The wrong question is which software companies can survive AI. The right question is which companies, SaaS or otherwise, capture the most value when code becomes a nearly free input. Not Boring's latest essay argues that the winners will not be point solutions or vibe coders. They will be the companies that use abundant AI-generated software to seize what the essay calls the High Ground, dominate large industries, and expand further than competitors with lesser tools ever could. The comparison is direct: these will be the Standard Oils of this era.
The frame matters. Nearly every analysis of AI's impact on software asks how existing companies defend their moats. This essay rejects that entirely. Moat defense is a shrinking game. The expansion game, using cheap code as a weapon to move into adjacent markets and consolidate industries, is where the real fortunes get built. The essay identifies specific company archetypes across SaaS and hardware that are structurally positioned to do exactly that.
Read the full piece to understand which company profiles benefit most from abundant code, why point solutions are the ones that should be afraid, and how the logic of resource abundance has historically reshaped entire industries. The conclusion is not the reason to read it. The framework is.
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