Salesforce introduces AI pricing at 10 cents per action

Salesforce introduced a new pricing structure for its AI products, allowing customers to pay about 10 US cents per “action” for specific AI agent functions.

This update focuses on non-conversational, internal AI uses, like analyzing emails to find sales opportunities.

The existing US$2 per conversation pricing will still apply to customer service-related uses.

Salesforce also lets clients reallocate funds from traditional software subscriptions to AI agent offerings.

This gives companies flexibility in managing spending between human employees and AI tools, said Bill Patterson, executive vice president at Salesforce.

The company noted thousands of customers are using its AI agents, with “Agentforce” expected to contribute modestly to revenue this year and grow more next year.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Enterprise software shifting toward consumption-based AI pricing

Salesforce’s new 10-cents-per-action model reflects a significant shift away from traditional subscription pricing that has dominated enterprise software for over a decade.

This continues the evolution of Salesforce’s AI pricing strategy, which began with the introduction of Einstein in 2016 as an integrated platform feature and gradually moved toward more granular pricing models 1.

The approach mirrors broader industry trends where vendors are increasingly charging for AI capabilities based on actual usage rather than flat monthly fees, as seen with Microsoft’s similar per-use pricing for its Copilot products 2.

This movement toward consumption-based pricing allows customers to directly connect AI costs with specific business outcomes and value delivered, potentially lowering barriers to adoption compared to the higher fixed costs of per-user subscriptions.

Salesforce’s previous Einstein for Service offering at $75 per user/month demonstrates how AI pricing has evolved from bundled capabilities to more precise usage metrics that scale with actual utilization 3.

2️⃣ Flexibility between human and digital labor becoming a strategic priority

Salesforce’s new option to reallocate spending between traditional software subscriptions and AI tools addresses a critical need for budget flexibility as companies experiment with the right balance between human and AI resources.