US AI company Anthropic [AFP Yonhap News File Photo]

Concerns that the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, far exceeding expectations, will cause a drastic upheaval across existing industries are emerging as a major topic in financial markets.

Amid conflicting expectations of a bright future and fears of an AI-driven dystopia, heated debates are ongoing daily in the securities industry.

The catalyst was "Claude Cowork," an enterprise AI tool introduced by US AI company Anthropic earlier this year.

When this service, which allows office workers without programming knowledge to create apps that automate tasks like document summarization, data analysis, and contract review through conversations with AI, was launched, a sell-off occurred on the New York Stock Exchange, primarily among software (SW) companies.

This is because the need to pay for various business software, such as Photoshop or Word, through regular subscriptions might disappear.

The shock related to this spread to cloud providers that count SW companies as their main customers and was further amplified by the release of the report "2028 Global Intelligence Crisis" by the independent research firm Sitrin Research on the 22nd of last month.

This report, which presented a near-future scenario two years from now by borrowing the structure of a hypothetical "Macroeconomic Report" (dated June 2028), warned of a vicious cycle of "growth without consumption" due to AI advancements.

It suggests that while economic growth rates will appear high due to improved productivity, a distorted economic structure could materialize where growth does not lead to increased consumption, as hyper-advanced AI tools disrupt industries such as software, services, and finance, leading to mass unemployment and defaults on mortgage loans.

Traders at the New York Stock Exchange [Reuters Yonhap News]

On the day the report was released, the three major indices of the New York Stock Exchange all declined, and stocks of companies identified as potential victims, such as food delivery app DoorDash, Mastercard, American Express, Uber, and Blackstone, plummeted.

Related analysis reports are also being published in succession in Korea.

Kim Se-hwan, a researcher at KB Securities, pointed out in a report released on the 26th of last month, "The 'fear of AI replacement' is spreading in the travel and airline industries, leading to distinct polarization within the sector."

He explained that in the past, increased travel demand moved in tandem with the stock prices of airlines and travel booking platforms (OTAs), but this correlation is weakening with the emergence of "Agent AI" that transcends platforms. This is because it is now possible for AI to directly purchase airline tickets from airlines without going through an agency.

Kim predicted that while the stock prices of Booking.com and Expedia are undergoing adjustments, Airbnb, which possesses a monopolistic supply chain, remains strong on its own, stating, "Whether they possess an irreplaceable supply chain will be a key variable determining the survival of OTA companies in the AI era."

Conversely, there are also counterarguments that concerns about AI are excessive.

Lee Eun-taek, a researcher at KB Securities, said, "During the Fourth Industrial Revolution, experts predicted that the smartphone platform would destroy jobs that connected people and services. However, in the 2010s, unemployment rates did not rise; instead, they fell."

He emphasized, "It is easy to imagine existing jobs disappearing, but it is very difficult to imagine new jobs being created. And those who could imagine this became the 'emerging wealthy and large corporations' of the new era."

President Donald Trump visits the port of Corpus Christi, Texas [AP Yonhap News]

Park Sang-hyun, a researcher at iM Securities, stated, "Not only at the corporate level, but also the two major powers (G2) of the United States and China are accelerating AI investment at the national level. There is a high possibility that the economic system will transition to a state capitalism system, transcending ideologies such as capitalism and socialism, which could have significant repercussions in the financial markets."

In fact, President Donald Trump's statement on the 27th of last month, "I instruct all agencies of the U.S. federal government to immediately cease the use of Anthropic technology," regarding Anthropic's refusal to allow the military use of its AI technology, shows that AI is being considered a key tool in the global hegemonic competition.

However, Park advised, "Even if AI-driven destruction scenarios materialize, corporate and national AI investments will be pursued more competitively and forcefully. Consequently, rather than focusing on AI-driven destruction, it is necessary to pay attention to the emergence of growth industries from the perspective of creative destruction."