AI startups command 25–30× revenue multiples. But only 39% of enterprises report any impact on EBIT from AI. Six layers of technical due diligence—from wrapper discounts to inference margin traps—are repricing companies in real time. Most investors aren't looking.
The transition to outcome-based pricing won't save software. It will reclassify it. When every AI action has a real compute cost, 80% margins become 60% — and a 60% margin business isn't software by Wall Street's standards. It is services.
