# Top 10 in Tech - What to know for Week ending October 31, 2025

Published: 30 October 2025
Canonical: https://www.top10in.tech/posts/week-ending-october-31-2025

## 1. SaaS METRIC OF THE WEEK

CARR - [Contracted Annual Recurring Revenue](https://www.thesaascfo.com/contracted-annual-recurring-revenue). This is a forward-looking SaaS revenue metric that estimates the maximum revenue size of a SaaS company, measuring current recurring revenue from your SaaS P&L and future revenue that sits in newly won customer contracts.

Link: https://www.thesaascfo.com/contracted-annual-recurring-revenue

## 2. PRODUCT-MARKET FIT

Finding Product-market fit isn't a one-and-done event—just as the product you ship, it's an ongoing process. [This updated playbook](https://iwantproductmarketfit.substack.com/p/my-updated-playbook-to-product-market) breaks down the key signals, from retention curves to sales velocity, and the tactical moves to iterate faster. If you're still guessing, this is your roadmap.

Link: https://iwantproductmarketfit.substack.com/p/my-updated-playbook-to-product-market

## 3. UNDERSELL

If expansion fits into your growth strategy (it should) take a read of two-part series from Tomasz Tunguz and Bill Binch - part one is [deliberately underselling as a sales strategy](https://tomtunguz.com/deliberately-underselling/) to minimize churn and increase upsell/expansion opportunities as a land and expand strategy and post 2 is an expansion of land and expand witch details [how to structure a Startup sales team for optimal land & expand](https://tomtunguz.com/how-to-structure-land-and-expand-ae/).

Link: https://tomtunguz.com/deliberately-underselling/

## 4. COMPENSATION

Early-stage comp is more art than science, and most founders are so hectic at this point that it's easy to get it wrong. [This First Round](https://review.firstround.com/what-early-stage-founders-should-know-about-comp-the-rules-to-break-and-a-few-you-should-actually-follow/) piece offers tactical advice on what to break (like "market rate" rules), what to follow (like transparency), and how to build trust before you build out pay bands. A little more in talky format [here](https://blog.staysaasy.com/p/episode-5-compensation).

Link: https://review.firstround.com/what-early-stage-founders-should-know-about-comp-the-rules-to-break-and-a-few-you-should-actually-follow/

## 5. PRODUCT

Here is a tech-ism I like - AI changes everything and nothing at all. [Teresa Torres is here to remind us all that AI is great and all, but great product work still always starts with understanding user needs](https://www.producttalk.org/ai-changes-everything-and-nothing-at-all/). (and [here](https://hellooperator.substack.com/p/how-to-figure-out-what-customers) is how you find out what they care about).

Link: https://www.producttalk.org/ai-changes-everything-and-nothing-at-all/

## 6. MENTOR

SaaS founders don't need perfect advisors; we all need people who've broken shit and learned from it. [This guide covers why mentorship matters](https://www.beautyofsaas.com/p/mentors-why-you-need-one-what-it-takes-how-to-get-them), how to earn it, and how to keep it useful. Includes outreach templates and cadence tips that can work.

Link: https://www.beautyofsaas.com/p/mentors-why-you-need-one-what-it-takes-how-to-get-them

## 7. VENTURE

Good VC pulse check. This [pod n' post breaks down the "Great VC Shuffle,"](https://www.saastr.com/20vc-x-saastr-this-week-the-great-vc-shuffle-tam-exhaustion-in-ai-and-why-a-billion-in-arr-is-still-early/) what's driving TAM fatigue in AI (bubble anyone?), and why $1B ARR is still just getting started (broken liquidity pipeline). Good follow-up to the State of Software signals from [last week's newsletter](https://www.top10in.tech/top-10-in-tech/top-10-in-tech-what-to-know-for-week-ending-october-24-2025).

Link: https://www.saastr.com/20vc-x-saastr-this-week-the-great-vc-shuffle-tam-exhaustion-in-ai-and-why-a-billion-in-arr-is-still-early/

## 8. LIQUIDITY

Fast follow from #8 above. If IPOs stay rare and private rounds dry up, who buys the next crop of SaaS companies? [Lemkin breaks down the likely acquirers](https://saastr.com/who-will-buy-the-saas-companies) (and what they're really after). Probably means some top-of-the-heap consolidation is on the way.

Link: https://saastr.com/who-will-buy-the-saas-companies

## 9. DECIDE

Good decision-making isn't just speed, it's perception, insight, and good judgment - which [this Forbes article consultingly wraps up as discernment](https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbescoachescouncil/2024/03/04/discernment-a-critical-leadership-power-for-upgrading-decision-making/). It also has 10 sharp rules to upgrade how you make calls as a founder or operator. Not new ideas, just well-said reminders worth keeping as an easily accessible reminder. I prefer this analogy, too - A[fire ain't no emergency if you are the Fire Department](https://chaoticgood.management/a-fire-is-not-an-emergency-for-the-fire-department/).

Link: https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbescoachescouncil/2024/03/04/discernment-a-critical-leadership-power-for-upgrading-decision-making/

## 10. CASE STUDY: AWS and AI

AWS currently dominates Public Cloud (did you forget what happened last week?) - we all assumed it was supposed to dominate AI too. But bloat, bureaucracy, and missed bets are showing up and slowing it down. B[loomberg breaks down why Amazon's cloud empire is stalling while others race ahead](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-10-24/amazon-s-aws-is-slowed-by-bloat-as-competitors-clinch-ai-deals).

Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-10-24/amazon-s-aws-is-slowed-by-bloat-as-competitors-clinch-ai-deals

## POD OF THE WEEK

No matter what [Robbie says in this Podcast from Lenny's Podcast](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOnsqqVbIeY) - Google Search IS changing ([60% of Google Search is now unclicked](https://www.seo.com/blog/zero-click-searches/#:~:text=How%20common%20are%20zero%2Dclick,decline%20by%2025%25%20in%202026.)). But launching AI Overviews was cool, and he has also scaled Stories and Reels at Instagram.

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOnsqqVbIeY