--- title: "Inside the AIPO ETF: What GE Vernova and Vertiv's Q1 Earnings Just Revealed About the AI Power Trade" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/284766307.md" description: "On April 22, 2026, GE Vernova and Vertiv reported strong Q1 earnings, indicating significant growth in the AI power infrastructure sector. GE Vernova's revenue rose 16% year-over-year to $9.3 billion, with a notable increase in data center equipment orders. Vertiv's sales grew 30% year-over-year to $2.65 billion, prompting raised full-year guidance. Despite strong results, Vertiv's shares fell due to high market expectations. The broader capital expenditure wave for major U.S. hyperscalers is projected between $602 billion and $700 billion, primarily for AI infrastructure. The Defiance AI & Power Infrastructure ETF (AIPO) offers diversified exposure to this theme." datetime: "2026-04-30T12:00:00.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/284766307.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/284766307.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/284766307.md) --- # Inside the AIPO ETF: What GE Vernova and Vertiv's Q1 Earnings Just Revealed About the AI Power Trade On April 22, 2026, two of the largest holdings in the Defiance AI & Power Infrastructure ETF (AIPO) — GE Vernova (GEV) and Vertiv (VRT) — reported first-quarter results that delivered the clearest on-the-ground read yet on the scale of the data center buildout. GEV booked more data center equipment orders in a single quarter than it did in all of 2025. VRT posted 30% year-over-year revenue growth in Q1 2026 and raised full-year guidance for the second time in two quarters. The prints didn't just beat estimates — they moved the AI power-infrastructure thesis from forecast to financial statement. ### Claim 55% Off TipRanks New trading tool for BE bulls/bears ## **Data Center Demand Moves From Forecast to Reality** GE Vernova reported Q1 2026 revenue of $9.3 billion, up 16% year-over-year, and orders of $10 billion — a 59% organic increase.¹ Total backlog grew to $163 billion, up roughly $13 billion from the prior quarter. The standout figure came from the Electrification segment: $2.4 billion in equipment orders tied to data centers in the quarter, an amount that exceeded full-year 2025 Electrification data center orders.¹ Management raised full-year 2026 guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) margin, and free cash flow, and pulled forward its $200 billion total backlog target to 2027 from 2028.¹ The company also indicated it now expects to reach at least 110 GW of combined gas turbine backlog and slot reservations by year-end 2026 — a data point that speaks directly to how long the firm order book extends for grid-connected power generation. For an investment theme that has been built on large-sounding projections for years, the importance of this report is that the numbers are now pricing, contracting, and delivery — not analyst modeling. Commentary on the earnings call explicitly noted that Q1 Electrification data center orders exceeded the full-year 2025 figure, a specific disclosure with contractual backing.¹ ## **Vertiv's Q1 Beat Reinforces the Signal — With a Caveat** Vertiv, a data center thermal management and power delivery specialist, reported Q1 2026 net sales of $2.65 billion, up 30% year-over-year (23% organic).² Americas segment organic growth came in at 44%. Adjusted operating margin expanded 430 basis points (4.30 percentage points) to 20.8%, and adjusted diluted EPS of $1.17 exceeded consensus by roughly $0.17.² Full-year 2026 guidance was raised to net sales of $13.5–$14.0 billion (organic growth of 29–31%) and adjusted diluted EPS of $6.30–$6.40.² The caveat is instructive. Despite the beat and raise, Vertiv shares fell roughly 2.5% the day of the report.³ The reaction reflects how much forward growth has been priced into AI infrastructure equities after a twelve-month period in which the stock had advanced more than 300%. Strong results can coexist with a stock pullback when expectations are already elevated. For investors evaluating thematic AI infrastructure exposure, that tension is a feature of the current market environment, not a bug. ## **The $600 Billion Spending Wave Behind the Numbers** The Q1 results reflect a broader capital expenditure wave. Consensus 2026 capex estimates for the five largest U.S. hyperscalers — Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL), Microsoft (MSFT), Meta (META), and Oracle (ORCL) — now range from approximately $602 billion to nearly $700 billion, with roughly three-quarters of that spend tied to AI infrastructure.⁴ Alphabet alone has guided to approximately $180 billion in 2026 capex; Amazon has signaled roughly $200 billion.⁴ A recurring phrase from hyperscaler commentary — and one echoed by both GE Vernova and Vertiv management on their Q1 calls — is that markets remain supply-constrained, not demand-constrained. Grid equipment lead times, transformer availability, and data center power interconnection queues are running years long. That dynamic has shifted pricing power toward the companies building the physical layer of AI, which is precisely where the Q1 prints showed up. ## **Accessing the Theme Through the Defiance AI & Power Infrastructure ETF (AIPO)** The Defiance AI & Power Infrastructure ETF (AIPO) offers one approach for investors seeking diversified exposure to this theme. The fund, which launched on July 24, 2025, tracks the MarketVector US Listed AI & Power Infrastructure Index and holds companies that derive at least 50% of revenues from AI hardware, data centers, power infrastructure, or related sectors.⁵ GE Vernova and Vertiv were recently among the fund's top holdings, alongside Quanta Services (PWR), Eaton (ETN), and Cameco (CCJ).⁵ _Fund holdings are subject to change at any time and should not be considered recommendations to buy or sell any security. For a full and current list of fund holdings, visit defianceetfs.com/aipo._ AIPO surpassed $300 million in assets under management on April 17, 2026 — less than nine months after launch — and was named Best New Thematic ETF\* at the 2026 ETF.com Awards announced in March 2026.⁵ From January 1, 2026 through April 14, 2026, AIPO posted a NAV total return of approximately 29.99%\*\*, compared with approximately 2.35% for the Nasdaq-100 Index over the same period (data sourced from Bloomberg).⁵ **Standardized Performance (Avg Annualized)** ### Related Stocks - [GEV.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GEV.US.md) - [VRT.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/VRT.US.md) - [AIPO.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/AIPO.US.md) - [GEVX.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GEVX.US.md) - [AMZN.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/AMZN.US.md) - [GOOGL.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GOOGL.US.md) - [GOOG.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/GOOG.US.md) - [MSFT.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/MSFT.US.md) - [META.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/META.US.md) - [ORCL.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/ORCL.US.md) - [PWR.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/PWR.US.md) - [ETN.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/ETN.US.md) - [CCJ.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/CCJ.US.md) - [ORCL-D.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/ORCL-D.US.md) ## Related News & Research - [Is Vertiv (VRT) Building a Defensible AI Data Center Moat With Its Expanded Thermal Chain?](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287419015.md) - [Vertiv Stock (VRT) Is Up 102% YTD; Do Analysts See Further Upside?](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287555080.md) - [Swedbank AB Sells 275,482 Shares of Vertiv Holdings Co. $VRT](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287518338.md) - [How to fix AI's branding problem, according to top marketers](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287767399.md) - [Vertiv Holdings Co. $VRT Position Raised by Sterling Investment Advisors Ltd.](https://longbridge.com/en/news/287616602.md)