HSBC Downplays SaaS Sector Apocalypse Concerns
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Feb 26 2026
0mins
Should l Buy CRM?
Source: Benzinga
- AI and SaaS Relationship: HSBC believes that the development of artificial intelligence will benefit the software industry rather than replace the software-as-a-service (SaaS) sector, indicating an optimistic outlook for the industry's future.
- Challenges of In-House Development: HSBC points out that relying on AI for companies to develop their own software is neither practical nor cost-effective, and even if AI-driven 'vibe-coding' could produce superior or free software, replacing established vendors remains a significant challenge.
- Interaction Between Software and AI: HSBC emphasizes that 'software is already eating AI' and expects this trend to continue, highlighting the central role of software in the technological ecosystem.
- Market Confidence Transmission: HSBC's perspective helps alleviate market concerns about the future of the SaaS industry, potentially boosting investor confidence in related companies and promoting industry stability.
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Analyst Views on CRM
Wall Street analysts forecast CRM stock price to rise
39 Analyst Rating
29 Buy
9 Hold
1 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 182.140
Low
223.00
Averages
326.40
High
405.00
Current: 182.140
Low
223.00
Averages
326.40
High
405.00
About CRM
Salesforce, Inc. is a customer relationship management (CRM) technology company. Its artificial intelligence (AI) powered Agentforce 360 Platform offers sales, service, marketing, commerce, collaboration, data management, integration, analytics, and information technology (IT) service solutions. It enables customers to build and deploy digital labor for employees and customers, leveraging autonomous AI agents across business functions. Its service offerings include Agentforce Sales, Agentforce Service, Agentforce 360 Platform, Slack and Others. The Agentforce Sales provides sales capabilities and tools built for organizations across prospecting, sales engagement, team collaboration, sales analytics and AI, sales programs, sales performance, partner management, and revenue and orders. The Agentforce Service provides field service solutions that enable companies to connect service agents, dispatchers and mobile employees through platform to schedule, dispatch and manage jobs.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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See More
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- Customer Base Expansion: Agentforce is currently utilized by 23,000 of Salesforce's 150,000 customers, proving effective in handling issues like order statuses and refunds, although it still requires human intervention for more complex tasks.
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See More
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See More
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- Pricing Model Shift: Anthropic is transitioning from flat-rate enterprise pricing to per-token billing, ensuring that revenue reflects actual usage, a strategy aimed at addressing the economic imbalance caused by changes in agentic AI usage patterns, thereby enhancing the company's competitive position in the market.
- Increasing Industry Pressure: As the AI industry gradually accepts per-token billing models, companies like OpenAI face similar transformation pressures, potentially leading their customers to reassess AI usage efficiency, which could affect future market performance and investor confidence.
- Investor Focus: Anthropic and OpenAI are expected to pursue IPOs this year, with investors likely to first scrutinize the authenticity of demand; Anthropic's per-token billing provides clearer data on customer value, while OpenAI may face greater challenges in proving the authenticity of its growth figures.
See More
