AI Needs More Than Chips: Two Asian Stocks to Watch

关键要点

1. AI infrastructure growth is creating opportunities beyond semiconductor companies, with rising demand for power management, cooling and energy-storage solutions.
2. Delta Electronics has seen strong growth in its Power Electronics business, supported by AI data-centre demand, while CATL’s rapidly expanding energy-storage business is emerging as a second growth engine alongside EV batteries.
3. Both companies offer exposure to structural growth themes, but investors should also consider valuation, competition, execution and geopolitical risks.

When investors think about the artificial intelligence boom, semiconductor companies are often the first names that come to mind.

But building the infrastructure needed to support AI requires much more than processors.

AI data centres consume enormous amounts of electricity and generate significantly more heat than traditional servers, increasing demand for power-management systems, cooling technologies and energy storage. At the same time, the continued electrification of transport and expansion of renewable energy are creating additional demand for many of these technologies.

This is opening another avenue for investors looking beyond the semiconductor sector.

Two Asian companies exposed to these trends are Delta Electronics (SGX: TDED) 和 CATL (SGX: HCCD). While their core businesses are different, both could play important roles in the infrastructure required to support an increasingly electrified and AI-driven economy. 

Delta Electronics: Powering the AI infrastructure boom

Delta Electronics is a power-electronics and energy-management company whose businesses span power management, data-centre infrastructure, industrial automation and electric mobility.

The company’s Power Electronics division provides power supplies and power-management solutions for servers, data centres, electronics and industrial equipment, while its Infrastructure business provides products including data-centre infrastructure, backup power and energy-storage solutions. 

AI is becoming an increasingly important part of this growth story.

In the first half of 2026, Delta Electronics’ group revenue increased 45.1% year-on-year to THB126.6 billion. Revenue from its Power Electronics segment surged 83.3% to THB91.5 billion, accounting for more than 70% of group revenue. 

Why does AI matter so much?

AI servers require substantially more power and generate more heat than conventional servers. This increases the need for higher-voltage power systems, power-distribution equipment and liquid-cooling solutions, potentially increasing the amount of Delta technology required within each data-centre deployment. 

The company is also expanding manufacturing capacity. Two new manufacturing facilities commenced operations in the second quarter of 2026, while property, plant and equipment increased to approximately THB52.1 billion as Delta continued investing to meet customer demand. 

What could drive Delta’s next phase of growth?

Continued investment by cloud providers and hyperscalers in AI infrastructure could support demand for Delta’s power and infrastructure businesses. Increasingly sophisticated AI computing requirements could also lead to a higher-value mix of power and thermal-management products.

There are risks, however.

Delta’s strong growth and AI exposure have contributed to a premium valuation. A slowdown in AI infrastructure spending, weaker-than-expected revenue growth or pressure on margins could therefore weigh on the stock. The company’s ongoing capacity expansion also introduces execution risk if demand fails to grow as expected. 

CATL: From EV batteries to energy storage

CATL is best known as one of the world’s largest electric-vehicle battery manufacturers, but its growth story is becoming increasingly diversified.

EV batteries remain its largest business. In 1H2026, EV Battery Systems revenue increased 46.0% year-on-year to RMB192.1 billion.

However, its Energy Storage Systems (ESS) business grew even faster.

ESS revenue surged 87.5% to RMB53.3 billion, increasing its contribution to group revenue to 19.2%, from 15.9% a year earlier. CATL’s energy-storage solutions serve utilities, renewable-energy projects and commercial customers by allowing electricity to be stored and deployed when required. 

That could become increasingly relevant as AI expands.

The rapid development of AI data centres is contributing to rising electricity demand, potentially creating greater need for large-scale energy-storage infrastructure. CATL has already begun deploying storage technologies for AI data-centre-related applications. 

Beyond conventional lithium-ion batteries, CATL is also investing in emerging technologies and growth areas including sodium-ion storage, battery swapping, clean-energy infrastructure and marine electrification. 

What should investors watch?

CATL’s expansion comes with several challenges.

Competition within the battery industry remains intense, particularly from Chinese rivals expanding their energy-storage and international businesses. CATL’s gross margin declined from 25.0% to 23.9% in 1H2026, with higher metal costs among the contributing factors.

International expansion also exposes the company to tariffs, trade restrictions and regulatory scrutiny, while investments in newer technologies will ultimately depend on successful commercialisation and adoption. 

Two different ways to look beyond AI chips

Delta Electronics and CATL occupy very different positions within the technology and electrification ecosystem.

Delta provides some of the power-management and thermal-management infrastructure needed to operate increasingly power-intensive computing systems.

CATL, meanwhile, is expanding beyond its traditional EV-battery business into energy storage, an area that could become increasingly important as data centres, renewable energy and electrification place greater demands on power grids.

Together, they illustrate a broader investment theme: the AI infrastructure buildout extends far beyond semiconductors.

For investors, the next phase of the AI story may therefore involve looking not only at the companies producing computing power, but also at the businesses helping to power, cool and support the infrastructure behind it.

Accessing Delta Electronics and CATL from Singapore

Singapore investors can gain exposure to both companies through 新加坡存托凭证（SDR） listed on SGX.

Delta Electronics is available through Delta TH SDR 1to1 (SGX: TDED), while CATL is available through CATL HK SDR 30to1 (SGX: HCCD). SDRs represent a beneficial interest in an underlying security listed on an overseas exchange and are traded, cleared and settled during SGX-ST market hours in Singapore dollars.

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