International Business Machines (IBM) experienced its most significant daily decline in over 25 years on Monday, following an announcement from AI startup Anthropic regarding its new tool, Claude Code. The tool is poised to modernize COBOL, a programming language integral to IBM systems, particularly in sectors like banking, insurance, and government. As a result, IBM’s shares plummeted by 13.2%, marking the steepest drop since October 18, 2000.
Anthropic highlighted in a blog post that the modernization of COBOL, traditionally a labor-intensive process requiring extensive consultancy, could be drastically streamlined using Claude Code. The company asserted that AI would enable teams to overhaul their COBOL codebases in mere quarters instead of the years typically required.
This development comes amidst rising concerns in the tech sector regarding the capabilities of AI tools, particularly following the introduction of plugins from Anthropic’s large language model, Claude. These advancements are viewed as a strategic move by the startup to establish itself as a significant player in the application layer of AI technology.
The broader software market also felt the impact of Anthropic’s announcement, with shares of cybersecurity firms such as CrowdStrike and Datadog declining as investors consider the potential disruptions posed by Anthropic’s new security tool to the industry. The wave of sell-offs highlights the growing anxiety around how evolving AI technologies could reshape traditional sectors and companies within the technology landscape.
