SaaS is dead?

In this solo episode, I explain why I say SaaS is dead and what I see taking its place. For 15 years, SaaS meant paying engineers to build a tool and charging per seat, and now models like Opus 5.5, GPT-6, and Argon make the tool easy to build. I walk through what I call smart SaaS: give the tool away for free, collect data and network effects, and make money by upselling AI agents and human services. I share a calorie tracking example, three ways to charge, and why enterprises still pay per seat. If you build software, this episode gives you a map for building something people want in a market where the tool is free. Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 00:47 – SaaS 1.0 02:56 – SaaS 2.0: The New Business Model 05:12 – How to monetize SaaS 2.0 06:18 – Service is the new Software 07:22 – SaaS Is Dead, Long Live SaaS 08:58 – SMB vs Enterprise 10:31 – Closing Thoughts Key Points • AI makes the tool easy to build, so the per-seat model of the last 15 years has run its course. • Smart SaaS gives the tool away and collects data and network effects as payment. • The money comes from upselling intelligence from AI agents and services from humans. • Agents can charge by token or by outcome, and human services by the week or month. • SaaS for SMBs, prosumers, and individuals trends toward free, while enterprises still pay something per seat. • The market for getting things done is bigger than the market for tools, so the total market for SaaS grows. Numbered Section Summaries 1. How SaaS Worked  For the last 15 years, the hard part of SaaS was getting enough smart engineers in a room to code a high-quality tool for a human to use. Customers paid per seat, at prices like $9.99 or $29.99, to use that tool in the cloud. The model made people billions of…