The count argument would be that building with AI will potentially give you infinite customizability, which is especially attractive if you’ve ever hit a brick wall using a line-of-business SaaS product. It works great until you hit that wall.

But again, I think this counter argument oversells the value of customization. Most users-would-be-builders would happily build a monstrosity that doesn’t even serve themselves well, if you let them. Building good workflows (and therefore good SaaS products) is not nearly as easy or straightforward as it seems.

This line captures the essence of the article and is going to stick with me forever:

> SaaS is the bread, not the bread machine.

And yes, SaaS companies that understand that they sell convenience and accountability will be the ones that survive this AI rush. New ones could emerge too.

I had a conversation with someone the other day, trying to convince them how easy it would be to solve a problem they had by creating a quick program with Claude. They were so computer averse, so used to thinking that coding was some impossible task, that they refused to even try or let me show them.

SaaS isn't dead at all. In fact, I think we may have just entered the golden age

SaaS will survive. We pay a lot for convenience. You'll never go wrong appealing to laziness ;)

That drove consumers to some curious brands: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerated_Bread_Company

Naw, I can see I think the case being made - a lot of people still do things they don't need to, well after they don't need to do them, so SAAS may have a place for a while

I think for the rest of us though, SAAS may want to "pivot" to something else...