As AI makes it trivial to scrape data and bypass native UIs, companies will retaliate by shutting down open APIs and creating walled gardens to protect their business models. This mirrors the early web's shift away from open standards like RSS once monetization was threatened.

The defensibility of AI-native software will shift from systems of record (what happened) to 'context graphs' that capture the institutional memory of *why* a decision was made. This reasoning, currently lost in human heads or Slack, will become the key competitive advantage for AI agents.

A critical hurdle for enterprise AI is managing context and permissions. Just as people silo work friends from personal friends, AI systems must prevent sensitive information from one context (e.g., CEO chats) from leaking into another (e.g., company-wide queries). This complex data siloing is a core, unsolved product problem.

The ability for AI agents to access and operate on a SaaS platform's data is becoming critical. Companies that lock down their data risk being isolated, while those with open data APIs will become part of the new AI ecosystem, even if it means ceding the primary 'workspace' layer.

When AI startups demand access to your platform's data via API, turn the tables. Gate your APIs and, during negotiations, agree to their request on the condition that you get reciprocal access to the AI outputs they generate from your data. This reframes the power dynamic and protects your moat.

ServiceNow's new product isn't just a tool; it's a pricing strategy. By aggregating customer data and then charging external AI agents a consumption-based fee to access it, ServiceNow is creating a new revenue stream from its existing data moat, setting a precedent for other enterprise software companies to follow.

As companies integrate AI agents into their workflows, unrestricted API access to their own data is non-negotiable. SaaS providers that paywall or limit API access will be abandoned for more open platforms that don't hold customer data "ransom."

Snowflake's CEO warns that traditional software firms with walled-garden data models are vulnerable. If they don't develop their own compelling agentic interfaces, they risk being reduced to mere data sources for dominant AI platforms, losing their customer relationship and pricing power.

Incumbent SaaS companies like Salesforce are cutting off API access to prevent AI startups from siphoning value. To build a durable business, new AI companies cannot simply be a "system of action" on top of old platforms; they must aim to become the new system of record, which requires building complex data migration tools from day one.