Itay Sagie

1 week ago | news.crunchbase.com | Itay Sagie

Daniel, the CEO of a SaaS company in ESG compliance automation, had just closed the most important deal of his startup’s journey. After three years of persistence, a global industry leader signed on as a commercial partner. This was the inflection point he had been working toward. The deal included a side letter giving the partner a warrant, or an equity stake tied to the value they were expected to help create. It also included a 90-day notice requirement before any M&A or financing event.

3 weeks ago | news.crunchbase.com | Itay Sagie

In early 2021, a SaaS founder — let’s call him Alex — found himself in a familiar but dangerous position. His team had just onboarded their first enterprise clients, and a major deal was close to signing. The pitch had landed, the client had verbally committed, and the deal would have doubled the ARR. But payroll was looming, and the runway was vanishing. Alex turned to his bank and secured a $250,000 loan under his name, backed by a personal guarantee tied to his apartment.

1 month ago | news.crunchbase.com | Itay Sagie

When it comes to AI, the spotlight tends to shine on the dramatic: Models that ace medical exams, write like seasoned authors, or spit out images indistinguishable from real photos. But while those headlines grab attention, the real transformation is happening quietly, behind the scenes in the form of micro-automations. These are not all-competent copilots. They’re surgical, single-task automations that chip away at the inefficiencies baked into our everyday workflows.

1 month ago | news.crunchbase.com | Itay Sagie

The founder walked into the investor meeting with confidence, maybe too much of it. The slides were tight, the story compelling, and when it came time to talk numbers, they delivered the classic line: “The market is worth $4 billion. If we capture just 2.5%, we’ll hit $100 million in revenue within four years.”There was a pause. And not the kind you want. The investors didn’t dig in.

2 months ago | news.crunchbase.com | Itay Sagie

SaaS has long been defined by clear metrics: LTV/CAC, CAC payback period, Net and Gross Revenue Retention, the Rule of 40, and the Rule of Four and more. These remain foundational. But with AI, especially autonomous agents, becoming embedded across go-to-market, support and product workflows, the assumptions behind those benchmarks are starting to shift. The possibilitiesThis isn’t about replacing the SaaS playbook. It’s about understanding how AI may be changing the dynamics behind it.