Salesforce's poor M&A is literally half the reason its multiple stays low. Slack and Informatica are cited as examples, with Braze raised as a question; AI making Tableau obsolete in a few years would be a separate risk, not itself poor M&A. x.com 

Salesforce's proposed Braze acquisition opens another avenue for growth. The $5.7 billion all-cash price raises questions, though quality growth companies command a premium; whether this deal proves worthwhile remains to be seen. Closing is subject to Braze shareholder and regulatory approvals. x.com 

Hardware is squeezing software as enterprises redirect budgets to scarce servers, GPUs and storage, favoring semiconductors over software. IBM's Q2 revenue of $17.2B missed its $17.9B target, and its CEO said clients moved software and IT consulting budgets to secure rising-priced hardware. Microsoft, ServiceNow and Salesforce face near-term pressure while Dell and Micron benefit. Aehr Test's beat and raised guidance counter claims the chip cycle is dead. x.com 

Software stocks probably have a floor as results challenge fears that AI agents will displace them. Since the June 22 momentum unwind, IGV is up 25% and the SOX index down 22%. Atlassian and Salesforce jumped on solid results, plus an Anthropic deal for Salesforce, and possible Silver Lake interest lifted Workday. A new bullish twist says agents will use software tools 10-100x more than humans. Whether fundamentals back the rally is still open; a likely Fed hike and weak September are risks. … Show more

ServiceNow's unexpected expense surge makes its rich valuation more vulnerable in a struggling software sector. Revenue rose 21%, but spending drove an EPS miss and one quarter of guided cRPO deceleration; wider market conditions could hurt near term. The 20% selloff looks excessive, and few software companies should benefit as much from AI. Management could deliver over 3-5 years, though the stock is only close to a buy again now; below $100 looks good for the long term. x.com  x.com  x.com  x.com 

Software is not out of the woods because the competitive threat from consumer AI agents will reach enterprise software too. Salesforce is dancing with the devil, and the other software databases will need to follow it in opening up to agents. A quoted post argues every services, marketplace or commerce app will have to decide whether to open APIs to consumer agents. x.com 

FactSet risks having its app usage automated from outside and becoming unmonetizable as AI agents operate it directly. Its MCP integration was a huge advance and a growth driver, worth perhaps a 20% subscription uplift, but OpenAI's computer use worked well on a regular desktop session, if much slower, and simply noted the FactSet subscription to use when needed. SaaS bear points from earlier this year are materializing quickly. x.com  x.com 

Microsoft, ServiceNow and Salesforce could capture the next AI wave because it will be software, not chips. Nvidia's CEO said there will be 100x more agents using enterprise tools, making software vendors the real bottleneck. After 2025's winners Nebius, SanDisk and CoreWeave, the next trillion dollars may go to companies charging AI agents monthly subscriptions. x.com 

US software is the category most exposed to AI app builders like Replit, with $100K CRMs getting rebuilt for $200, which puts it on the do-not-own list. The trade is energy and bottleneck infrastructure, not software. x.com 

Salesforce enters the AI debate from a position of strength, because large enterprises prioritize control, compliance and integration over raw innovation speed. Its footprint across data, workflows and governance lets Agentforce and Data 360 grow into a structured environment for deploying enterprise AI. The contest for the governed AI platform layer is narrowing to a battle of incumbents, with Microsoft as the main rival. x.com