Run the Numbers 996 Workweeks, Exploding AI Bills & The SaaS Payback Problem
Sep 20, 2025
Kyle Poyar, a growth and market analyst with a knack for SaaS economics, delves into the exploding costs of AI and the impact on company culture. He tackles the unsustainable 996 workweek trend fueled by rising expenses, explains why usage-based pricing can entrap customers, and discusses the challenges of recouping customer acquisition costs. Poyar also introduces the 'cracked engineer' archetype and draws parallels with subscription models in unexpected places, shedding light on the complexities of today’s market.
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AI Costs Aren't Falling Fast Enough
- AI costs are rising for many companies and are not falling as fast as early hype promised.
- That forces vendors to rethink pricing to avoid negative gross margins and unsustainable subsidies.
Control Usage-Based Credit Risk
- Manage usage-based contracts by tracking who uses credits and enforcing guardrails to avoid runaway bills.
- Negotiate rollovers and pooled or outcome-based pricing to align value with spend.
Rollover Credits Create Sticky Customers
- Credit rollovers are a retention mechanism disguised as customer relief.
- Vendors use rollovers to increase switching costs even when customers underuse the product.