AI Disrupts Industry Patterns Ignites Concerns, Anthropic's New Tool Sparks Sell-off in Software Stocks Spreads

Artificial intelligence has once again become the focus of attention for stock market investors. However, the focus is increasingly shifting towards companies that may be impacted by this new technology, rather than those expected to profit from it. A U.S. software stock index from Goldman Sachs fell 6% on Tuesday, marking the largest single-day drop since the sell-off triggered by April's tariff policies. This was due to a new AI automation tool developed by Anthropic PBC, which intensified market concerns about the business prospects of certain companies. The Nasdaq 100 index dropped 1.6%, with an intraday drop reaching 2.4% at one point. The first wave of sell-offs focused on stocks related to legal and data services technology, followed by most of the software and financial technology sectors experiencing declines in stock prices. Business development companies and large alternative investment firms on Wall Street were also impacted, as the industries had significant exposure to software, raising concerns among investors. On Tuesday, stocks in the software, financial services, and asset management industries collectively lost approximately $285 billion in market value. Thomson Reuters and Legalzoom.com were among the worst performing companies in the U.S. and Canadian markets, contributing to the iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF dropping for a sixth consecutive trading day, with a decline of 4.6%.