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When a user wants their AI agent to have deep access to a SaaS tool like Slack and is denied, they can now use the agent to migrate to an open-source alternative like Mattermost. This creates immense pressure on incumbent SaaS companies to provide robust, open APIs or risk losing customers.

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The rise of agentic coding is creating a "SaaSpocalypse." These agents can migrate data, learn different workflows, and handle integrations, which undermines the core moats of SaaS companies: data switching costs, workflow lock-in, and integration complexity. This makes the high gross margins of SaaS businesses a prime target for disruption.

In an AI-driven ecosystem, data and content need to be fluidly accessible to various systems and agents. Any SaaS platform that feels like a "walled garden," locking content away, will be rejected by power users. The winning platforms will prioritize open, interoperable access to user data.

The value in software is shifting from SaaS platforms (like CRMs) to the AI agent layer that automates work on top of them. This will turn established SaaS companies into simple data repositories, or "hooks," diminishing their stickiness and pricing power as agents can easily migrate data.

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.

Users are leveraging AI agents to build their own bespoke software, stripping away unused features from SaaS giants like Notion. This trend toward hyper-personalization threatens the one-size-fits-all SaaS model as users create cheaper, more effective personal tools.

The primary moat for many SaaS companies was the complexity and high cost of migrating away from their product. AI agents can now automate this process, eroding that advantage, increasing competition, and giving buyers significant leverage to renegotiate contracts.

The true threat to SaaS isn't just cheap software creation, but AI agents that automate data migration between platforms. This destroys the lock-in effect of proprietary data models, turning SaaS into a low-multiple utility business where switching costs approach zero.

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."

SaaS products like Salesforce won't be easily ripped out. The real danger is that new AI agents will operate across all SaaS tools, becoming the primary user interface and capturing the next wave of value. This relegates existing SaaS platforms to a lower, less valuable infrastructure layer.

Leaders using AI agents need full access to company data. They will abandon expensive SaaS platforms like Slack, which charge a premium for API access, for open-source alternatives like Mattermost that offer complete data control, drastically cutting costs.