Charles Schwab Survey: Flight to Gold, But No Retreat from AI 

Charles Schwab UK’s seventh annual Investment Forces survey reveals that UK investors are gravitating toward the traditional safe haven of gold and the growth potential of artificial intelligence

• Precious metals and gold were rated the best investment option by 73% of UK investors, unchanged from 2025, with 64% expecting gold’s value to rise over 12 months — up six percentage points year on year
• AI stocks are the second most favoured asset class, with 65% rating them a good option; 30% of investors increased their AI holdings in the past three months, the highest allocation activity of any asset class
• Cryptocurrency remains a divisive investment: 40% consider it a good option, while 26% say it is a poor one; Bitcoin optimism has cooled slightly to 42%, down three percentage points from 2025
• The generational divide on crypto is stark: 55% of Millennials hold cryptocurrency compared to just 7% of Boomers and the Silent Generation
• Looking ahead, investors are gravitating toward medical technology (72%) and renewable energy (71%) as long-term thematic priorities, reflecting an emphasis on structural societal needs rather than near-term performance

Two investment themes are dominating the thinking of UK investors in 2026 – gold, the traditional safe haven, and Artificial Intelligence, the sector many believe will define the next decade of market growth. According to new research from Charles Schwab UK’s annual Investment Forces survey, now in its seventh year, both have emerged as clear consensus choices among British investors, even as broader market sentiment remains cautious and the effects of the Iran conflict continue to ripple through global portfolios.

The survey, conducted during the height of the conflict in Iran, between 3 and 20 March 2026, reveals a striking duality. At a time of considerable geopolitical uncertainty, investors have predictably turned to gold, with nearly three quarters (73%) rating precious metals as the best investment option available – a figure unchanged from 2025. Confidence in gold’s near-term trajectory has, however, strengthened. Sixty-four percent now expect its value to rise over the next 12 months, up six percentage points year on year.

AI conviction holds firm

What is perhaps more notable is that investors have simultaneously maintained, and in many cases increased, their exposure to Artificial Intelligence. Some 65% of respondents rated AI stocks as a good investment option, making it the second most favoured asset class behind gold. More significantly, 30% of investors increased their AI holdings in the past three months – the highest allocation activity recorded for any single asset class in this wave of the survey.

This is a telling signal – at a point when markets were absorbing the impact of the Iran conflict and investors might reasonably have been expected to retreat to safety, a substantial proportion chose instead to add to their positions in a sector that some commentators have warned may be overvalued. The data suggests that, for many UK investors, AI is no longer viewed as a speculative bet but a structural conviction and a theme they are willing to back through periods of volatility.

Commenting on the findings, Richard Flynn, Managing Director, Charles Schwab UK, said: “Gold and AI might seem like an unlikely pairing, but they reflect a logical approach from investors who are thinking carefully about both protection and growth. Gold can offer some reassurance when the world feels uncertain, and it appears to have delivered on that promise again this year. AI, meanwhile, represents the kind of structural shift that some investors increasingly see as too important to sit out, regardless of short-term market noise. The fact that AI saw the highest allocation activity of any asset class during a period of real geopolitical stress tells you something important about the depth of that conviction.”

Crypto divides, long-term themes emerge

Cryptocurrency, by contrast, remains a divisive asset class. While 44% of investors consider it a good option, more than a quarter (26%) rate it as a poor one – a spread unmatched by any other investment category. Bitcoin optimism has also softened, falling three percentage points to 42% compared with 2025.

The generational fault line on crypto is particularly pronounced. More than half (55%) of Millennials hold cryptocurrency, compared to just 7% of Boomers and the Silent Generation. This is not simply a difference of degree but of kind: for younger investors, crypto is becoming an established part of the portfolio; for older generations, it remains largely peripheral.

Beyond the headlines of gold, AI, and crypto, the survey points to a broader shift in long-term thematic preferences. Medical technology (72%) and renewable energy (71%) are now the most favoured sectors for long-term investment, suggesting that investors are increasingly aligning their portfolios with structural societal needs – healthcare innovation and the energy transition — rather than chasing near-term performance.

Richard added: “The themes investors are choosing to back tell us a great deal about how they see the world evolving. Gold and AI address the present — one offering potential stability, the other the potential for growth. But the interest in medical technology and renewable energy speaks to something longer term. Investors are looking at where society appears to be heading and positioning their portfolios accordingly. That is a sophisticated and encouraging trend, and one that goes well beyond the day-to-day noise of markets.”