The various commercial frameworks, such as per-seat, usage-based, or outcome-based, used by Software-as-a-Service providers to monetize access to their applications.
Overview
- [Industry analysis] Casey Smith argues that the per-user pricing model for SaaS is facing an existential crisis because AI allows a smaller number of people (e.g., 10) to do the work of a larger team (e.g., 100), reducing the need for multiple seats. (Source: Casey Smith (via X/Twitter), via AI Daily Brief, 2026-08-24)