In this special New Year update of Being Exponential, Luke Lango jumps on for a solo market briefing after one of the most chaotic first weeks to a year in recent memory.

While headlines scream about volatility and an “AI bubble,” Luke explains why AI remains the North Star of the market — backed by strong earnings, accelerating chip innovation, rising data-center demand, and major breakthroughs in humanoid robotics, autonomous vehicles, and large language models.

But something has changed.

Luke breaks down why we’re entering a new market regime in 2026 — one defined by geopolitical escalation, resource acquisition, and massive shifts in government spending. He lays out two emerging themes investors can’t ignore:

• A short-term opportunity in oil & gas, driven by geopolitical developments and refining dynamics
• A much bigger, longer-lasting golden era for defense stocks, fueled by rising global military budgets and a shift toward drones, satellites, missile defense, and expendable systems

Luke introduces the concept of “Acquisition Americana,” explaining why the world may be moving away from Pax Americana toward a more fragmented, resource-driven global order — and what that means for markets.

He also explains:

• Why AI stocks are still healthy despite market chaos
• Why defense “up-tempo” names may outperform traditional program stocks
• Where the real alpha could be in 2026
• How to think about evolving your portfolio as the market evolves

If you’re trying to make sense of volatility, geopolitics, AI, and where the next big opportunities are — this episode is a must-watch.

🎧 Full-length episode returns next week.