Research in brief · 0:42
Software Got Cheap. Contracts Didn't.
When writing code costs almost nothing, value moves from applications to the handshakes between them.
Read the articleTranscript
Anyone can write software now. A store manager can describe a tool before breakfast and use it by lunch.
When building software costs almost nothing, code stops being a competitive advantage. Whatever stays expensive becomes the thing that matters.
Strip any application down and the same pattern remains. An order comes in, a picker confirms, shelf count changes, an invoice goes out.
Every handoff relies on an agreement: what the record looks like, who owns it, and how often it moves. That agreement is the contract.
Fix the contract and interfaces become liquid. A handoff can appear as a spreadsheet to a planner, a three-button card to a store associate, or a chart to a regional director.
The tools turn over constantly, but the contracts compound. Own the contracts, and let the software be cheap.