SaaSpocalypse: $285B+ Enterprise Software Selloff
Narrative
Massive selloff in enterprise software and data analytics stocks triggered by Anthropic Cowork plugins (Jan 30) and Claude Opus 4.6 (Feb 5). iShares Software ETF (IGV) worst two-day stretch since 2008. S&P 500 software index fell ~10% in one week. Global equity markets worst week since November.
Reality
Peaked February 3-5, 2026. FactSet -10%, RELX -17% weekly, Thomson Reuters, LegalZoom, S&P Global, Moody's, Nasdaq all sharply down. India IT index -7%. Palantir CEO Alex Karp fueled narrative on earnings call. Bank of America called selloff "internally inconsistent." Gartner: predictions of SaaS death "premature" but Cowork "exposes how much knowledge work remains manual." Wedbush: market overreaction.
Implication
Largest AI-driven market disruption event since DeepSeek shock (Jan 2025). Shifted investor narrative from "will AI pay off?" to "AI is already replacing SaaS." Created potential entry points for AI chip stocks (trading near 1x PEG). Demonstrated that product launches — not just model releases — can move hundreds of billions in market cap. Professional services firms now face "AI-defensibility" scrutiny.