Anthropic AI Launches Automation Tools, Sending Software, Financial Market Values Dropping $285B

[Para 1: The Lead] Anthropic, an AI startup, has launched a new AI automation tool, triggering a massive sell-off in software, financial services, and asset management stocks. Market values of these sectors have evaporated by approximately $285 billion, as investors rush to sell any stocks exposed to AI risks. The sell-off began before the U.S. market opened on Wednesday, February 08, 2026. [Para 2-3: Supporting details & Context] According to Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs' basket of U.S. software stocks suffered a 6% drop, the largest single-day loss since April due to tariffs, while financial services indexes fell nearly 7%. The Nasdaq 100 index initially dropped 2.4%, but the loss was later trimmed to 1.6%. The sell-off also hit European and U.S. data and legal services companies, including Experian, RELX, and London Stock Exchange Group. IShares Expansion Technology Software ETF, an index fund, fell 4.6% in a single day, its sixth consecutive trading day in the red. This ETF has fallen 15% in January, its worst monthly performance since 2008. Investor sentiment is shifting as Anthropic's AI tools are disrupting the landscape, particularly in the legal sector. Investment managers like Blue Whale Growth Fund's Stephen Yiu warn that 2026 could be the year companies either become AI winners or victims, with investment success depending on avoiding the latter. The AI landscape is intensifying competition, putting pressure on software sector fundamentals.