Salesforce Drops 6% as Anthropic Unveils Computer-Controlling AI

Salesforce stock dipped 6% this week as SaaS takes another pummelling – and Claude got a significant agentic capabilities boost. 

Anthropic is trialling a new feature that allows users to send Claude prompts from a smartphone, and the AI helper will complete the task by itself, with the ability to point, click, navigate through a browser, open files, and run dev tools. 

New Claude Capabilities Explained

Claude can now, after being prompted, open apps on a user’s computer, navigate a web browser, and fill in spreadsheets, according to Anthropic. 

The company demonstrated in a video posted on Monday how a user who was running late for a meeting could tell Claude to export a pitch deck as a PDF and attach it to a meeting invitation.

The company said in a demonstration page: “When Claude doesn’t have access to the tools it needs, it will point, click, and navigate what’s on your screen to perform the task itself. It can open files, use the browser, and run dev tools automatically – with no setup required.”

The feature is now available in research preview for Claude Pro and Max subscribers. Anthropic says that it works particularly well with Dispatch, which lets users assign Claude tasks from their phones.

Anthropic says that Claude will reach for the “most precise tool” first, beginning with connectors to services like Slack or Google Calendar. 

When there is no connector, Claude can directly control the user’s browser, mouse, keyboard, and screen to complete tasks, scrolling, clicking, and exploring as needed. The tool will always ask “for your explicit permission first”, Anthropic says. 

The company claims it has built this capability “with safeguards that minimize risk”, including prompt injection. Users have the ability to stop Claude at any point, and Claude will “always request permission” before accessing new applications, Anthropic says.

The following disclaimer is issued: “Computer use is still early compared to Claude’s ability to code or interact with text. Claude can make mistakes, and while we continue to improve our safeguards, threats are constantly evolving. 

“We recommend starting with the apps you trust and not working with sensitive data. Some apps are off-limits by default for this reason. You can learn more about safety best practices here.”

Salesforce Stock Takes a Dip

Salesforce stock decreased by 6% in extended trading. While there are likely many factors to this, including the ongoing Israel-US-Iran war, this certainly feels reminiscent of earlier this year when software stocks took a pummelling amid a ‘Death of SaaS’ narrative. 

Anthropic had launched plug-ins for the Claude Cowork agent, which automated legal work like reviewing contracts, non-disclosure agreement triage, and compliance workflows.

Fears about AI-fuelled disruption hit the stock market, and a selloff in global providers of data analytics, professional services, and software deepened.

And shares of several software companies, including Salesforce, Atlassian, and HubSpot, all saw significant declines recently. It comes amid news of the new Claude capabilities, and also reports from The Information that Amazon Web Services (AWS) is developing AI to automate functions in its sales and business development groups, which have recently seen hundreds of layoffs. 

The outlet reports that AWS has been developing an agent that helps sales employees give customers fast answers to technical questions, according to two people who have used it, with the agent handling some of the work of thousands of AWS technical specialists.

An AWS spokesperson told The Information it is developing such an agent, which “aggregates specialist knowledge from across AWS,” letting employees “focus on the most complex, high-value customer challenges”.

Final Thoughts

While sudden shifts in the market can sometimes seem dramatic, there is also an air of predictability about them. Whenever an AI company like Anthropic brings out new capabilities for artificial intelligence products, it raises questions for companies like Salesforce.

CRM won’t disappear overnight, or anytime soon, but the question is constantly being asked: what place will SaaS have in one year’s time, let alone five, when AI capabilities are far more advanced than they currently are.