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A surge of AI agents capable of managing everything from coding to tax advice has industry leaders and financial markets in a state of flux, trying to identify who will thrive and who will falter. No longer is it enough for OpenAI’s ChatGPT to just generate text responses; companies are now developing “agentic” AI features that allow software assistants to perform independently based on straightforward descriptions, such as creating new applications.
Shay Boloor, chief strategist at Futurum, describes this as an unprecedented “inflection point,” where millions of AI-driven agents could soon handle tasks traditionally performed by humans. “We’ve never experienced a tech disruption on this scale before,” Boloor told AFP. “It’s intense, and the market is pricing in a future with significant uncertainty and potential downturns.”
This shift has been driven by rapid releases of increasingly sophisticated AI models, including new versions from OpenAI and Anthropic, as well as the launch of autonomous AI agents like OpenClaw in November—often compared to JARVIS from the Marvel movies. OpenClaw’s creator was acquired by OpenAI, indicating even bigger ambitions for agent-based AI in San Francisco.
Investors have quickly viewed AI agents as a threat to software companies, especially those targeting business clients. Stocks of firms like Monday.com, Salesforce, and Thomson Reuters—including its tax, accounting, and trade divisions—plunged over 30 percent in just a few days. Jason Schloetzer, a management professor at Georgetown University, recalls a recent conversation with a CEO who joked about no longer needing consultants because they had AI in their pocket. “There’s widespread paranoia about AI across industries,” said Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, but he believes fears of AI replacing enterprise software and cybersecurity are exaggerated, calling the idea “fictional.”
Despite concerns, significant investments continue pouring into large language models from players like Anthropic, Google’s Gemini, and xAI’s Grok, vying for dominance. Boloor argues that fear of over-investment is misplaced, emphasizing that underinvesting in such transformative technology is riskier. Schloetzer compares the impact of AI to the early days of the internet, suggesting it may take years for AI to fundamentally reshape the economy—just as Netflix emerged as a new industry once the internet became widespread.
“I’m just waiting to see what new businesses or industries emerge because of AI,” Schloetzer adds. The excitement and concern over AI are spilling into sectors far beyond tech. A recent blog by entrepreneur Matt Shumer predicts AI will soon enter fields like law, finance, medicine, and consulting, transforming roles and workflows. He notes that tech workers have experienced AI shifting from a helpful aid to a tool that often surpasses human performance, a trend poised to ripple into the broader service economy.
Some critics, however, dismiss such predictions as hype fueled by fear. Jeffrey Funk, a technology consultant, called Shumer’s optimism “hype,” asserting the market will eventually find balance. Ives echoes this, saying that markets are rational and will reach a point of stability soon.
Meanwhile, providers of large language models continue to invest hundreds of billions, vying for market leadership amid concerns of overexpenditure. Anthropic, with its Claude model, faces stiff competition from OpenAI, Google’s Gemini, and xAI’s Grok. Boloor insists that failing to invest adequately poses a greater risk than overspending.
Schloetzer believes it may be years before AI’s full economic impact becomes clear, drawing parallels to how the internet gradually integrated into daily life, birthing entire industries like Netflix out of nothing. “I’m waiting to see what new companies or sectors will be created as a result of AI.”
Beyond tech, AI anxiety is increasingly prominent. A recent blog by US entrepreneur Matt Shumer predicts AI’s influence extending into law, finance, and healthcare, transforming job roles and industry standards. He foresees a ripple effect from tech workers’ experiences—AI growing from a helpful tool into a rival that “does my job better than I do”—spreading through service industries.
Some critics argue that such predictions are overly alarmist. Jeffrey Funk, writing on Mind Matters, describes the hype as driven by fear, emphasizing that markets tend to correct themselves as realities set in. Ives concludes that soon, the industry will reach a crossroads where optimism and caution find balance, and the frenzied pace of investment begins to stabilize.
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Gemini AI
Grok AI
