AI Stocks Slump Across Asia After OpenAI and Anthropic CEOs Call for Slower Development

Asian technology stocks fell sharply on September 14 after the chief executives of OpenAI and Anthropic, two of the most powerful AI labs in the world, publicly urged the industry to deliberately slow the pace of AI capabilities development, citing fears that advances are outrunning researchers' ability to understand and control the technology. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei published a roughly 3,800-word essay calling on AI companies to slow the rate at which they improve their models, warning that AI agent swarms could take over the internet within as little as six months. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman subsequently backed the call, making it a rare moment of alignment between the leaders of the two most prominent AI developers.

The market reaction was swift and broad. SoftBank Group, one of the most prominent AI investors in Asia, saw its shares tumble as much as 13 percent in Tokyo trading. Japanese chipmaker Kioxia fell more than 7 percent and test-equipment maker Advantest dropped more than 2 percent. South Korea's SK Hynix and Samsung also declined, and Seoul's Kospi index led regional losses. Markets in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei, and Manila were lower, though Sydney, Singapore, and Wellington posted gains, leaving broader Asian shares mixed.

The sell-off added to pressure already building from expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at its meeting Wednesday to combat persistently high inflation. Together, the AI safety warnings and the rate outlook weighed on a sector that has been among the most powerful drivers of the 2026 stock rally.