Will AI Continue to Exacerbate Tech's SaaS-Pocalypse Woes? Warner Bros. Restarts Paramount Talks
•February 17, 2026
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Why It Matters
The dynamics signal a market shakeout where winners will be companies that swiftly integrate AI and restructure business models, while laggards risk obsolescence — a shift that will reshape valuations, M&A activity, and labor needs across tech, finance and media.
Summary
Markets are rattled as AI-driven disruption deepens a selloff in software stocks — with hundreds of billions wiped from SaaS names and major hyperscalers losing roughly a trillion dollars in combined market value after recent earnings. Industry veterans say AI is an accelerant rather than a wholesale replacement: it will create productivity gains and force painful consolidation among firms that fail to embed the technology. Financial firms are feeling the pressure too, but banks like Citizens report early efficiency gains from AI tools while asset managers and some software vendors face sharper investor skepticism. Separately, media consolidation chatter resurfaced as Warner Bros. renewed talks with Paramount, underscoring dealmaking interest amid sectorwide upheaval.
Original Description
Morning Brief Host Julie Hyman monitors the latest market moves ahead of the opening bell on February 17, 2026.
Julie sits down with Citizens JMP Securities CEO Mark Lehmann for an extensive discussion around how he views the tech and software sectors' broadening reactions to recent AI concerns.
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