November Tech Round-Up: Will SaaS Survive the AI Shockwave?
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Dear reader,
Two views are emerging on the impact that AI is having on B2B software. Viewpoint one: AI will fundamentally disrupt (and maybe replace) SaaS. Viewpoint two: SaaS isn’t dying - it’s getting a brain.
In this month’s Tech Round-Up, we explore both viewpoints. You decide which one’s right (spoiler alert…we err on the side of optimism!)
Enjoy, from the team at North Ridge Partners.
Original Thinking From North Ridge Partners
Article One: Mi3’s Andrew Birmingham argues that SaaS May Not Survive the AI Shockwave. As AB sees it, Agentic AI threatens seat-based SaaS with companies like Klarna replacing thousands of products with AI agents. Capital is shifting, and software giants are pivoting frantically. For buyers: don’t lock in long-term commitments. Generative AI promises faster, cheaper results with fewer seats.
Article Two: Gerry Gimenez - our recently joined Director of Software & AI Coverage - argues that SaaS isn’t Dying, it’s Getting a Brain. Industry giants like Salesforce and Adobe are embedding AI agents into proven recurring revenue models. Meanwhile, OpenAI and Anthropic are scaling old-school SaaS economics with cutting-edge intelligence. Winners blend infrastructure with agent-powered workflows, data moats, and domain expertise. AI changes the rules, but for adaptable SaaS businesses, it’s evolution, not extinction.
Short of Time? Listen to the Podcast
Al Gorithm and Anna Lytics, this month’s AI podcasters, debate whether AI is the end - or a new beginning for SaaS. A fun, engaging short listen.
Click here or on the banner below to listen. Enjoy!
Big Tech
Q3 earnings: Markets loved Alphabet’s $100bn quarter and Amazon’s AWS AI surge, didn’t like Meta’s tax charge or Microsoft’s rising cloud costs. Tesla and Apple landed somewhere in the middle.
Nvidia became the world’s first $5tn company (for a hot minute). AMD aims to triple profits by 2030 and believes in a $1tn data-centre chip market, signalling sustained AI silicon spend beyond Nvidia.
OpenAI pivots from non-profit to full capitalism over ten years. And in a brief firestorm of its own making, commentators ask if OpenAI needs a bailout. Sam says it doesn’t.
Boom! Elon’s massive paycheck.
“There’s no bubble,” says Jensen Huang. “Yeah, right!” say the rest of us.
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Asia Pacific Tech News
GoTo turns the corner.
SoftBank trims Nvidia stake and makes a $5.4bn bet on robotics, as TSMC smashes the ball out of the park.
Hong Kong is the launchpad for Ant’s global ambition.
Asia Pacific travel experiences platform Klook files for IPO.
The fun continues at WiseTech. Not.
Stuff We Found Interesting
Stratechery on market bubbles.
San Francisco prankster sends dozens of Waymos to the same cul-de-sac, gridlocking the system.
Sam and Jony’s big secret.
Satya spills: How Microsoft is prepping for AGI.
The latest from Y Combinator… Brainrot.
Tech Investment Banking Across Asia Pacific
North Ridge Partners advises tech companies across the Asia Pacific on strategy, capital raising and M&A. We’re experienced dealmakers who have built and sold many tech companies. In partnership with GP Bullhound, we have 200 bankers in 17 global offices.
Contact us here.
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