“The searches that you’re doing on Claude require the consumption of energy and at some point the system should hit a breaking point,” says George Bilicic, Lazard vice chairman of investment banking and global head of power, energy and infrastructure. Bilicic joins Bloomberg Intelligence’s Alexandra Davidov and Rob Barnett on this episode of the Tech Disruptors podcast to discuss why AI and data-center demand are reshaping the outlook for utilities, power markets and infrastructure investment. They also explore why the next phase of the build-out will require more than simply adding generation wherever demand appears. The conversation covers financing, M&amp;A, grid constraints, gas, renewables, storage, nuclear, permitting and Lazard’s latest work on the levelized cost of energy (LCOE).

Lazard’s Bilicic on Power Demand in the AI Era

Tech Disruptors

Hello and welcome to the Bloomberg Intelligence Tech Disruptors podcast. I'm Alexandra Davidoff, Associate Director of Research for Global Industries at Bloomberg Intelligence. Joining me here today from BI is Ron Barnett, our Global Head of Commodities Research. We're very pleased to welcome Thomas Anderson to the podcast. George is Vice Chairman of the Messon Banking and Global Head of Power, Energy, and Infrastructure at Lazard. He has spent his career working across utilities, power, energy infrastructure, financing, and major strategic

transactions, and he also brings a legal background, which is especially relevant in the sector where regulation, deal structure, and policy matter so much. A lot of the AI conversations start with chips, models, and data centers, but increasingly the real constraint is power, where it is available, how quickly it can be delivered, and who pays for the infrastructure needed to support it. Well, George, welcome to the podcast. Oh, it's great to be here with both of you. Thank you. Why don't you tell us a little bit about your role at Lazard and we'll jump into the questions.

So I've been at Lazard for some time. I'm one of the senior bankers there, and I run a group that cuts across everything in energy. There are seven managing directors, 75 bankers in New York and Houston. We run the business globally as well, and we're doing everything from utilities to renewables companies to conventional power to the super majors to pipelines and midstream companies. Very cool. All right, let's jump into the questions. Utilities used to be thought as pretty

Lazard’s Bilicic on Power Demand in the AI Era

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.

Lazard’s Bilicic on Power Demand in the AI Era

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast, not the earnings call.

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.