How to tell if your startup actually needs usage-based billing (i will not promote)

In the last year GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Lovable, and Vercel all rewired their pricing toward usage. Cursor had to open refund windows when it switched. When four tools in one category move the same direction inside twelve months, it's worth asking why, and whether you're next. The uncomfortable reason: once AI is in the product, your most engaged customer is often your least profitable one. Flat pricing was built for software where one more user costs almost nothing. AI inference costs real money per reque