Traditional SaaS Is Dying — AI Ate the Business Model
Mike Smith
Spicy Level
The Take
Per-seat SaaS pricing made sense when each seat was a human. When one human with AI does the work of five, you're paying for 4 empty chairs. The pricing model is collapsing.
+Why I'm Right
AI reduces headcount, which reduces per-seat SaaS revenue
Usage-based pricing is replacing per-seat across the industry
AI can often replicate the function of specialized SaaS tools entirely
The 'do everything' SaaS platforms lose to AI + simple tools
?The Counter-Argument
“SaaS isn't dying — it's evolving. The best SaaS companies are embedding AI to provide more value per seat, not fewer seats. The model adapts; it doesn't die.”
Agree? Disagree? Tell me.
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