[AI Monetization Begins] SaaS May Lay a Solid Foundation for Operating Cash Flow

English summary

### [AI Monetization Begins] SaaS May Lay a Solid Foundation for Operating Cash Flow

Time: 2026-07-31 10:56:44

Content: 1. Microsoft's financial report disclosed Azure and cloud services revenue up 43% year-over-year, with the company guiding next quarter's growth to further rise to 45%. 365 Copilot paid seats increased +50% quarter-over-quarter, far exceeding market expectations. Operating cash flow was $55.4 billion, up +30% year-over-year. Holding $678 billion in long-term cloud performance obligations, up 84% year-over-year, future revenue has strong certainty. AI investment is no longer just squeezing profits but has been transformed into tangible performance increments.

2. Seat growth + year-over-year improvement in operating cash flow can lay an effective foundation for the AI commercialization closed loop, while the SaaS business model can effectively alleviate cash flow pressure from Capex investment.

3. Although the application closed loop still needs continuous verification in the current market, capital expenditure has already created incremental revenue. It is recommended to prioritize software targets with low valuations, SaaS, and productized business models. ...