SPS Commerce Will Start Charging For Its MAX AI Agents In 2027, But Wants Adoption First
CEO Chad Collins says the company will favor broad use over top price, with about 20 customers in co-development of the agent today.
SPS Commerce, which runs a cloud-based network that lets retailers, suppliers and logistics firms exchange orders and invoices, will begin charging for its MAX AI agents in 2027, CEO Chad Collins said on the company's third-quarter earnings call on Thursday. Adoption comes before price, he said.
Adoption before price
Asked by a Stifel analyst how SPS would balance broad use against making money, Collins said, "We will favor broad adoption." The more customers use the agents, he argued, the more apparent their value becomes, which will let the company "take price over the relationship with the customer."
He was explicit about timing: "we will be charging for the max agents in 2027." But the programs will focus on customer adoption that year "versus trying to maximize price before the customer really sees the value."
Collins told the call that upcoming fourth-quarter product launches keep the company on track to monetize its AI products next year. He called MAX agents the primary monetization mechanism going forward.
20 customers now, about 200 next
The MAX agent is in co-development with a group of about 20 customers, Collins told a William Blair analyst. He expects the early-adopter program to grow to about 200 customers as the company moves from the fourth quarter to the first quarter, many of them heavy users of MAX chat.
For proof of return, Collins pointed to Ripit Sports, a sporting-goods brand. In its first week live, he said, MAX saved the customer $200,000 by flagging chargebacks and late receivables its team could not see.
Separately, he said agentic onboarding, which uses AI agents to speed new customers onto the network, was a deciding factor in several competitive opportunities, because customers chose SPS for its speed. Its effect on gross margin so far is "minimal," he said.
The quarter behind the pitch
Revenue in the quarter was $197.6 million, up 4% from a year earlier, the CFO said. The sale of its 3P revenue recovery business on June 30 and weaker Amazon take-rate revenue together cut growth by 500 basis points, or five percentage points. Adjusted EBITDA rose 17% to $70.9 million, 36% of revenue.
The divestiture removed about 7,300 smaller customers from the count, which lifted average revenue per customer. Recurring revenue customers totaled 46,700, with average revenue per customer at $16,200.
For the fourth quarter, SPS guided to revenue of $199.3 million to $201.3 million. The CFO said Amazon policy changes and faster conversion of customers to subscriptions explained all of the guidance revision, and that without them the company would have raised its full-year outlook.
The CFO said SPS will give an updated adjusted EBITDA target and more color on 2027 on its fourth-quarter call.
Sources
- SPS Commerce: Q3 Earnings Snapshot – WTOP News — wtop.com
- SPS Commerce Reports Strong Third Quarter 2026 Financial — globenewswire.com
