Is SaaS dead?
MCP comeback in works
Hey folks,
It’s a heatwave in the UK, and I can’t think straight. Dan went on Lenny’s podcast to talk about agents, automation and SaaSpocalypse, which is worth checking out.
While I generally agree with it all, the one thing I can’t shake is the bullish case for SaaS. I think SaaS is in trouble…
I don’t think it’s in trouble because you can build your own versions with a plan, patience and prompts.
With SaaS tools, you pay monthly for a set of features and stability. The problem is that the tool needs to keep growing. They add new features, change the interface, do all sorts of things you may not need (and often hate).
The tool is for the masses but you may have only wanted a sliver. The tools can outgrow you and why you bought it in the first place.
So if I only need a sliver, I’ll go looking for pieces I can pull together myself. A document editor over here, an agent there, etc.
I think SaaS companies that can unbundle their building blocks and sell them as composable pieces for users (as well as the all-in bundle) could be a very interesting bet.
WorkOS do this well. Their tagline on Google results is literally “WorkOS is a set of building blocks for quickly adding enterprise features to your app”.
Stripe does this too.
In the age of customisable software and using tools with agents, I can’t imagine paying for a tool that I can’t change its feel or features.
It’s why I think API/CLI/SDK-first companies are in a really interesting place.
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Headlines
Appshots in Codex attach the active Mac window to a Codex thread with a screenshot + available text, including context beyond what is visible. Goal mode in Codex is now out of the experiment stage - it helps Codex execute multiple-step workflows with a single outcome in mind, with the ability to check back and compare its work with that goal. Plus, there are other updates like sharing plugins, using a Mac while it’s locked and more.
MCP is getting a major upgrade (finalizes on July 28). It should be much easier to run MCP servers reliably at scale. The update also adds built-in support for app-like interfaces, long-running tasks, stronger login/security rules, better tool definitions, and a clearer process for changing the protocol over time.
Perplexity open-sourced Bumblebee - A safety scanner for developer machines. It checks for risky packages, browser/editor extensions, and AI agent configs, without running any of the tools it is inspecting. So it can flag supply-chain risks without accidentally triggering the same risky code.
My feed
Cloudsail - fresh Cloudflare Sandboxes for coding agents, with shell, Codex and GitHub access.
WorkOS released auth.md, an open protocol for agents to register for web services on behalf of users
Building Pi With Pi - using agents for issue research, PR wrap-ups, context tracking and parallel work.
An AGENTS.md file with a year of small agent-behaviour improvements.
release.bar - trending active GitHub repos, with a dashboard for each repo/builder. (see example). GitHub should probably have shipped this already.
Hyper - Bun API framework you copy into your codebase instead of installing as a dependency.
Kakuna - Checklist-driven codebase hardening, and a production-ready repo skill that turns a fragile vibe-coded app into something maintainable and agent-friendly.
Cursor’s internal /thermo-nuclear-code-quality-review skill deletes complexity, blocks huge files and rejects PRs that work but make the codebase messier.
Simpleplayer - clean default video player with custom overlay controls.
Running a startup solo with AI agents - OpenClaw as Chief of Staff, Codex/Devin as engineering and giving agents real email, calendar and GitHub access.
zero2claude - free course from zero terminal experience to shipping with Claude Code.
Find repeated workflows across recent sessions/memories, then create only the smallest useful skill, subagent or automation.
Shades - Chrome extension that hides sensitive inputs while screen recording or sharing.
Plannotator - annotate agent plans before they run and review the output in full diffs.
ChatGPT for PowerPoint - create slides, ask questions across a deck, and make updates inside PowerPoint.
Afters
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I was thinking the same while building a SaaS that uses external AI APIs and wondering "what am I really building?". Can't anybody just piece everything together and recreate my tool? The answer is no. I spent really long time searchjnf the right APIs, testing, refining prompts, that it's much more convenient for anybody to buy my product than trying to reproduce the same outcomes.
Giuseppe
Vertical SaaS is the way... I just signed a deal with a local truck body builder. They refuse to answer Salesforce calls and I took the opportunity to build them a rules engine to integrate their sales to production workflows. More than just a standard CPQ.