Blackstone (BX) president Jon Gray said on Thursday he still expects the firm to have a major year taking companies public, and the main driver is coming from artificial intelligence. "Once this war resolves, I do think we'll see an acceleration," said Gray, who is Blackstone's No. 2 executive and the eventual successor of longtime CEO Stephen Schwarzman. "We think we'll be able to get a number of IPOs done," he added. Despite a volatile start to 2026, which included the outbreak of the US-Israeli war in Ir ...