AI agents are starting to eat SaaS

2 days ago

AI agents are starting to replace SaaS tools, particularly simpler ones, as the build vs. buy calculus shifts.
Demand for simpler SaaS is evaporating; engineers can quickly build internal tools with agents.
Companies are questioning renewal quotes from enterprise SaaS and considering building solutions themselves.
Custom-built apps reduce complexity, eliminate unused features, and give full control over the roadmap.
Maintenance concerns are mitigated: agents lower maintenance costs, and SaaS itself has maintenance pitfalls.
SaaS valuations rely on customer growth and net revenue retention (NRR), which may decline as customers migrate away.
Moat remains for high-uptime systems, high-volume data, network effects, proprietary data, and regulated industries.
Back-office CRUD tools and simple dashboards are most at risk of being replaced by agents.
The market will split between tech-savvy companies that can build and those that cannot, widening competitive advantages.

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