Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said agentic AI is fully accretive for software companies during a CNBC Power Lunch interview [1].
This perspective addresses a critical debate in the technology sector regarding whether artificial intelligence will replace existing software platforms or enhance them. Huang said that AI agents do not disrupt the business models of software providers but instead add measurable value to their products [1, 2].
Huang said that the application layer is the primary location where AI creates value for enterprises [1, 2]. By integrating agentic AI, systems capable of taking autonomous action to achieve goals, software companies can increase both the productivity of their users and their own revenue streams [1, 2].
During the discussion, which featured ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott as a co-host, Huang said the symbiotic relationship between the hardware that powers AI and the software that delivers it to the end user is key [1]. He said that the ability for AI to act as an agent allows software to move beyond simple data processing into active task execution [1, 2].
"Agentic AI is fully accretive for software companies," Huang said [1].
The shift toward agentic systems represents a transition from generative AI, which primarily creates content, to a model focused on operational autonomy [1]. This evolution allows software firms to offer more comprehensive solutions to corporate clients, potentially increasing the lifetime value of their software subscriptions [1, 2].
“Agentic AI is fully accretive for software companies.”
Huang's assertion counters the 'AI cannibalization' theory, which suggests that AI might make traditional software-as-a-service (SaaS) platforms obsolete. By framing agentic AI as 'accretive,' he is signaling to investors and partners that the AI transition will likely expand the total addressable market for software companies rather than shrinking it through disruption.
