Software isn't dying, but it is becoming more honest - Helen Min

The subscription-based billing model that defined SaaS for 15 years is reaching its expiration date, and that's actually progress. The panic around "SaaS is dead" misses the point - software isn't going anywhere, but the business model underneath it is finally evolving from paying for seats to paying for outcomes. For too long, enterprise software has been a fantastic deal for vendors and mediocre for customers, creating shelfware and unused licenses that keep recurring revenue flowing while delivering zero value.

Outcome-based billing changes the fundamental dynamic. Instead of ABM platforms charging $100K+ per year based on account volume and seat count while promising pipeline generation, companies like hyperGTM are committing to actual targets: 9 meetings from 30 accounts, or 3x more SQLs from events. They charge a base fee of $650 per account for the work, then a $4,000 kicker per qualified meeting booked. The vendor has skin in the game. This model only becomes economically viable now because AI agents can run 100+ messaging variations simultaneously, reallocate budget in real-time based on what's working, and orchestrate multi-step workflows that adapt faster than humans ever could.

The future isn't binary - vendors still need to cover their controllable inputs and effort. But hybrid models with base fees plus outcome kickers align incentives properly. The vendor gets protected for their work but rewarded for results. Revenue recognition gets complicated and forecasting becomes harder when outcomes introduce variance, but these are solvable problems. The companies that figure this out early will have a decade-long head start, just like usage-based pricing created Snowflake and Databricks. When you're selling guaranteed results while competitors sell seats and hope for the best, that's not a fair fight - you win every time.