I wake up. Pour some coffee. Answer a few emails.
And then I fire up Replit.
And we just pick up right where we were yesterday.
No complaints. No arguments. No forgetting what we discussed last week. No sick days. No b.s. No drama. No pretending to understand when they don’t. No two-week notices.
We just … get to work.
The New Workplace Reality
Here’s what I’m seeing, and what you’re probably seeing too: we’re entering an era where we’d rather work with an AI Agent that’s easy to work with, than a human that… isn’t.
If an AI Agent can do it, we’ll prefer it.
Even if it’s not as good as a great sales exec, marketer, or developer.
That’s the point many are missing. The AI Agent doesn’t have to be much better than a human, if it works 24×7, without drama, and 95%+ reliably.
A B level AI SDR over a B+ human who brings drama, politics, and unpredictability?
That’s becoming an easy call. For the AI SDR.
The delta just isn’t big enough anymore.
Why B Players Are Now All at Risk
Let me be clear: the truly great people — your A+ players — they’re not going anywhere. They’re still few and far between. They’re still invaluable. They bring creativity, strategic thinking, emotional intelligence, and judgment that AI can’t touch yet. And yes, they probably can manage and orchestrate 10+ AI Agents, so they are and will be even more valuable than before.
But B players? That’s a different story.
Because here’s the thing about AI Agents: they’re always there.
- No drama
- No ego
- No politics
- No bad days
- No “I forgot”
- No “that’s not my job”
- No “I need to think about my career path”
Just… there. Always. Consistently executing at a B level.
An A Player Will Beat An AI. But How Many A’s Do You Really Have On Your Team?
And in 2025 and beyond, that consistency is becoming more valuable than the occasional brilliance mixed with frequent mediocrity that characterizes most B players.
The Math That’s Coming Soon, And Already Here For Some
Let’s do some honest math that every B2B leader will soon be doing, and some already are.
B+ Human Sales Development Rep:
- Costs: $70K base + $50K OTE + benefits + taxes + expenses = ~$170K fully loaded
- Delivers: 15-20 qualified meetings per month
- But also brings: missed follow-ups, inconsistent messaging, needs management time, wants career development, might leave in 6-12 months. Often with zero notice.
B-Level AI SDR:
- Costs: $500-$5,000 per month (depending on platform)
- Delivers: 12-18 qualified meetings per month
- And brings: perfect consistency, 24/7 availability, instant scalability, never leaves, continuous improvement
The human is maybe 20% better at the core job. But the AI is 95% cheaper, 100% more reliable, and 1000% less complicated.
That’s not a hard decision anymore.
For example red hot $8B+ Vercel? They have one human on their entire SDR team. Managing a team of agents. Perplexity had 5 human sales reps get them to the first 5,000 customers. Bolt.new had 3 sales reps get them to first $50m+ of ARR.
Yes, those are very “techie” and developer-centric companies. But they are also an example of where so many of us, especially in tech, will likely be in 18 months. Or sooner.
At little team SaaStr, we will never hire a human SDR again. But we will hire a human to manage our AI SDR agents. One human. Just one. (Let us know if that’s you!)
It’s Not Just About SDRs
This same calculus is playing out across every B-player role:
- Customer Success Managers who can handle the standard playbook but struggle with complex escalations? AI Agents are already managing routine check-ins, renewals, and upsells.
- Marketing coordinators who execute campaigns but don’t drive strategy? AI Agents are writing email sequences, managing social posts, and analyzing campaign performance.
- Junior developers who can code to spec but don’t architect systems? AI Agents are shipping features, fixing bugs, and writing tests.
- Operations analysts who can pull reports but don’t drive insights? AI Agents are crunching numbers, identifying trends, and creating dashboards.
In every case, the B player’s value proposition is collapsing. We just don’t want them on the team anymore.
What This Means for B2B Leaders
If you’re running a B2B company in 2025, you need to make some hard decisions:
First, ruthlessly identify your B players. Not to be cruel, but to be honest. Who on your team is doing solid work but not exceptional work? Who would you replace with an AI Agent if you could?
Second, upgrade or upgrade out. Your B players need a clear path to becoming A players, or they need to understand their role is at risk. This isn’t about being heartless. It’s about survival in an AI-first world.
Third, invest in your A players like never before. The delta between great and good is becoming a canyon. Pay more. Give more equity. Provide better development. Whatever it takes to keep your exceptional people.
Fourth, embrace AI Agents aggressively. Don’t wait for perfection. A B-level AI Agent today is better than a B-level human for most repeatable tasks. Start testing, start implementing, start learning.
No One Wants to Hire Placeholder Hires or “Maybe Good Enough” Hires Anymore
I’m not celebrating this shift. I’m not rooting for mass unemployment. I’m not saying humans don’t matter.
But I am saying this: the era of “good enough” being good enough is over. Or close to it.
For decades, companies hired B players because they needed bodies in seats. They needed someone to make the calls, send the emails, write the code, manage the customers. And B players could do that.
But AI Agents can do that now too.
And they can do it without all the human stuff that makes B players expensive and complicated.
The harsh reality? Most companies have been settling for B players. Not because they wanted to, but because A players are expensive and hard to find, and B players were “good enough.
What This Means for B Players
If you’re reading this and thinking “am I a B player?” — that’s actually a good sign. Self-awareness is the first step.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Specialize in what AI can’t do (yet). Strategic thinking. Creative problem-solving. Complex relationship management. Judgment calls in ambiguous situations. These are still human domains.
- Become an AI power user. For real. If you can’t beat them, work with them. The people who learn to leverage AI Agents as force multipliers will become A players. Those who resist will become obsolete.
- Deliver exceptional, not adequate. “Meeting expectations” isn’t a career strategy anymore. You need to exceed expectations. Consistently. Dramatically.
- Own outcomes, not tasks. AI Agents can do tasks. Humans need to own results. If you’re just checking boxes, you’re vulnerable. If you’re driving revenue, reducing churn, or shipping products that matter — you’re valuable.
The Future is Almost Here. It’s Already Here on Team SaaStr.
Every morning, I wake up and choose: Do I want to work with an AI Agent that’s reliable, consistent, and drama-free? Or do I want to work with a human who might be 10-20% better but comes with all the complexity of being human?
For A players, that’s an easy call. I want the human. They’re worth it. They’re irreplaceable.
For B players? I’m choosing the AI Agent more and more often.
And so is every other SaaS founder, CEO, and leader I talk to.
The death of the B player isn’t coming. It’s already here.
The only question left is: what are you going to do about it.
