NEW YORK, Feb 6, 2026, 18:59 (ET) — Trading after the bell.
- Goldman jumped roughly 4% after news broke of its AI-driven automation initiative linked to Anthropic, catching investors’ attention.
- The bank is developing “agents” to automate tasks like trade accounting and client onboarding.
- Delayed U.S. jobs and CPI data set for release next week will put rate-cut wagers to the test.
Shares of Goldman Sachs climbed Friday, following a report that The Goldman Sachs Group Inc has spent the last six months collaborating with AI startup Anthropic to develop software “agents” aimed at automating a range of internal banking operations. “These autonomous agents are expected to significantly reduce the time required to complete core operational processes,” Chief Information Officer Marco Argenti told CNBC. Reuters
Awkward, but also telling timing. Investors are still wrestling with the question: does AI cut costs quickly enough to make a difference—or is it just fueling extra competition and piling on more expenses?
This comes on the heels of AI-driven selling that rattled some of the market’s busiest trades. Tech, telecom, and media hedge funds slipped as much as 2.78% Wednesday, according to a Goldman note to clients, with the bank pointing to a selloff tied to a fresh legal AI tool powered by Anthropic’s Claude model.
Goldman jumped 4.3% this day, fueling the Dow Jones Industrial Average as it crossed 50,000 for the first time. “What’s driven it recently has been the broadening … other than just the tech, AI trade,” said Chuck Carlson, chief executive officer at Horizon Investment Services. Reuters
Goldman was last seen near $928.75 in after-hours trading. Shares bounced between $890 and $931.59 over the course of the regular session, with roughly 2.5 million changing hands.
AI spending kept driving the broader market narrative, with investors shifting positions within the theme. Nvidia and fellow chipmakers surged after traders digested new pledges to expand AI infrastructure. “There’s real demand for AI products,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird. Reuters
When Goldman refers to an “agent,” it’s not just a chatbot fielding queries. The term covers software built to take on a task—say, reconciling a trade, vetting a client, or opening an account—and handle the process through multiple steps, requiring little direction along the way.
Argenti mentioned efforts around trade and transaction accounting, as well as client due diligence—the standard checks banks perform—and onboarding. Goldman has indicated that the agents are coming soon, though it hasn’t set a date.
The risks are clear enough. Inside a regulated bank, autonomy can fall apart—model mistakes, data-security constraints, even the slog of getting fresh tools to work with legacy systems and controls can all trip things up.
Rates, not rhetoric, remain in the driver’s seat. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly described the U.S. labor market as “precarious” and said she “lean[s]” toward further rate cuts, following the central bank’s decision to keep rates steady last week. Reuters
Looking ahead to next week, traders are bracing for a batch of postponed U.S. data that may shake up rate bets once more. The Labor Department confirmed the January jobs report lands Feb. 11, with January CPI set for Feb. 13, both pushed back following the short government shutdown that threw off the release calendar.
