SaaStr AI Annual 2026: Gamma ($100M ARR, 50 People, No Sales Team) and Higgsfield ($0→$300M ARR, No Foundation Model) Showcase New Playbook

SaaStr·high signal

At SaaStr AI Annual (May 12-14, SF, 12,500+ attendees), two companies presented the emerging AI-native growth playbook. Gamma hit $100M ARR profitably with just 50 employees and zero sales team, using credit-based freemium conversion. Higgsfield went from $0 to $300M ARR producing 4.5M videos/day without ever training a foundation model. Both demonstrate that the AI-era SaaS company can reach 9-figure ARR with 10x fewer people by eliminating sales teams (product-led) and foundation model training (API-first). Attendance ran 140%+ of 2025 — budget is clearly moving.