AI startups reportedly inflating ARR: customers forced to buy shelfware just for the logo
thedealdirector · x · 2026-10-22
A founder tells @villi that closing a deal with a high-flying AI startup required buying an equivalent value of the company's product — which he couldn't even use — just to get the logo. Another prospect was offered a desperate 3-year deal: first two years free, cancellable anytime for convenience.
The poster suspects those 3-year contracts and shelfware both counted toward ARR — a pointed look at how inflated some AI startup revenue numbers may be.
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