When I saw this Wednesday morning, I thought about pricing—not funding
At 10 p.m. last Wednesday, I was revising a quote for a client in Hangzhou. They said, “Everyone is using AI now. Charging this much—isn’t that a bit high?” I felt stuck. I had only just learned that AI companies raising more money and revenue does not mean peers will immediately pay less, but clients will use those headlines to squeeze budgets.
What happened today—and what it means for our business
This November 11 AI daily included several updates: Anthropic is preparing for an IPO roadshow; OpenAI reportedly reached $10 billion in quarterly revenue while still losing significant money; Google announced progress in AI encryption; and Railway disclosed $740,000 in suspicious AI charges. There is a lot to unpack, and no need to chase every item.
What I care about more is who is actually spending money on AI. For example, a New York AI testing project could create demand for consulting, testing, and compliance. Railway’s unexpected charges could also push more small teams to review account permissions and spending alerts. These developments may not be far from your quote.
Today’s replication cost: 20 minutes, $0, no code
Money: $0. Time: about 20 minutes. Technical barrier: knowing how to copy a URL and skim a short news brief. First step: open the source and circle only three categories—money, risk, and client actions. Second step: take a sheet of paper and write down who may increase their budget, who may push prices down, and which risk could land on you.
I got stuck here too. At first, I read company funding news straight through and thought, “This feels far away from me,” then felt anxious for half an hour. Later, I tracked only one action: could this change what the client purchases, renews, or requires for security next week? There may still be no answer, and you do not need to force a guess.
Here’s what I would do at each stage
If I were just starting out, I would treat the news as conversation material, not a product: share one relevant item with a potential client, then ask, “Could this affect your team?” If I already had one or two clients, I would immediately check whether my pricing rationale had shifted from “I know how to use AI” to “I can save you a step or reduce a specific risk.” If I were scaling, I would create a weekly industry-change sheet that tracks only developments likely to affect demand, budgets, and delivery boundaries.
This tool is not for everyone. If my clients are stable and my projects are booked through, there is no urgency to try it now. The next time a client uses AI news to push down my rate, I can pull out that three-question sheet.