Blog

Notes from the runtime.

Stigg Acquires Received.ai to Bring Contract Management and Invoicing Into Its Runtime AI Usage Platform

AI-native and enterprise SaaS companies can now manage bespoke usage-based contracts, generate invoices, and enforce entitlements from a single platform, or alongside Stripe, NetSuite, and others.

Dor Sasson

Aug 18, 2026

Industry Insights

Inside OpenAI's Real-Time Access Engine

Highlights from our AMA with Jonah Cohen, Tech Lead for Financial Engineering at OpenAI

Sara Nelissen

Jul 28, 2026

Guides

Usage Management for AI Products: Limits, Credits & Enforcement

When AI usage becomes unpredictable, tracking alone isn’t enough. Learn how usage management helps control what happens before the next request runs.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

What Is a Billing Engine? Architecture & How It Works

What a billing engine actually does, how it differs from a rating engine and payment processor, and what AI products still need beyond it to control spend.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

7 AI Agent Monetization Models, Explained and Compared

Compare 7 AI agent monetization models on cost, predictability, and the runtime enforcement each one requires before you build your pricing logic.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Orb vs. Metronome vs. Stigg: Full Breakdown

Orb vs. Metronome for usage-based billing? See how they compare and where Stigg’s runtime infrastructure enforces AI credits and entitlements in real time.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Top 6 AI Pricing Platforms Compared for 2026

The top AI pricing platform options for 2026, compared on packaging flexibility, setup time, wallet support, and real usage models we tested ourselves.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Billing Models for AI Products: Types and How to Choose

Billing model types for AI products, broken down with real examples and the request-path enforcement logic engineering ends up building for each one.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Consumption Revenue Explained for AI Products

Learn how consumption revenue works, from metering and entitlements to credit ledgers, runtime enforcement, and production infrastructure.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Tiered Volume Pricing for AI Products: Models, Risks, & Setup

See how tiered volume pricing works in AI products and how engineers handle metering, credits, concurrent thresholds, wallets, and request-time limits.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Hybrid Billing: An Engineering Guide for AI Products

Hybrid billing combines subscriptions, credits, commitments, and overages. See how AI teams design balance priority, reservations, ledgers, and enforcement.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Billing Software for AI Companies: 6 Tools Tested for 2026

I tested 6 billing platforms for AI companies on real usage-metering scenarios. Compare pricing, deployment, and where each one breaks down.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 28, 2026

Guides

Profit Leakage Recovery for AI: 7 Steps to Recover Margin

Follow a 7-step profit leakage recovery process for AI products, including detection, reconciliation, credit corrections, and request-time enforcement.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 14, 2026

Guides

Flexible Billing for AI Products: How It Works & When You Need It

Discover how flexible billing supports subscriptions, credits, metering, and request-time enforcement for AI products without rebuilding billing logic.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 14, 2026

Guides

5 Enterprise Pricing Models for AI Products

Compare enterprise pricing models for AI products, learn when each fits best, and understand the infrastructure required to support enterprise customers.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 14, 2026

Guides

Usage-Based Billing Software: 6 Top Picks for 2026

The 6 best usage-based billing software platforms for AI companies in 2026, compared on pricing, deployment, features, and real user reviews.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 14, 2026

Guides

Enterprise Pricing Strategy: Building One for AI Products

Learn how to build an enterprise pricing strategy for AI products with configurable contracts, usage limits, entitlements, and organization-level pricing.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 10, 2026

Guides

7 Best Zuora Competitors for Growing AI Teams in 2026

Not every billing problem needs Zuora's full suite. We broke down seven alternatives by implementation speed, pricing flexibility, and AI billing fit.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 6, 2026

Guides

Billing System Design: The 5-Layer Architecture Guide

A guide to billing system design for engineering teams building AI products, covering metering, entitlements, real-time enforcement, and build vs. buy.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 6, 2026

Guides

Billing System Software: 6 AI Picks Tested (2026)

Billing system software tested across 6 platforms for AI and usage-based products, with honest pricing, reviews, and where each one breaks down.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 6, 2026

Guides

7 Flexible Billing Software Platforms for AI Products Compared

Compare flexible billing software for AI products using tokens, usage, credits, or outcomes, with seven tools mapped to pricing and billing needs for 2026.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 5, 2026

Guides

Consumption Models Explained: 5 Types and How They Work

Consumption models tie cost to usage instead of a flat fee. See the 5 common forms, how they work, and how to enforce them without a hard ceiling.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 5, 2026

Guides

Pay-As-You-Go Pricing Model for AI Products, Explained

A technical breakdown of the pay-as-you-go pricing model, rate cards, metering, benefits, risks, and how it stacks up against prepaid credits.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 5, 2026

Guides

Billing and Invoicing for AI Products: A Technical Guide

A technical breakdown of billing and invoicing for AI products, covering pay-as-you-go, credits, and where real-time entitlement checks fit in.

Sara Nelissen

Aug 4, 2026

Guides

5 Orb Alternatives To Evaluate Before You Migrate in 2026

Evaluating Orb alternatives? We broke down five platforms by metering depth, pricing iteration speed, open-source availability, and contract readiness.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 31, 2026

Guides

Usage-Based Billing for AI and API Products

Usage-based billing helps AI teams charge by tokens, API calls, compute, or outcomes. See how it works and what can break at scale.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 29, 2026

Guides

Billing Mediation: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Matters

What billing mediation is, why AI usage pushes it harder than traditional SaaS, the four functions, a worked event example, and build vs. buy guidance.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 22, 2026

Guides

Automated Billing Systems: Architecture, Risks, and Limits

An automated billing system runs well on scheduled rules until pricing depends on the real-time state. Here's the architecture, and where it breaks.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 22, 2026

Guides

Billing Management: What It Is and How It Works

What billing management is, the five core functions of a billing management system, and where standard processes break down under usage-based pricing.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 22, 2026

Guides

Best AI Monetization Software: 7 Platforms Engineers Use in 2026

Compare the best AI monetization software and generative AI monetization platforms for 2026, including Stigg, Zuora, and Metronome for usage billing.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 22, 2026

Guides

8 Best Software Monetization Platforms for AI Products in 2026

Looking for a monetization platform built for AI products? Compare 8 tools on entitlements, credit management, usage metering, and billing fit.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 22, 2026

Guides

Chargebee vs Zuora: Pricing, Features & Key Differences

Chargebee vs Zuora comes down to pricing speed against enterprise RevRec depth. Here is how engineering teams should think about the difference.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 21, 2026

Guides

8 Best Enterprise Billing Platforms for AI Products in 2026

Comparing eight enterprise billing platforms for AI products in 2026. What each one is built for, what it costs, and where it stops working at scale.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 21, 2026

Guides

5 Best Entitlement Management Software Solutions in 2026

Explore the best entitlement management software for 2026, with five platforms compared by real-time enforcement, pricing model support, and scale needs.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 21, 2026

Guides

Stripe vs Zuora: Pricing, Features, and What Neither One Does

A comparison of Stripe and Zuora across payment processing, revenue recognition, multi-tenant governance, and credit management for AI usage billing.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 21, 2026

Guides

Software Monetization for AI Products: Models and Architecture

A practical guide to software monetization for AI products. Pricing models, entitlements, metering, and the enforcement layer billing was never designed to be.

Jul 16, 2026

Guides

Consumption Pricing: How It Works + Implementation Guide

Learn how consumption pricing works, the infrastructure it requires, and how engineering teams implement usage-based pricing.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 13, 2026

Guides

Prorated Billing for AI Products: What It Is & How to Implement It

Prorated billing for AI products fails when the billing event and the entitlement update run in separate systems. Here's what to build and in what order.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 13, 2026

Guides

Tiered Pricing: How It Works and Why Enforcement Matters

Tiered pricing for AI products requires runtime enforcement on every request. Here's what the five common tier structures look like and what each one enforces.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 13, 2026

Guides

Multi-Tenant Architecture: Components & Best Practices

Multi-tenant architecture explained with core components and best practices. Learn how to handle concurrency, enforcement, and usage limits at scale.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 13, 2026

Guides

Outcome-Based Pricing: How It Works

Outcome-based pricing sounds simple until you implement it. Learn the infrastructure, data models, and systems needed to make it work at scale.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 12, 2026

Guides

How Consumption-Based Billing Works for AI Products

See how consumption-based billing works for AI products, from usage events and credit ledgers to real-time controls that stop runaway compute.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 10, 2026

Guides

Metered Billing Explained: Architecture, Pitfalls, Systems

Metered billing breaks when systems drift. Learn how to manage usage, pricing, and enforcement without constant debugging or billing issues.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 10, 2026

Guides

Monetization Infrastructure: Systems Behind Pricing

Monetization infrastructure is the layer between product usage and revenue. Learn about what it includes, how it fits your stack, and what breaks without it.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 10, 2026

Guides

Stripe Usage-Based Billing: What Stripe Handles (and Doesn’t)

Explore how Stripe usage-based billing works, where its architecture stops, and how teams extend it with entitlements and product catalogs.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 10, 2026

Guides

Billing System Architecture vs. Entitlements Explained

Billing system architecture manages invoices and payments. Entitlements control product access and limits. See how both layers fit into a modern software stack.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 8, 2026

Guides

Consumption-Based Pricing Models: Types and Systems

Explore types of consumption-based pricing models and how systems track usage, apply pricing, and enforce limits in production.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 8, 2026

Guides

8 AI Billing Platforms for Tokens, Credits, and Inference

8 AI billing software platforms compared for tokens, credits, and inference pricing. Includes pricing, implementation complexity, and honest pros and cons.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

6 Subscription Management Software Built for AI Product Teams

Flat monthly plans are the easy case. Here are 6 subscription management platforms that handle the harder requirements most AI products actually run into.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

Product Monetization Models and Engineering Trade-Offs

Explore product monetization strategies and what they require from your stack, including pricing catalogs, metering, and real-time limits.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

A Guide to Quote-to-Cash (Q2C) for AI Products

How the quote-to-cash process works for AI products, where it breaks for usage-based and credit models, and what the enforcement layer looks like.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

Revenue Leakage & How AI Products Can Prevent It

Most revenue leakage guides were written for subscription SaaS. AI products leak differently and earlier. Here is what causes it and how to close the gap.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

Usage-Based Pricing Examples: 5 Models Explained

See real usage-based pricing examples and what it takes to build them. Covers metering, enforcement, credits, and scaling challenges.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

Price Localization: Strategy, Examples, and Infrastructure

Understand price localization, regional pricing strategies, and the infrastructure needed to manage pricing across markets and currencies.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Best Practices

Dynamic Paywalls: From Feature Gates to Metered Usage

See how dynamic paywalls handle feature gates, trials, credit balances, and dynamic metered paywalls without hardcoded plan logic.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 7, 2026

Guides

Usage Metering Explained: Architecture and Pipelines

Learn how usage metering works across ingestion, aggregation, and enforcement. Covers real-time tracking and scaling for production systems.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 6, 2026

Guides

Credit Pricing: Models, Infrastructure, and Pitfalls

Credit pricing breaks under scale without the right setup. This guide covers concurrency, ledgers, and enforcement for production credit systems.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 6, 2026

Guides

8 Best Generative AI Usage-Based Billing Software in 2026

Generative AI usage-based billing software compared across 8 platforms. Includes pricing, engineering complexity, AI metric support, and pros and cons.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 6, 2026

Guides

API Monetization: Pricing, Enforcement, and What Billing Misses

API monetization fails when the enforcement layer is missing. Here's what each pricing model requires and why billing tools alone aren't always enough.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 6, 2026

Guides

Usage-Based API Billing: The Architecture Behind AI Credits

The credit layer in usage-based API billing is different from standard metering. Here's what it requires in real-world production deployments.

Sara Nelissen

Jul 6, 2026

Guides

AI Billing Infrastructure: Why Billing Alone Isn't Enough

AI billing infrastructure for production means more than wiring up Stripe. Here is the enforcement and entitlements layer most engineering teams skip.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 26, 2026

Guides

AI Token Cost Explained: Tracking, Enforcement, and Control

AI token cost control happens in the request path. Here’s what engineering teams need to control spend, enforce limits, and support enterprise governance.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 26, 2026

Guides

Overage Fees Guide: Pricing Models and Enforcement

A practical guide to overage fees for engineers. Learn how systems handle limits, pricing, and enforcement across real-time usage.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 23, 2026

Guides

Value-Based Pricing: When the Strategy Isn't Enough

Value-based pricing breaks when the infrastructure can't enforce it. Here is where AI teams run into trouble and how to fix it.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 23, 2026

Guides

Pricing Simulation: How to Test AI Pricing Models Before Launch

Pricing simulation helps you test pricing models before launch. This guide shows you how to validate entitlements, credits, and limits under real usage.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 23, 2026

Guides

Billing Software Architecture: A Practical Guide

Standard billing software architecture was built for post-usage settlement. Here is what AI products need on top of it to enforce limits in real time.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 15, 2026

Guides

Top 11 Billing System Requirements for AI SaaS Products

Billing system requirements most teams miss only become obvious after an overage or a stalled deal. Here are 11 worth building for before that happens.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 15, 2026

Guides

6 Software Licensing Models + Enforcement Requirements

Software licensing models shape how products enforce access, usage, and credits. Learn more about how each model affects entitlements and runtime control.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 15, 2026

Guides

Token-Based Pricing: How It Works + Implementation Guide

A complete guide to token-based pricing, including architecture, entitlements, credits, and real-time enforcement in the request path.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

6 AI Pricing Models in 2026 That Shape Costs

AI pricing in 2026 depends on tokens, credits, and tiers. This guide shows you 6 pricing models and what each requires from your infrastructure.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

Amberflo Pricing: Plans, Costs, and What You Actually Pay

Amberflo pricing explained for engineers. Learn more about plans, costs, pricing models, and how usage-based billing scales with event volume and revenue.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

9 Amberflo Alternatives: What Reduced Engineering Overhead?

Compare 9 Amberflo alternatives built for engineers. Learn more about which tools make billing simpler and which ones just push logic into your codebase.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

Multi-Tenant vs. Single-Tenant for Engineers: Which to Choose?

Compare multi-tenant vs. single-tenant architecture across cost, isolation, and scalability. Learn what breaks under load and how to properly enforce usage.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

Entitlement Management Solutions for AI Products: Build vs. Buy

Learn about how entitlement management solutions work for AI-native products, where in-house systems fall short, and how to decide between build and buy.

Sara Nelissen

Jun 11, 2026

Guides

Metronome Pricing Guide: Plans, Costs, and Alternatives

Learn how Metronome pricing works after the Stripe acquisition: Starter and Custom plans, cost drivers, and where it fits in your stack.

Sara Nelissen

May 28, 2026

Guides

License Entitlements: Guide for Engineering Teams

Learn how license entitlements work, why AI products need a real-time usage runtime, and how to decide between building this layer in-house or buying it.

Sara Nelissen

May 28, 2026

Guides

Metronome Reviews: Pros, Cons, and Real User Feedback

Read Metronome reviews from real users. Learn about its strengths, limitations, and where it fits in a modern AI billing and credits stack.

Sara Nelissen

May 22, 2026

Guides

Hybrid Pricing Model Guide: The AI Infrastructure Problem

A hybrid pricing model combines subscriptions with credit or token usage. Learn how it shapes metering, entitlements, and enforcement in modern AI stacks.

Sara Nelissen

May 22, 2026

Guides

AI Credit Infrastructure for LLM Products: From Design to Scale

AI credits in LLM products are a runtime infrastructure problem. Learn how to architect metering, enforcement, ledger design, and failure points at scale.

Sara Nelissen

May 20, 2026

Guides

What is a Token in AI? Pricing and Usage Explained

Understand what a token in AI is, and how token usage impacts pricing, credits, and enforcement in production systems.

Sara Nelissen

May 20, 2026

Guides

Monetizing AI Products: Pricing Models, Infrastructure & ROI

A technical guide to monetizing AI products. Learn pricing models, entitlements, and infrastructure needed to capture ROI from AI features.

Sara Nelissen

May 11, 2026

Guides

Entitlement Management System: A Guide for AI Engineers

An EMS decides what every customer is allowed to do at runtime. Here's how it works, how it differs from RBAC, and when to stop building it yourself.

Sara Nelissen

May 11, 2026

Guides

Embedded Software Monetization: 7 Models & Systems

Each embedded software monetization model hits your infrastructure differently. Here are 7 models, what they demand, and where they break at scale.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 31, 2026

Guides

Build vs. Buy: Why Engineers Struggle with Billing Infrastructure

Every in-house billing system works well at first. Learn about why it breaks at scale and what the full infrastructure stack actually includes.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 31, 2026

Guides

Subscription Lifecycle Management: 6 Phases & Examples

Subscription lifecycle management covers every stage of the customer journey. Learn the phases, key metrics, and real-world examples.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 31, 2026

Guides

9 Enterprise Subscription Management Best Practices for Engineers

Most enterprise subscription management systems fail when pricing changes outgrow them. Here are the 9 best practices engineering teams use to stay ahead.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 25, 2026

Guides

6 API Monetization Models & Which to Choose

Pay-per-use, freemium, credits, subscriptions, and more. Learn how each API monetization model works, what it demands, and when to use it.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 25, 2026

Guides

Feature Gating & 8 Ways to Implement It

Every engineering team starts by building feature gating in-house. Then they grapple with whether they should keep maintaining it. Here's how to decide.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 11, 2026

Guides

Usage-Based Pricing: 6 Models, Benefits & How to Implement

Usage-based pricing charges for actual usage instead of fixed monthly fees. This guide covers 6 models, benefits, challenges, and implementation.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 10, 2026

Guides

25 SaaS pricing page examples that make complex pricing clear

How do top SaaS companies structure pricing pages for multiple tiers, usage limits, and add-ons? We broke down 25 SaaS pricing page examples to find out.

Sara Nelissen

Mar 10, 2026