Anthropic’s new AI legal tool wipes billions off European data stocks
Shares in Europe’s biggest data, publishing and legal software groups slumped after AI giant Anthropic unveiled a new tool aimed directly at in-house lawyers. The move rattled investors who had long viewed the sector as an AI winner.
In London, Relx fell close to 11 per cent, while Pearson dropped around four per cent. London Stock Exchange Group and Experian were both down more than seven per cent.
Elsewhere in Europe, Wolters Kluwer sank almost nine per cent in Amsterdam.
The sell-off followed Anthropic’s release of a legal productivity tool designed to automate tasks like contract reviews, non-disclosure agreement triage, compliance checks and straight forward legal responses.
The firm stressed the software will not provide legal advice, and claimed outputs should be reviewed by qualified proffessionals.
Even so, the market reaction was sharp and swift. For investors, it seems the concern is whether expensive data subscriptions and legal software tools become easier and cheaper to replace, as general-purpose AI improves.
AI wins to AI woes
Data and professional information groups have long been seen as relatively insulated from disruption, thanks to proprietary databases and trusted brands.
But that assumption is now being tested, and Anthropic’s move has heightened fears that AI models trained on large volumes of public material could start replicating tasks traditionally locked behind high-margin platforms.
A cohort of European stocks seen as most exposed to AI disruption fell to record lows this week, according to UBS data.
The sell-off also echoes a broader rout in global software shares.
Wall Street has been trimming exposure to software firms for months, yet sentiment has worsened as new AI tools begin to move faster than firms can show how they will make money from them.
In the US, legal and data groups like Thomson Reuters also came under pressure, while the wider North American software index has suffered its steepest monthly fall since the financial crisis.
The sell-off also lands amid wider economic nerves.
Research from Morgan Stanley showed the UK is already losing more jobs than it is creating as AI adoption accelerates, with professional services among the most exposed.
London mayor Sadiq Khan warned that white collar roles in law, finance, and marketing sit “at the sharpest edge of change”.
Investor sentiment has ping-ponged between arguing the sell off has gone too far, or claiming that uncertainty reigns supreme in the AI race.