Today's SaaS Pulse
OpenAI acquires Ona to embed secure workspaces for autonomous AI agents
OpenAI announced it will acquire Ona, a 79‑person cloud development environment provider, to embed secure, persistent workspaces for autonomous AI agents. Ona’s platform reported a 13‑fold rise in weekly agent sessions across banks, pharma firms, and sovereign wealth funds. Analysts estimate the deal could be valued between $450 million and $500 million.
Also developing:
- Fresho buys UK ERP specialist Nation Wilcox, creating the largest software suite for British food wholesalers
- Freshworks pivots to AI‑driven employee experience with new no‑code builder and experience‑level agreements
- Kraken launches utility‑specific autonomous AI agents to automate customer‑service workflows
By the numbers: NinjaOne raises $400M in Series C extension
What Is Square? Pricing, Features & How It Works
Square has transformed from a simple mobile card reader into an all‑in‑one cloud platform that combines payment processing, point‑of‑sale software, ecommerce tools, and basic banking services. The core POS app is free, while Square Plus ($49/month) and Premium ($149/month) add advanced features and lower transaction rates. Square charges flat‑rate fees—2.6% + 15¢ for in‑person, 3.3% + 30¢ online—and requires all payments to run through its own processor. The solution is tailored to small and midsize businesses, though high‑volume merchants may find the rates less competitive.
‘Claude Can Absorb Up To 40% of Inhouse Legal Tech Spend’ – Claude
Anthropic says its Claude model could absorb 25%‑40% of in‑house legal‑tech spend over the next three to five years, driven by a Word add‑in and custom plug‑ins. By contrast, Big Law firms are projected to shift only 3%‑8% of their...
9 Best Project Management Software: My Top Picks for 2026
The article ranks the nine best project management software platforms for 2026, drawing on G2’s Spring 2026 Grid Report and over 25 tools evaluated through AI‑driven review analysis and user interviews. It highlights that 82% of organizations rely on such software...
This Startup Wants to Fix the Slog of Adtech Vendor Selection With a AI-Supported Matchmaking
CartographAI is an AI‑driven platform that lets marketers compare over 1,000 martech and adtech vendors using neutral, data‑rich scores. It blends machine learning with human‑led research to evaluate vendors across dozens of criteria. Early adopters such as Reckitt, LinkedIn and...
9 Best Event Planning Software for 2026: My Go-To Picks
The article ranks the nine best event‑planning platforms for 2026, drawing on G2’s Winter Grid Report and AI‑driven analysis of hundreds of user reviews. It highlights monday.com, ClickUp, Cvent, Tripleseat, RSVPify and four other tools, noting each solution’s core strengths...
Best Employee Communications Software: My Top 5 Picks
The article identifies a gap between corporate messaging and employee reception, citing a 54 % moderate engagement rating in the 2026 Global State of Internal Communications report. It reviews over 20 platforms and highlights five purpose‑built employee communication tools—Connecteam, Workvivo, Assembly,...
AI Video Costs Drop to $0.10/Second, No Guesswork
The "blind generation" era of AI video is officially over. @TopviewAIhq just slashed Seedance 2.0 to $0.10/second... and completely changed the math for bulk creators. The real pain of AI video was never the prompt. It was the coin flip every time...
Luminance and LexisNexis Unite AI Tools to Streamline Contract Lifecycle Management
Luminance and LexisNexis announced a strategic alliance that embeds LexisNexis Protégé and Lexis+ research capabilities inside Luminance’s contract workflow platform. The integration gives corporate legal departments instant access to a combined data set of over 200 billion legal documents, aiming to...
Harness Teams with Google Cloud to Fuse AI Into Software Delivery Pipelines
Harness announced at Google Cloud Next that it is integrating Google Cloud's Developer Connect with its Software Delivery Knowledge Graph, giving joint customers a unified, AI‑ready view of the entire delivery lifecycle. The move, highlighted by Harness winning the 2026...
Monk Secures $25 Million Series A to Scale AI‑Native Accounts Receivable Platform
Monk, a New York‑based AI‑native accounts receivable platform, closed a $25 million Series A round co‑led by Footwork and Acrew Capital, bringing its total funding to $29 million. The capital will fund R&D and expansion of its contract‑to‑cash automation suite, highlighting continued...
Matrix Chosen by Microsoft Cloud Accelerate Factory to Deploy AI Revenue Intelligence for Media
Matrix Solutions has been selected for Microsoft’s Cloud Accelerate Factory, granting the company free access to Microsoft’s architecture and development resources to build an AI‑powered revenue intelligence layer for media companies. The partnership aims to deliver a top‑down and bottom‑up...
Demandbase Launches Premier+ Partner Tier to Power AI‑Driven GTM for Enterprises
Demandbase announced the Premier+ Service Delivery Partner tier, expanding its agency program to let select partners like Marketbridge provide end‑to‑end AI GTM services. The move aims to turn fragmented data insights into coordinated revenue actions for large enterprises.
SoundHound AI to Acquire LivePerson for $43M, Creating $250M Enterprise AI Platform
SoundHound AI announced a $43 million cash acquisition of LivePerson, lifting the combined enterprise value to $250 million. The deal merges SoundHound’s voice‑AI engine with LivePerson’s digital messaging platform, targeting a $350‑$400 million revenue run‑rate by 2027.
Asda Adopts Definely’s AI Contract‑review Tool to Modernise Legal Workflows
Asda has begun deploying Definely’s AI‑driven contract‑review solution across its in‑house legal team, targeting faster, more accurate handling of complex agreements. The move highlights a growing trend of large retailers turning to specialist LegalTech to cut manual review time and...
Agiloft Launches Free‑tier Astra Contract‑AI Platform to Democratize Enterprise CLM
Agiloft introduced Astra, a contract‑AI platform that provides enterprise‑grade analytics with a free‑to‑start tier, aiming to cut the $2 trillion annual revenue leakage caused by poor contract management. Backed by KKR, FTV Capital and JMI Equity, the move targets the 22%...
UK Tribunal Certifies £2 Bn Class Action Over Microsoft’s Windows Server Cloud Licensing
A London Competition Appeal Tribunal has certified a £2 bn (≈$2.5 bn) collective action against Microsoft, accusing the tech giant of overcharging UK businesses for Windows Server licenses on non‑Azure cloud platforms. The ruling clears the way for a trial involving roughly...
Freshworks CEO Dennis Woodside Calls for Certainty Amid Tariffs, Wars and AI Surge
Freshworks President and CEO Dennis Woodside told BW Businessworld that leaders must forge certainty for teams while the company confronts tariff‑driven cost spikes, regional data‑center failures and an AI‑driven transformation. He highlighted the firm’s 75,000‑customer base, 1,300 Middle‑East clients and...
Copilot’s Agent Mode Now Default Across Office Suite
We're making a big change to the Copilot experience. Agent Mode is generally available and now the default across Copilot in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. As models become more capable, we’re bringing that power to where real work happens, right in the...
Switching to LoopEngine Boosted Subscriptions and Retention
We migrated our big CPG client's subscription program to @LoopEngine Subscriptions last year. Subscriptions up. retention up. We just followed Loop's onboarding and implemented the features that made sense. For subscriptions, Loop is our go-to.
Google Cloud Committed $750M to Help Its 120,000 Partners Build and Deploy Agentic AI Solutions for Enterprise Customers Globally
Google Cloud unveiled a $750 million partner fund to accelerate agentic AI solutions across its 120,000‑partner network. The program embeds forward‑deployed engineers with firms such as Accenture, Capgemini, Deloitte, PwC and TCS, and grants early Gemini model access to Accenture, BCG,...
Agent Mode Turns Classic Excel Ad Smarter
To mark the broad rollout of Agent Mode in Copilot, we had some fun recreating an iconic 90s Excel ad: same ad, smarter Excel. https://t.co/RffEKccC2Q
TIKR Streamlines Workflow, Eliminating CapitalIQ‑Morningstar Switching
Great move from TIKR. It may sound trivial, but not having to switch from CapitalIQ to Morningstar every time makes the experience more seamless https://t.co/JpbCegD9rx
ServiceNow Posts $3.67 B Q1 Subscription Revenue, 22% YoY Growth
ServiceNow announced first‑quarter 2026 subscription revenue of $3.671 billion, a 22% year‑over‑year increase that topped the high end of its guidance. The company also highlighted a surge in large contracts, a $12.64 billion cRPO balance and the early close of its Armis...
Worried Substack Might Drop Subscribers for Followers
Surely Substack will do away with subscribers soon, sticking with followers only? That was one of my concerns.
OpenAI Releases Free ChatGPT for US Clinicians
. @OpenAI launches ChatGPT for Clinicians Designed to support clinical tasks like documentation and medical research… Free for any verified physician, NP, PA, or pharmacist, starting in the U.S. https://t.co/IHah1binWV https://t.co/jbGnm0GVFC
Lean Manufacturers: You’ve Implemented Dynamics 365 F&SCM, Now Unlock Its Full Value with a Fabric Lakehouse
Lean manufacturers using Dynamics 365 Finance and Supply Chain Management can now amplify their data capabilities with Microsoft Fabric lakehouse. The lakehouse consolidates ERP transactional data with shop‑floor signals, quality metrics, and operational feeds into a single, clean data environment....
Microsoft Dynamics Partner Roundup: D365 CCaaS in New Zealand; New Execs; New AI Platform for D365 On-Prem; Updated Supply Chain...
Westpac New Zealand has become the first major bank in the country – and one of the first globally – to roll out Microsoft Dynamics 365 Contact Center as a Service (CCaaS) powered by AI. The platform delivers real‑time customer data...
HAT Secures Exclusive Oceania Distribution for Tailscale
HAT Distribution has been appointed the exclusive distributor of Tailscale across Oceania, covering Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. The deal gives HAT the right to sell Tailscale’s identity‑based secure connectivity platform and provide technical enablement to regional partners and...
Reapit Rolls Out New AI Offering for Estate Agents
Reapit has unveiled the next phase of its Reapit AI (RAI) platform, adding a voice‑led AI copilot, an AppMarket for task‑specific agents, and a no‑code builder for custom agents. The copilot, optimized for mobile, helps agents prepare for viewings, retrieve...
Veriff’s Smartphone-Based IDV Earns FIDO DocAuth Certification Across 12 Countries
Veriff’s Full Auto Identity Verification (Full Auto IDV) has earned the FIDO Alliance Document Authenticity Certification, making it one of the first ID‑verification providers to clear the third‑party DocAuth framework. The certification tested Veriff’s smartphone‑driven capture of government‑issued IDs and...
Enterprise Momentum Surges Amid $NOW Sell‑Off
A harsh $NOW sell-off based on what happened and what’s going to happen with real financial commitments. So what do you gauge enterprise momentum from? Well: - revenue beat - subs +22% and raised guidance - cRPO +22.5% - RPO +25% - Now Assist $1M...
Zynt Secures $500K Pre‑Seed to Accelerate Signal‑Based B2B Sales Automation
Polish AI startup Zynt announced a $500,000 pre‑seed funding round led by 24Ventures and angel investors. The capital will fund development of its signal‑intelligence platform that tells sales teams when prospects are ready to buy, a shift from volume‑centric outreach...
Iterable Rolls Out Nova Agent AI Platform to Power Real‑Time Personalization
Iterable unveiled Nova Agent, an autonomous AI engine that automates campaign building, optimization and analysis in real time. The platform aims to close the gap between fast‑moving customer behavior and legacy marketing workflows, giving brands a faster path from data...
Prometheus Group Acquires Tamarack to Add Procurement Services for Asset-Intensive Industries
Prometheus Group announced the acquisition of Tamarack, a procurement advisory firm serving mining, oil and gas, and construction sectors. The deal, terms undisclosed, adds a group‑purchasing model and data‑driven sourcing tools to Prometheus' enterprise asset management software, aiming to give...
Topular Launches AI Platform to Transform Off‑Market Real Estate Valuation
Topular has introduced Topular AI, an artificial‑intelligence tool that automates discovery and valuation of off‑market real estate across the United States. The platform initially rolls out in Georgia and Northern California, promising investors and brokers deeper insight into property condition,...
ServiceNow Beats Q1 2026 Guidance as AI Deals Accelerate (and Outcome-Based Pricing? Zavery Isn't Buying It)
ServiceNow posted Q1 2026 revenue of $3.77 billion, beating guidance as AI‑driven subscriptions surged 22% year‑on‑year to $3.671 billion. The company’s AI Control Tower and Now Assist offerings lifted high‑value contracts, with customers spending over $1 million growing 130% YoY. ServiceNow also rolled out...
Infinite Unveils 'Infinite Accounts' To Merge Bank and Stablecoin Payments
Infinite announced the launch of Infinite Accounts, dedicated bank accounts that operate on both traditional ACH rails and stablecoin networks. Powered by Erebor Bank, the service lets firms pay contractors, settle cross‑border transactions and manage treasury functions without juggling multiple...
Toast Rolls Out Unified Drive-Thru Platform
Toast has launched Toast Drive‑Thru, an enterprise‑grade platform that consolidates point‑of‑sale, kitchen display, digital menu boards, and AI voice ordering for quick‑service restaurants. The solution targets more than 140,000 U.S. drive‑thru locations grappling with labor shortages and the need for...
Fire High-Noise, Low-Revenue Customers Now
The customer you can't fire is the one running your company. Every founder I coach has at least one. Eats 30% of your week. Pays 5% of your revenue. The name that makes the whole team sigh in Slack. You...
Sitetracker Launches AI Platform Scout To Improve Infrastructure Management
Sitetracker, a New Jersey‑based software firm, launched Scout, an autonomous AI platform aimed at streamlining infrastructure delivery for utilities and contractors. Scout claims to turn internal system data into real‑time risk insights, automated work packages, and faster decision‑making across planning,...
Vertical SaaS Is Buying Into the Market It Used to Sell Into
Vertical SaaS platforms are increasingly using their subscription cash flow to acquire adjacent companies within the same industry, a trend now evident across healthcare, manufacturing, warehouse management and EdTech. Recent transaction data shows the shift accelerating, with firms crossing a...
Google Classroom Isn’t Replacing Schoology. It’s Reshaping the Market
U.S. K‑12 districts are not simply picking between Google Classroom and Schoology; they are choosing operating models that balance ecosystem simplicity against system control. Low teacher adoption, rather than feature gaps, drives many districts to abandon paid LMS platforms, as...
Ellucian and the Economics of Leaving
Ellucian argues its moat lies in proprietary campus data, claiming an AI advantage. The blog shows generative AI can slash the 7,500 coding hours and $20 million cost needed to replace its Banner system, undermining data isolation as protection. Interviews with...
ChatGPT Workspace Agents Automate Team Tasks in Cloud
New from OpenAI -> Introducing workspace agents in ChatGPT "Workspace agents are an evolution of GPTs. Powered by Codex, they can take on many of the tasks people already do at work—from preparing reports, to writing code, to responding...
SoundHound AI Acquires LivePerson, Expands Enterprise AI Footprint
.@SoundHound AI buys LivePerson for $43 million, builds enterprise customer base https://t.co/7fswl32rnF SoundHound AI, which focuses on conversational AI, said it has acquired LivePerson in a deal valued at $43 million, a slight premium to LivePerson's $40 million market cap.
Roo Code Pivots to Cloud-Based Agent, Says IDEs Aren’t the Future of Coding
Roo Code announced it will shut down its VS Code extension, Cloud, and Router services on May 15, 2026, pivoting to a standalone cloud‑based coding agent called Roomote. Roomote runs end‑to‑end tasks across Slack, GitHub and Linear, generating, testing and delivering pull‑requests without...
Affordable Telemedicine Solutions Ease Staffing and Budget Strains
Staffing shortages + tight budgets = tough decisions. Telemedicine can help—if you choose the right platform. We break down budget-friendly options hospitals are actually using. 👇 https://t.co/rCm5j8wrKg @telespecialists @VSee @TeladocHealth @TeleMed2u @EagleTelemed #HITSM
Replit Grants $25K Credits, Fueling $100M Startups
Many startups launched on Replit are now $100m+ — we now have a startup program with $25k free credits.
Google Brings Auto Browse and Skills to Chrome Enterprise - and a New 'Gemini Summary'
Google announced three new AI‑driven features for Chrome Enterprise: Auto Browse, which lets Gemini act across open tabs to automate tasks like creating CRM contacts; Skills, a one‑click library for saving and reusing frequent Gemini prompts; and Gemini Summary, an...
Hosted Agents Get Dedicated Enterprise‑grade Sandboxes
Every agent will need its own computer. And with new Hosted agents in Foundry, every agent gets its own dedicated enterprise-grade sandbox, with durable state, built-in identity and governance, and support for any harness or framework. Read more: https://t.co/zL5eKrRr1j https://t.co/ggMtYB3vZf