[Benefiting from AI Bets, Blackstone Group's Profits Grow by 26%] According to Golden Finance, on July 23, Blackstone Group's distributable earnings for the second quarter increased by 26% year-on-year, driven by asset sales and returns from artificial intelligence-related investments. Blackstone Group's distributable earnings for the second quarter (i.e., earnings available to shareholders) reached $1.97 billion, exceeding analysts' forecast of $1.66 billion. Earnings per share were $1.52, higher than the analysts' average expectation of $1.33. In an interview, Blackstone's president stated that AI investments continue to drive Blackstone's performance, with nine out of its ten major investment portfolios related to data centers, energy, power, and large language models.