In this episode of The Metrics Brothers, Ray Rike and Dave Kellogg unpack Benedict Evans’ latest landmark presentation, AI Eats the World, and explore why this moment may rival or even surpass the original “software is eating the world” era. Drawing parallels to Marc Andreessen’s 2011 thesis, they examine how AI is no longer just another platform shift, but a force capable of reshaping labor, capital allocation, and entire industries at once.

The conversation spans the explosive rise in AI infrastructure spending, from hyperscaler capex surging past $400B to the growing strain on power, compute, and supply chains. Ray and Dave discuss why this moment feels different from past tech cycles, not just because of scale, but because AI directly targets labor, which represents more than half of global GDP. They explore whether AI is creating real moats or accelerating commoditization, and why many enterprises are still stuck in experimentation rather than true deployment.

The episode also dives into historical parallels from elevators and telephone operators to cloud computing highlighting how software enabled automation always feels threatening before it quietly becomes invisible.

Along the way, they unpack the strategic tension facing AI leaders: go down the stack for scale or up the stack for value capture. With insights on hyperscalers, OpenAI, Oracle, and the economics of AI adoption, this episode challenges leaders to rethink how value will actually be created and captured in the age of AI.

If you want to understand what’s hype, what’s durable, and why “AI eating the world” may be the most consequential shift since the internet itself, this episode is a must-listen.

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In this episode of The Metrics Brothers, hosts Ray “Growth” Rike and Dave “CAC” Kellogg provide a critical deep dive into the 2025 SaaS Benchmark Report published by High Alpha. Known for their analytical, and sometimes "crusty" approach, the metrics brothers dissect the data behind 800+ SaaS companies to separate real market trends from report commentary.

Key Highlights & Benchmarks

The brothers break down the report’s most significant findings with their signature skepticism regarding "correlation vs. causation."

• The AI Growth Premium: Companies with AI at their core are growing significantly faster than those using AI as a supporting feature. For instance, in the $1–5M ARR band, AI-core companies achieved a median growth of 110%, compared to 40% for their peers

• The "Lean Team" Era: Efficiency is surging as headcount falls. Median revenue per employee has jumped to $129K–$173K, with top-tier public companies hitting over $283K. The hosts note that engineering and support have seen the largest headcount reductions due to AI automation

• Venture Rebound (with a Caveat): While quarterly VC deal value has returned to near 2021 levels (~$80B), the capital is highly concentrated. Over half of all VC funding is currently flowing into AI startups, often in massive "mega-rounds."

• In-Office vs. Remote: For the second consecutive year, the data suggests that in-office or hybrid teams are growing faster (42% median) than fully remote teams (31% median).

As always, Ray and Dave offer practical advice for founders and GTM leaders:

"Read the data, but watch out for the commentary." While the data is good, some commentary and conclusions in the report imply causation where there is at best some level of correlation, such as why companies stay private longer or how AI "drives" growth.

• Retention is King: The strongest growth outcomes are found where high Net Revenue Retention (NRR) meets short CAC payback periods.
• Outcome-Based Pricing: The brothers highlight the shift toward outcome-based and hybrid pricing models as a primary driver for best-in-class NRR in 2025.

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In this episode of The Metrics Brothers, Ray “Growth” Rike and Dave “CAC” Kellogg take on one of the biggest challenges facing modern SaaS and AI-Native companies: how to measure NRR and expansion when pricing isn’t fixed anymore.

With the rise of usage-based, user-based-but-variable, and outcome-based pricing, the traditional world of ARR - long the backbone of SaaS metrics has been turned on its head. Contracts no longer tell the story. Spend does.

Dave breaks down how to rethink ARR proxies using quarterly or monthly revenue (“implied ARR”) and why longer intervals help smooth volatility, especially for “humpback” or highly seasonal customers whose spend fluctuates dramatically month-to-month.

Ray digs into what NRR was originally designed to measure and why many teams misinterpret it—especially in variable-pricing environments where a backward-looking metric can’t serve as a forward-looking forecast. The brothers explain why sequential expansion, usage behavior, and real spend patterns now matter far more than traditional ARR bridges.

Key topics include:

• Why ARR no longer maps cleanly to revenue in a variable pricing world
• How to calculate implied ARR using quarterly or monthly software revenue
• Why NRR must be interpreted differently—and why survivor bias still matters
• How volatility and seasonality distort short-interval metrics
• Why usage is the real leading indicator, not invoices
• How to rethink “expansion ARR” when base + variable spend changes continuously

Packed with examples, including sinusoidal customers, misleading GRR math, and the dangers of splitting base versus variable revenue, this episode gives operators and investors a practical framework for measuring customer growth when pricing is anything but predictable.

A must-listen for CFOs, RevOps leaders, and anyone trying to modernize SaaS metrics for the AI era.

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