Penn Alumnus Lin Qingyuan of Ping An Fund and Elon Musk Share Investment Vision: Nearly 10 Billion Flows into Gas Turbines, Achieving Over 20% Returns as Q1 Dark Horse

Deep News13:02

Recently, while reviewing fund performances, one particular product has drawn significant attention. From last year to the present, Elon Musk has repeatedly emphasized across various platforms that the next bottleneck for AI is not chips, but electricity. He points out that chip production will soon outpace the available power supply needed to "light them up," highlighting the severe aging of the U.S. power grid and the need for data centers to operate 24/7 without interruption.

In one interview, Musk was particularly straightforward about gas turbines. He mentioned that when the grid cannot keep up with the explosive demand from AI data centers, gas turbines are currently the most practical quick solution. He even detailed the supply chain bottlenecks for gas turbines: blades and vanes are the most difficult parts to produce, with only a few companies worldwide capable of casting these high-temperature alloy components, leading to severe order backlogs.

He stated bluntly that to power the Colossus supercomputer cluster for xAI, they have had to extensively use mobile and temporary gas turbines, even sourcing large units from overseas to rapidly deploy generating capacity. Simply put, it's a case of "if the grid can't keep up, I'll generate my own electricity"—using gas turbines as "emergency power" because they start quickly, can handle heavy loads, and have relatively short construction cycles, perfectly matching the frantic expansion pace of AI data centers.

It turns out a domestic fund manager has had the same idea as Musk—Lin Qingyuan from Ping An Fund. Lin Qingyuan holds a master's degree in engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has over ten years of experience as a fund manager since 2015. He is not a newcomer. In February 2023, he moved from Rongtong Fund to Ping An Fund and currently manages five products, including Ping An Xin'an and Ping An Dingyue. The total scale under his management exceeded 7 billion yuan in the first quarter, and with the recent rise in AI-related power stocks, it is estimated to be even larger now.

While many are chasing "light" related to AI hardware like optical modules, semiconductors, and chips, the funds managed by Lin Qingyuan have taken a contrarian approach. A look at the first-quarter holdings shows that power equipment related to gas turbines makes up the bulk of the top ten heavyweight stocks.

He wrote plainly in the quarterly report: "Against the backdrop of the accelerated global construction of AI data centers, we have further strengthened our investment framework that 'the end point of computing power is electricity, and the second half of AI is energy.' We have focused our investment重心 further on AI power generation equipment, particularly in the gas turbine sector. Looking ahead, we will continue to deepen our allocation around AI power, especially in the high-growth segment of gas turbines."

Lin Qingyuan also clearly explained his stock selection logic: "Our stock selection logic follows the core framework of 'Made in China + Priced for North America.' We select high-quality companies that belong to Chinese manufacturing and are also global 'shovel sellers' for AI infrastructure. These companies are leveraging the advantages of the Chinese supply chain to fill the power equipment capacity gap expected in North America over the next 3-5 years. From a spatial perspective, most of these companies are in the traditional manufacturing sector, receive relatively low attention, remain in a valuation trough, and have significant potential for a Davis Double Lift."

His logic is easy for the average person to understand. Lin Qingyuan compares AI to a super-giant with an ever-increasing appetite: chips are its brain, optical modules are its nerves, but without enough "electric rice" to continuously feed it, even the most powerful brain will starve and stall.

The reality is just that—many power grids where North American data centers are located are 30-40 years old and severely aged. AI training and inference require 24/7, high-density power supply. In the short term, the fastest and most practical solution is gas turbines: quick start-up (10-30 minutes to full load), availability rates over 95%, and short construction cycles, allowing for rapid "life extension" for AI. Orders from global majors are already booked beyond 2030, and equipment prices are still rising.

The supply chain tension for blades and vanes mentioned by Musk in his interview corresponds precisely to Lin Qingyuan's focus on heavyweight stocks. His core holdings, such as Anhui Yingliu Electromechanical Co.,Ltd. (specializing in key components like high-temperature alloy blades and ring forgings for gas turbines) and related high-temperature alloy and forging enterprises, are precisely positioned at the most critical and hardest-to-expand part of the gas turbine supply chain.

While Musk is urgently deploying gas turbines overseas, the Chinese supply chain, with its advantages in cost, speed, and a complete industrial chain, is becoming the global "shovel seller" in the AI energy upgrade—the logic on both sides is highly consistent.

Crucially, his move into AI power was not a impulsive reaction to a hot topic. The core heavyweight stock, Anhui Yingliu Electromechanical Co.,Ltd., entered the top ten holdings of Ping An Dingyue as early as the second quarter of 2025 and has maintained a high allocation since, indicating he quietly positioned himself in this key segment well before the market widely focused on AI energy.

The shift became significantly more pronounced in the fourth quarter of 2025: as global AI computing infrastructure entered a peak period, energy supply became the major constraint. He decisively deepened his portfolio adjustment, focusing more intently on AI power generation equipment, especially gas turbines, gradually shifting from computing hardware to the underlying energy foundation.

How has the performance been this year? In the first quarter of 2026, the AI power trend gradually validated his judgment. The products he manages have achieved returns exceeding 20% year-to-date (even higher at certain points over the past year), ranking near the top among all active equity funds in the market, making them a clear dark horse for Q1!

In just one quarter, the scale of products managed by Lin Qingyuan has grown significantly. Among them, Ping An Xin'an grew from approximately 70 million yuan to over 2 billion yuan, and Ping An Dingyue grew from about 130 million yuan to over 2 billion yuan. Combined with his other managed products, the total scale has seen substantial growth, estimated to be nearly 10 billion yuan.

In summary: Musk declared in interviews that "electricity is the lifeline of AI" and is directly using gas turbines to power xAI data centers. Lin Qingyuan has put this assessment into practice with actual holdings and early positioning. As ordinary investors, we might not immediately invest in his funds, but it's worth considering: amidst the AI boom, beyond chasing the hottest "light," the underlying opportunities in "electricity" are also deserving of attention.

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

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