and ensure that allies are adequately prepared for any future conflict. Given this focus, it’s likely that a substantial amount of money will be spent on ammunition as defense budgets rise. This could benefit the likes of Rheinmetall and BAE Systems, which produce a range of related products, from small arms ammunition for infantry to large caliber shells for tanks and artillery.
Missile and drone defense companies: Missile and drone defense could also see an increase in spending as NATO countries allocate more of their GDP to core defense products. Today, it’s vital that countries can detect, track, and intercept incoming aerial threats so that they can protect their populations and critical infrastructure. Spending here could benefit companies such as RTX Corp and Lockheed Martin. These companies offer a range of missile and drone defense products designed to mitigate aerial threats.
Cybersecurity specialists: The cyber world has become a critical battleground. So, it would not be a surprise to see governments increase their spending here. Investments in this domain would most likely focus on strengthening national cyber defenses and protecting critical infrastructure from digital attacks. Companies that could benefit include the likes of General Dynamics, which provides cybersecurity services to federal agencies through its General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) business unit, and Palo Alto Networks, which has become a major player in government cybersecurity.
It’s worth noting that at the end of Q3, many defense companies were sitting on enormous backlogs. Lockheed Martin, for example, had a record backlog of $179 billion – more than two and a half years’ worth of sales9.
Gold and Silver Miners
Gold has had an incredible year in 2025, eclipsing the $4,400 per ounce level after starting the year near $2,600 per ounce10. Plenty of experts see the precious metal going higher in 2026, however. For example, analysts at JP Morgan11 see the commodity hitting $5,000 per ounce by late 2026. Looking further out, they see $6,000 as a possibility longer term.
In terms of what is fueling gold’s rally, there are several drivers including:
Fiscal deficit concerns: With US national debt continuing to rise, investors are using gold as a hedge against currency debasement.
De-dollarization: Gold is increasingly being viewed as a "politically neutral" reserve asset.
Concerns about Federal Reserve independence: Gold is being viewed as an insurance policy against political interference in the US.
Central bank buying: Emerging market central banks have significantly increased their gold purchases. JP Morgan predicts these banks will buy roughly 190 tons per quarter in 2026 as they diversify away from the US dollar11.
Weakness in crypto assets: In 2025, Bitcoin’s narrative as a form of "digital gold" has faced a reality check as prices have fallen.
If the price of gold does keep climbing, gold mining stocks are likely to benefit as today, many gold producers have relatively fixed costs that, on a per ounce of gold produced basis, are well below current spot prices. This means that every additional dollar in the gold price can flow almost entirely to companies’ bottom lines, creating a powerful multiplier effect on profits.
Turning to silver – which has outperformed gold in 2025 – it also has several forces powering its rally. One key driver is an industrial supply squeeze. Today, silver is used in a range of industrial applications including data centers, electric vehicles, and solar energy panels, so demand is rising. However, since 70-75% of mined silver is a byproduct of mining other metals (like copper or zinc), miners cannot simply ramp up production just because demand is increasing.
While silver has performed well recently, many analysts believe that the commodity is undervalued at present. If the gold-to-silver ratio reverts toward historical norms of 50 to 60 in 2026, silver could see a more aggressive percentage gain than gold, with some analysts seeing $100 per ounce as a possibility12. If silver does continue to climb in 2026, it should benefit silver mining stocks. Like gold miners, silver miners tend to enjoy operational leverage when prices of the commodity are rising.
Footnotes:
1UN Trade & Development, AI market projected to hit $4.8 trillion by 2033, emerging as dominant frontier technology, as of April 7, 2025
2Yahoo Finance, 69% Global Executives Predict AI Agents will Reshape Business in 2026, According to DeepL Research, as of December 4, 2025
3Yahoo Finance, Humanoid robots could create a $7 trillion market in the next 25 years: Citi analysts, as of December 5, 2024
4Goldman Sachs, The global market for humanoid robots could reach $38 billion by 2035, as of February 27, 2024
5Amazon, How Amazon is helping to build one of the first modular nuclear reactor facilities in the United States, as of October 16, 2025
6Next Era Energy, NextEra Energy and Google Announce New Collaboration to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Deployment in the U.S., as of October 27, 2025
7Yahoo Finance, Jensen Huang Reveals AI's Biggest Problem, And It Is Not Chips - Joe Rogan Agrees This Is The 'Smartest' Way To Solve It, as of December 6, 2025
8Reuters, Wells Fargo CEO expects bank's workforce to shrink further, as of November 6, 2025
9Lockheed Martin, Lockheed Martin Reports Third Quarter 2025 Financial Results, as of October 21, 2025
10BBC, Gold and silver hit records as investors hunt for safety, as of December 22, 2025
11J.P.Morgan, Will gold prices break $5,000/oz in 2026?, as of December 16, 2025
12Carbon Credits, Silver Price Hits $64 as Supply Deficit Enters Fifth Year, Prices May Reach $100/Oz, as of December 11, 2025
13Yahoo Finance, Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) Q3 FY2025 earnings call transcript, as of October 22, 2025
14Xpeng, XPENG SHARES ACHIEVEMENTS IN PHYSICAL AI EMERGENCE: UNVEILS XPENG VLA 2.0, ROBOTAXI, NEXT-GEN IRON, AND FLYING CAR, as of November 5, 2025
