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The rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has sparked serious doubts about the future of Adobe's (ADBE) business model and that of many software as a service (SaaS) companies. Traditionally, these firms charged based on user “seats.” Think of it like buying tickets for a movie theater: more people means more seats, which means more revenue for the company. This model worked well because as businesses grew and hired more employees, they needed more software licenses, leading to steady growth for the software providers.
However, AI upends this by automating tasks. Tools powered by AI, like smart assistants or automated systems, can handle more work without requiring extra human users. A company might use AI to automate tasks that used to take 10 employees, but now only needs two people to oversee the AI. This means fewer seats are needed, even as the company's output increases dramatically.
