“Do you give users access to your best performing model that might cost more than other models or can you convert them with lesser quality models that are cheaper and so there's this whole new subscription playbook.”

AI Compute Costs Are Forcing A New Subscription Playbook: Which Model Tier Converts?

AI-native apps face a subscription design challenge that didn't exist pre-2023: the cost of your best model may only be recoverable from paid users. Jeff describes a new tier question — can you convert users on cheaper models, then upsell them to premium model access? This creates a model-quality axis for subscription packaging that classic apps never had to think about.