SaaS Is Dead. Why Software Is Becoming Disposable

For the past three decades, the software industry has been questioning which company will develop the next Salesforce or dominate various categories like accounting, project management, and HR. This was logical due to the high cost of software development. Companies spent years building products and then offered them to thousands of customers on a monthly fee basis.

However, things may be changing as AI coding tools, autonomous agents, vibe coding, and dynamically generated applications emerge. Instead of asking which software company owns each category, the pivotal question may be whether software needs to exist for an extended period. Software is becoming disposable, similar to other aspects of our lives.

We continue discussing better SaaS while companies start replacing it with internally developed alternatives. For instance, Curative, a healthcare company, canceled a Salesforce contract worth around $600,000 annually after building an internal CRM system using AI-assisted development. This took about two months, and the company aims to cut its overall SaaS spending by approximately 80% while increasing its investment in AI.

Maintaining the internal system remains challenging, but this development signifies a shift in mindset. Small and mid-sized businesses are also increasingly using AI tools to create their own CRM systems for greater control, relevant functionality, and potentially lower costs. The SaaS model was built in a world where software was scarce, solving a real problem by allowing companies to focus on their core competencies and outsource the rest.

However, AI changes the economics of software development, reducing the cost of producing functional applications quickly. Instead of forcing companies to adapt to the software, software can now be generated to fit the company's needs. This means that the days when software dictates business processes may be coming to an end. Software is becoming disposable, not necessarily poor quality, but more replaceable and less permanent.

Imagine an employee needing a small application for a specific campaign; they could describe the workflow, connect the required data, generate the interface, use it for six weeks, and then discard it when the campaign ends. Someone could generate a recipe application based on the ingredients they have at home, or a creator could build a game around a meme relevant for just a few days.

These applications won't require extensive roadmaps and should solve today's problems. Until now, building software for temporary requirements was not economically viable, and it was cumbersome. But when applications can be produced in a single afternoon, they become closer to documents, presentations, spreadsheets, or even social media posts.

The software effectively becomes ephemeral, but its outcomes and data may still be valuable. The app store may evolve into a feed, where applications are no longer permanent destinations but rather, small interactive experiences directly integrated into the flow of information.