noun

saas

Everything can be a service if you squint hard enough.

Acronym for “software as a service.” Pronounced ‘sass’.

Refers to software that can be accessed (for free or through a fee-based subscription) through an internet browser, without having to install and run software on your computer. SAAS is closely related to cloud computing, as the software itself runs “on the cloud,” as opposed to on your computer. Common examples include Google Docs, but SAAS is now a $70 billion+ market covering a huge variety of software.

The success of this acronym and model has prompted the creation of an absurd zoo of “X-as-a-service” names, including “identity as a service” and “robot as a service.”

If you want to get more attention from a venture capitalist, try adding ‘as-a-service’ to the end of any noun. Government-as-a-service! Policy-as-a-service! It is OK if this does not make much sense — just plan to pivot later.