The Dow Dropped 800 Points. Was a Viral Doomsday AI Report to Blame?

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A research report went viral over the weekend. By Monday, the stock market was in free fall. Citrini Research published a 7,000-word hypothetical scenario dated June 2028 that painted a scary portrait of AI disrupting white-collar jobs and sparking financial contagion. The report tapped into a fear: What if AI is so good for the economy that it’s actually bad for stocks?

Many stocks named in the report tanked. Software firms Datadog, CrowdStrike, and Zscaler each plunged more than 9%. IBM fell 13%, its worst one-day performance since 2000. American Express, KKR, and Blackstone—all called out by Citrini—also tumbled.

Trade policy uncertainty also played a role in the fall. Still, the market’s response to a thought experiment shows how anxious Wall Street has become about AI disruption.

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