WorkThe story, in brief
Software stocks plunge on ServiceNow, IBM results as AI fears escalate
Software stocks just signaled what every enterprise AI buyer is thinking: AI adoption economics are broken.
The KeyNews take
Why it matters
Market sentiment shift reveals enterprise software vendors facing margin compression and delayed AI ROI payoffs. This is a watershed moment for how CIOs are rethinking their AI spend and vendor consolidation strategies.
The key facts
5 to knowServiceNow shares down 16%
Salesforce, Workday, Oracle also declined
IBM also reported disappointing results
Market-wide software sector weakness tied to AI monetization concerns
Published April 23, 2026 — reflects real-time market repricing of enterprise AI assumptions
Go to the source
CNBC Technologycnbc.com
Publisher excerpt: Shares of ServiceNow sank over 16%, dragging down other software names like Salesforce, Workday and Oracle with it.