ServiceNow Acquisition of Logik.Ai Could Shake Up B2B Commerce Market In Several Ways

The B2B platform market could be affected, and Salesforce continues to have attackers.

Having recently conducted some B2B RFPs, Logik.ai (I thought it was Logik.io - my what just a few months does to valuations of certain terminology !!) was one of the more universally recommended components by several platforms and SIs. Obviously several platforms have a full Configurator in the platform, but most do not, especially to a level of a Logik which has few limitations. The more SaaS-y platforms (BigC, Shopify, Shopware, there's more .. ) in particular are not going to replicate Logik.ai anytime in the next 5 years.

What could happen as a result of this acquisition of Logik by ServiceNow?

1 - Improvement. It's possible nothing changes. The product improves, the price stays relatively low-ish (it's expensive for what it is, but it is powerful if you need it) and things stay relatively the same. FB->Insta perhaps fits here.

2 - The Worsening. Often post-acquisition, price goes up and service levels go down quickly. Could this take a partner off the table for these platforms? This is most common.

3 - Somewhere in between? Steady as she goes for a few years until the principals leave? (see: Demandware)

And what will the platforms do?

1 - Build "enough configurator" into their platform and stop partnering so much. Seems likely, and companies like Amla/Znode have been taking this approach.

2 - Find other solutions? (Threekit Visual Commerce is a visual configurator for instance)

3 - Hope ServiceNow doesn't diminish the partnership?

ServiceNow is one of the hottest SaaS companies in the public markets right now, and a comparable for many. If they are focused more on Sales and Order-based enterprise-CRM in addition to their traditional IT Service Management, then B2B Commerce could have a major new player -- particularly since most B2B sales requires CRM as foundational.

Separately, I note that Salesforce is under attack from multiple angles: Shopify in eCommerce, and ServiceNow in well... Sales and Service. It's not lost on me that in the headline of the press release of the acquisition that "CRM" is the target market... and well, even Salesforce's ticker is, well.. "CRM". More competition ahead it seems to me.