The software sector, as measured by the IGV ETF, fell sharply in after-hours trading following the release of quarterly earnings reports from several industry bellwethers. Market participants were highly focused on results from cloud giants Microsoft and Alphabet, which were released after the close. Additionally, enterprise software company ServiceNow saw its stock decline as investors de-risked ahead of its own earnings announcement, adding to the sector's negative sentiment. The move reflects investor anxiety over high valuations and the future growth trajectory of cloud and AI-related revenues.