On Thursday, Andreessen Horowitz launched its first AI Spending Report in partnership with the fintech agency Mercury. Utilizing transaction information from Mercury, the report analyzes the highest 50 AI-native utility layer corporations that startups are spending cash on, just like the beforehand revealed Prime 100 Gen AI Shopper Apps.
a16z companions Olivia Moore and Seema Amble say the information reveals corporations are nonetheless adopting a spread of various AI merchandise for sure duties — and new apps are rising and falling in a short time.
“There’s a proliferation of tools,” Amble mentioned. “It hasn’t just coalesced around one or two in each category.”
The report additionally reveals loads of spending on “human augmentors” or “copilots” that may assist enhance productiveness among the many workforce, suggesting startups aren’t prepared to totally shift into agentic workflows.
“As computer use becomes more of a mode and there’s more of the ability for there to be end-to-end agentic flows built, I think that shift will happen, where we’ll see fewer copilots and more end-to-end agent tools,” Amble mentioned. “Especially as people are really eager to give them a try.”
Unsurprisingly, the highest of the listing was dominated by main labs, with OpenAI taking the highest slot and Anthropic following up at No. 2. Vibe-coding instruments had been additionally effectively represented, with Replit at No. 3 and Lovable at No. 18. Cursor landed at No. 6 and Emergent at No. 48. Cognition, which operates extra enterprise-oriented coding instruments like Devin and Windsurf, was at No. 34.
When a16z produced an identical listing for client habits, Lovable ranked a lot increased than Replit on pure site visitors alone as a result of lots of people had been utilizing it to create tasks. However startups should not spending as a lot cash on Lovable as they’re on Replit, partly due to the shortage of enterprise options. However the number of corporations on the listing appears to recommend there’s room for loads of completely different corporations directly.
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“It’s an open question going forward on vibe coding,” Moore mentioned. “Does the space start to consolidate, and one place becomes the best platform to vibe code? Or is it the case where there’ll be four or five more vibe coding companies that are really big businesses for different types of applications? We don’t have the answer to that yet.”
Moore was additionally stunned to see startups adopting consumer-oriented instruments like CapCut and Midjourney.
“We’re seeing that a lot of these [consumer] companies are getting yanked into enterprise faster and faster because they make such delightful consumer tools that then people adopt and use as individuals and bring into their teams and workplaces,” Moore mentioned.
Horizontal functions general made up a minimum of 60% of the names on the listing, and 40% consisted of vertical functions. The most well-liked vertical software program corporations fell into three buckets: gross sales, recruiting, and customer support. However the report additionally discovered AI making progress in lots of sectors that earlier generations of startups had struggled to crack.
“What maybe previously would have been, like, service firms or consultancies are now software companies in the age of AI,” Moore mentioned.
Amble gave Crosby Authorized for instance, which might rapidly overview a authorized contract for a person, changing what at one level would have been a gathering with an in-house normal counsel, rummaging by means of ideas and analysis. She mentioned proper now, many of the instruments are used to assist staff (like a co-pilot) in making choices sooner, relatively than changing whole workforces and expertise fits with automated employees (end-to-end brokers).
“As the tech gets better, and we’re actually able to build out full agent co-workers, you’ll see that mix shift more toward end-to-end agents and away from co-pilots,” she mentioned, later including that AI instruments can do way more work, like outreach, sooner than a human can.
There have been additionally loads of word takers on the listing, comparable to Otter.ai, Learn AI, and HappyScribe — with no single possibility dominating. That is what Amble meant when she mentioned there isn’t one product but that has dominated the market; relatively, startups are nonetheless selecting “their own flavor” to see what instruments they like greatest. That is additionally good for workers, who, with so many choices, can choose what functions assist them work greatest, relatively than utilizing a one-size-fits-all product “pushed down from the top,” Amble mentioned.
The final large discover within the report was the rising intertwining of client and enterprise companies. Persons are bringing the non-public functions they use at house to work, and individuals who have began corporations are utilizing their favourite private functions to assist construct their companies. Earlier than, there would have been a delineation between the 2: a set stack for what to make use of whereas constructing a startup.
Amble and Moore cited Canva for instance: It’s a preferred client app that additionally has a large enterprise viewers. It took years for Canva to even add an enterprise plan. However as particular person and enterprise use instances change into more durable to differentiate, corporations are extra prepared to mix the 2.
“Your TAM [total addressable market] is no longer one or the other, but you can sell into both,” she continued. She mentioned corporations constructing these merchandise may additionally “professionalize” sooner, which means constructing out enterprise groups, like go-to-market, gross sales, and assist, to allow them to begin promoting and accruing enterprise income sooner, relatively than relying on particular person shoppers.
Moore and Amble expect the listing to alter rapidly within the coming years. Older corporations are actually launching AI options to remain related and accessible, whereas new entrants arrive with new concepts.
“Legacy players, legacy almost means, ‘what was 12 months ago,’” Amble mentioned. “If we pull this again in 12 months, will the same note-taking apps even be on there? Or will there be a whole new set?”
This piece was up to date to mirror the note-taking apps.
