Webinar

How is the AI investment boom shaping the US construction outlook?

11 June 2026 – 10.00am EST (New York)

online

The construction industry is entering a defining period as growth in activity shifts towards non-traditional asset classes.

Key megatrends including investment in digital infrastructure, geopolitical tensions, the energy transition, and demographic pressures are continuing to shape the outlook in different ways for each state and county. In this presentation Dr Nicholas Fearnley and Mario Iacobacci will examine the key forces shaping the outlook and discuss the key implications for the construction industry. Key talking points include:

What is driving the AI investment boom, and how much further will it run?
How is the data center rollout shaping the outlook, and where will the next wave be built?
How will the Middle East Conflict affect construction activity and costs, and what are the key risks?
What capacity challenges does the industry need to prepare for?
Which sectors are set to experience the strongest growth?

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Speakers

Nicholas Fearnley

Dr Nicholas Fearnley is the Head of Global Construction Forecasting, based in Sydney. Nicholas oversees the teams that produce the various construction, mining, and maintenance studies. He works over the full construction spectrum, and regularly presents and provides commentary for both the construction and mining industries.

Nicholas joined Oxford Economics in 2019 after working at Macromontor, where he was responsible for producing regular Australian building construction forecast reports, and bespoke cost escalation and material demand forecasts.

Prior to joining Macromonitor, Nicholas completed a PhD at the University of Sydney with a thesis titled: “A Critical and Quantitative Analysis of the Relationship between Informal Institutions and Economic Development.” He was awarded the Walter Noel Gillies Prize for best PhD thesis in Economics, and his thesis was accepted without edits.

Nicholas has undergraduate degrees in both Accounting and Applied Finance from Macquarie University, and a first class honours degree in Accounting from the University of Sydney with a thesis titled: “Culture and the Measurement Decision Offered by Investment Property”.

Head of Global Construction Forecasting

Mario Lacobacci

Mario Iacobacci is an accomplished infrastructure economist who brings deep experience across major infrastructure projects, public policy, and economic advisory work, with a strong track record supporting governments, investors, and industry on complex, high-profile assignments. He has an international track record in transportation and infrastructure economics, labour markets and other applied microeconomic issues – having worked across the US, UK and Canada in the last 30 years.

Mario’s expertise covers business cases – notably cost-benefit analysis for publicly funded infrastructure – as well as cost escalation analysis; infrastructure market capacity and labour market analysis; economic development and infrastructure strategy; economic analysis of major infrastructure projects; and expert witness and litigation support work on construction and infrastructure issue.

Mario holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Cambridge and contributes actively to the field through leadership roles including as Chair of the U.S. Transportation Research Board’s Standing Committee on Freight Transportation Economics and Regulation (2017-23) and longstanding member of the Metrolinx Project Evaluation Advisory Panel.

Head of Construction and Infrastructure Markets, North America