The Business Model Periodic Table
24 patterns that power every AI & software company — decoded through the lens of FourWeekMBA & Business Engineer
Revenue Engines
Platform Plays
AI-Native
Moat Builders
Revenue Engines
Sa
SaaS Subscription
$300B+
Ub
Usage-Based Pricing
$200B+
Fr
Freemium
$150B+
Ad
Attention Economy
$600B+
Tx
Transaction Tax
$200B+
Li
IP Licensing
$50B+
Platform Plays
Mk
Two-Sided Marketplace
$500B+ GMV
Pt
Platform Tax
$100B+
Dv
Developer Ecosystem
$50B+
Os
Open Core
$40B+
Ap
API Economy
$50B+
Bu
Bundling
$300B+
AI-Native Patterns
Ma
Model-as-a-Service
$30B+
Ps
Picks & Shovels
$500B+
Co
AI Copilot
$20B+
Ag
AI Agent Economy
$5B+
Ii
AI Infrastructure
$200B+
Df
Data Flywheel
$2T+
Moat Builders
Ne
Network Effects
$5T+
Sc
Switching Cost Lock-in
$200B+
Wg
Walled Garden
$3T+
Le
Land & Expand
$100B+
Vi
Vertical Integration
$3T+
Rb
Razor & Blade
$100B+
24
Patterns Mapped
4
Pattern Families
$10T+
Combined Market Value
100+
Companies Analyzed
Revenue Engines — How money comes in
Sa
SaaS Subscription
Recurring per-seat software licenses
SalesforceAdobe Creative CloudMicrosoft 365Zoom
Ub
Usage-Based Pricing
Pay for what you consume
AWSSnowflakeOpenAI APITwilio
Fr
Freemium
Free users fund the conversion engine
SpotifyZoomSlackCanva
Ad
Attention Economy
Monetizing user attention via targeted advertising
Google SearchMetaTikTokYouTube
Tx
Transaction Tax
Taking a cut of every transaction
StripeVisaPayPalAdyen
Li
IP Licensing
Royalties on intellectual property
ARMQualcommDolbyInterDigital
Platform Plays — How ecosystems create value
Mk
Two-Sided Marketplace
Connecting supply and demand at scale
Amazon MarketplaceUberAirbnbEtsy
Pt
Platform Tax
The 30% gatekeeper cut on distribution
Apple App StoreGoogle PlaySteamRoblox
Dv
Developer Ecosystem
Win developers to win enterprises
GitHubVercelUnityStripe
Os
Open Core
Free open-source core + paid enterprise layer
Red HatMongoDBElasticGitLab
Ap
API Economy
Functionality-as-a-Service via API calls
StripeTwilioPlaidAlgolia
Bu
Bundling
Multiple products, one price, maximum lock-in
Microsoft 365Amazon PrimeApple OneGoogle Workspace
AI-Native — Born from the AI revolution
Ma
Model-as-a-Service
Foundation model access via API
OpenAIAnthropicGoogle Gemini APICohere
Ps
Picks & Shovels
Selling tools to AI builders
NVIDIATSMCASMLBroadcom
Co
AI Copilot
AI assistant embedded in existing workflows
GitHub CopilotMicrosoft CopilotAdobe FireflyCursor
Ag
AI Agent Economy
Autonomous AI workers that execute tasks
Salesforce AgentforceDevin AIHarvey AICrewAI
Ii
AI Infrastructure
Compute, storage, and networking for AI
AWSMicrosoft AzureGoogle CloudCoreWeave
Df
Data Flywheel
More users, better AI, more users
Tesla AutopilotGoogle SearchTikTokNetflix
Moat Builders — How companies defend position
Ne
Network Effects
Each user makes the product more valuable for all
WhatsApp/FacebookLinkedInUberAirbnb
Sc
Switching Cost Lock-in
Making it too expensive to leave
Oracle DatabaseSAPWorkdayBloomberg Terminal
Wg
Walled Garden
Ecosystem where everything works best together
Apple ecosystemGoogle WorkspaceMicrosoft 365 + AzureAmazon
Le
Land & Expand
Start small, grow within the account
SlackAtlassianSnowflakeFigma
Vi
Vertical Integration
Own the full stack for total control
AppleTeslaNVIDIANetflix
Rb
Razor & Blade
Cheap hardware, expensive recurring revenue
PlayStation/XboxHP/Epson PrintersNespressoKindle
Business Engineer
Each pattern represents a strategic choice. Understand the architecture behind the world’s most valuable AI & software companies.