SaaStr

JUNE 11, 2025

This early investment in regulatory compliance has become their key differentiator against Tether and newer entrants. While competitors focus on features, investing early in SOC 2, HIPAA, FedRAMP, or industry-specific certifications can become your strongest competitive advantage. Circle trading at $85 up from $31 IPO price.

compliance

SaaStr

AUGUST 2, 2025

This sustainable business model provides significant downside protection and justifies premium multiples. Canva’s aggressive AI investments position it for this premium. Canva’s recent AI investments and acquisitions (Leonardo.ai) could drive premium valuations if execution is successful.

Scale

Tom Tunguz

JULY 1, 2025

Adobe’s blended bottoms-up & sales-led model yields a more typical 0.39. While Figma is investing heavily in AI, the technology lowers the barrier for new entrants. Given its high growth & unique business model, how should the market value Figma? The S-1 also highlights risks.

Compensation

SaaStr

FEBRUARY 2, 2025

Their platform helps restaurant owners, who typically earn less than $50,000 annually in profit, create professional online presences without significant investment in time or resources. Restaurant Industry Solutions Owner.com has developed an AI website generator that implements industry best practices automatically.

AI

SaaStr

JULY 23, 2025

Investment and Strategic Implications For VCs and Strategic Investors Category Investment Thesis : We’re witnessing the formation of a new software category with $100B+ TAM potential. Early-stage investments in platform infrastructure, specialized tools, and enterprise-focused solutions present significant upside.

Software Review

SaaStr

OCTOBER 23, 2024

’ Bill is approaching half a million customers, so has a good pulse on small businesses. ” Investing for growth has been pretty flat year over year for SMBs, which means there is money there, but they’re holding onto it. From day one, they considered having a viable business model, so they didn’t wait to build it.

SMB

SaaStr

MAY 28, 2025

Their ability to maintain growth while improving profitability shows they’re not just growing at all costs but building a sustainable business model. This successful transition suggests strong leadership, disciplined operational execution, and a fundamentally sound business model with significant pricing power.

Scale

Clouded Judgement

JUNE 6, 2025

This “misuse of ARR” trend has accelerated in the age of AI, as business models have evolved (into more usage/success-based vs. seat-based), and everyone is tinkering with new AI products. This is for information purposes and should not be construed as an investment recommendation. So how can you spot ERR vs. ARR?

Cloud

SaaStr

JULY 26, 2025

Unit Economics Enable a Distributed Workforce The Business Model Advantage : Toast’s software + embedded payments model creates unit economics of ~$10k ACV that justify field-based sales teams. Strategic Implication : Your business model directly determines your go-to-market strategy.

SMB

SaaStr

MARCH 18, 2025

Joselyn Goldfein , Managing Director at Zeta Venture Partners, which invests in AI and data infrastructure-focused startups from inception through seed stage And see everyone at 2025 SaaStr Annual, May 13-15 in SF Bay!! The bar has risen significantly from the “growth at all costs” mindset of 2021-2022.

Technical Review

SaaStr

JUNE 9, 2025

This “pricing power” indicates genuine demand, not just investment bank optimism. The File-to-Price Premium Here’s a nugget most people miss: companies are consistently pricing above their initial filing ranges. SailPoint filed at $19-21 but priced at $23.

B2B

SaaStr

AUGUST 13, 2025

How 53% Government + 93% Commercial Growth Creates Unique Business Model Durability The Learning : Palantir’s dual-engine model (government + commercial) creates unusual resilience and cross-pollination that pure-play SaaS companies can’t replicate. They ended the quarter with $6.0B in cash and zero debt.

Scale

SaaStr

JULY 11, 2025

Recent Expert Takes: The Data Tells a Different Story Recent analyses from investment firms and industry experts reveal that the 40% revenue figure may actually be conservative—Anthropic’s growth trajectory suggests it could be even more competitive than initially apparent. valuation / $1.4B

ChatGPT

SaaStr

OCTOBER 11, 2024

Historically, the business model has been to sell radio ads, and the people running the ads are typically local businesses. The problem is that when a BDR called these businesses, the person on the other end didn’t have the budget or know-how to create an effective ad.

Cloud

SaaStr

MARCH 24, 2025

This means investing heavily in R&D and hiring top-tier talent to make your AI capabilities truly world-class. If youre not thinking about how to integrate AI into your product and business model and make it truly 10x better, youre already behind. Its not enough to be goodyou have to be exceptional. #8. And how they think.

AI

FastSpring

JANUARY 23, 2025

How selling an investment business is very different from getting VC funding. If its time to sell your SaaS, app, or other digital product business, listen to or watch this episode of Growth Stage now! What got you into this particular business model? Secondly, I’ve worked across many, many business models.

Scale

Subscription Flow

OCTOBER 16, 2024

Use the following criteria as a checklist, and match your business’s requirements with it to find the fittest billing solution for you. Does the billing software align with your business model? You have to invest in the right one to streamline your operations. There are countless billing software available in the market.

Payment Services

Blulogix

OCTOBER 24, 2024

Scale Confidently: By investing in automated compliance tools, UCaaS providers can expand their geographic reach and service offerings without worrying about the increased complexity of tax and regulatory requirements.

Payment Features

Payrix

JANUARY 10, 2025

As David notes, the challenge lies in adapting to constantly evolving factors such as regulatory changes, new business models, and sophisticated fraud tactics. Ultimately, it’s an investment in a long-term relationship. Does the business model align with what you can support from compliance and industry standards?

Merchant Services

Chart Mogul

DECEMBER 12, 2024

Code generators will be less deflationary than open source, and recurring revenue pricing will continue to be the greatest business model in the history of capitalism. Zachary Gropper , CEO of InsightRevenue In 2025, SaaS success will hinge on investing in the buyer experience.

Fractional VPE

SaaStr

JULY 1, 2025

The Tactical Insight : Don’t just buy AI tools—invest in change management. ” Bottom Line : Treating internal AI as an expense instead of a growth investment is a category error. As one executive noted: “Just deploying tools is a recipe for disappointment.

AI

Stax

JANUARY 23, 2025

Maintain transparency: Operate with a clear and honest business model. For example, businesses with a history of chargebacks should implement strategies to reduce disputes. Invest in compliance: Stay informed about relevant regulations and ensure the business adheres to them.

Merchant Services

Unbounce

AUGUST 8, 2025

Think about it: If your conversion rate jumped even 1%—how much more potential revenue would that mean for your business? Depending on your traffic volume and how valuable each conversion is, we could be talking thousands of added revenue from the exact same ad investment. The best part? You already have the visitors.

Strategy

SaaStr

JUNE 25, 2025

Why It Worked : “Sticking with a pure-play digital advice offering while continuing to scale has helped Wealthfront reach profitability earlier than its peers,” according to David Goldstone, investment research manager at Condor Capital Wealth Management. Application : Don’t chase every trend.

Scale

SaaStr

APRIL 17, 2025

Jason has invested in Algolia, Pipedrive, Talkdesk, Owner, Gorgias and many other successful SaaS companies. Rory O’Driscoll – Founding partner at Scale Venture Partners with over 25 years of experience investing in software companies. That metric guided investments for years. Welcome to venture in 2025.

AI

SaaStr

JULY 8, 2025

This post distilled her key findings into actionable takeaways, covering everything from AI adoption curves to investment patterns that will shape the next wave of SaaS innovation. Great dashboards remain the primary way enterprise customers perceive and demonstrate value from their SaaS investments. Read the full post → 2.

Scale

Sales Hacker

JANUARY 7, 2025

Okay, let’s go on invest. But I would say the first mental model is always to look at early signal. So that means you’ve got the right economics and then you use your, I would say, a high-end resource towards a bigger segment where you know you will have better return on investment with bigger deals.

Outsourcing Services

SaaStr

JUNE 26, 2025

Just as Meta spent $60 billion on VR as a hedge against the next platform shift, this AI investment follows the same playbook. The SaaS Lesson : When your core business model faces platform risk, the cost of defensive innovation isn’t measured against ROI—it’s measured against the cost of irrelevance.

Artificial Intelligence

Clouded Judgement

AUGUST 15, 2025

Business models will shift. This is for information purposes and should not be construed as an investment recommendation. Altimeter is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. That conversation flared up about a year ago, faded, and is now back again. Orgs will need to adapt. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Software Review

How To Buy Saas

MAY 26, 2025

If youre on the trial, toggle on a few add-ons like Estimates or Recurring Invoices to see if those might be useful for your business model. In such cases, investing in a more powerful accounting tool could save you frustration down the line. Remember that Skynova is most beneficial for basic needs.

Software Review

SaaStr

JULY 10, 2025

billion in investable capital. This move shows how companies with high-multiple stocks can strategically de-risk their business models. According to the podcast analysis, NFDG had deployed roughly $500 million of their fund and achieved a 4x return in just two years – generating approximately $1.5 NFDG: The $1.1B

AI

Stax

MARCH 18, 2025

The ideal pricing structure for your business depends on various factors, such as your business model, your customers preferred payment methods, and monthly/annual transaction volumes. Payment processors with integration issues lead to operational inefficiencies and diminish the return on investment.

Payment Services

SaaStr

MAY 2, 2025

He believes AI investments should come directly from line-of-business budgets, with business unit leaders held accountable for efficiency, productivity, and employee augmentation through AI. Organizations with isolated AI teams and budgets aren’t properly integrating AI into core business operations.

AI

Buffer Resources

APRIL 8, 2025

Sensitive or low-quality content about health or finance — like exaggerated health claims (such as “miracle cures”), cosmetic procedure promotions, or business models that may be misleading or deceptive, such as payday loans or “risk-free” investments.

Social Media

Sales Hacker

MAY 13, 2025

We’ve created a ton of really interesting businesses and business models, and now we’re gonna have to replicate it all and we have to rebuild that entire digital presence now for machines because they don’t wanna consume it the same way. Amazing, awesome. I became chairman in 2010. I was chairman for 12 years.

AI Search

SaaStr

JULY 27, 2025

ADP’s return on equity (ROE) is 76.29% and return on invested capital (ROIC) is 36.84%. The old guard has been investing in automation and AI for decades. They’re investing heavily in modern interfaces, API-first architectures, and AI capabilities while leveraging their massive customer bases and regulatory expertise.

Scale

Stax

MAY 5, 2025

Generate repeat business When you make it easier for customers to pay, they’re more likely to do business with you again. Industry data shows that when it comes to marketing spending, 82% of companies agree that it’s cheaper to invest in retention than acquisition. This, in turn, will lead to more repeat business.

Payments