Chamath @ 00:32:18Inconclusive
aitecheconomy
Within 5–10 years of September 27, 2024 (i.e., by 2029–2034), AI/agent-based alternatives to traditional enterprise 'system of record' SaaS products (e.g., large CRM/ERP/HRIS suites sold on expensive seat-based licenses) will become so much cheaper that most enterprises will no longer be able to economically justify paying legacy-level prices for those traditional systems.
when you confront the total cost of that versus what the alternative that is clearly going to happen in the next 5 or 10 years, irrespective of whether any of us build it or not, it'll... you will not be able to just you just won't be able to justify it because it's going to cost you a fraction of the price.View on YouTube
Explanation
The prediction has a 5–10 year horizon starting from September 27, 2024, i.e., it is specifically about market conditions sometime between 2029 and 2034. As of today (late 2025), we are only ~1 year into that window, so it is too early to know whether “most enterprises” will abandon legacy-priced systems of record.
What we can see so far:
- There is active technical work and industry interest in AI/agent-based enterprise systems (e.g., agentic ERP and generalist enterprise agents), but these are still framed as emerging approaches or roadmaps, not yet as mainstream replacements for core CRM/ERP/HRIS across most enterprises. (arxiv.org)
- Some high‑profile cases, like Klarna reportedly decommissioning around 1,200 SaaS apps including Salesforce in favor of an internal AI platform, show that early adopters can justify replacing traditional SaaS with AI systems, but this is one company, not evidence about the majority of enterprises. (medium.com)
- Analyst and industry pieces project that by the early‑to‑mid 2030s, AI‑driven “services‑as‑software” or RaaS/agent models may erode traditional license‑based SaaS, but these are forward‑looking forecasts, not outcomes already realized. (horsesforsources.com)
- Current pricing and deployment patterns show that traditional enterprise systems of record (CRM/ERP, etc.) remain widely used and expensive, even as AI features are added on top and some vendors begin experimenting with consumption or agent‑interaction pricing rather than strictly per‑seat licenses. (cqlsys.com)
Because the prediction is explicitly about what will happen over 5–10 years and we are far from the end of that period, and because current evidence shows only early movement rather than a decisive, broad shift where “most enterprises” can no longer justify legacy pricing, the correctness of Chamath’s prediction cannot yet be determined.