AI Knowhow Breaking the Growth Barrier, Part 1
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Mar 16, 2026 Pete Buer, a services exec who scaled CED toward a billion-dollar exit, and David DeWolf, Knownwell CEO with deep services-scaling experience, discuss hitting revenue ceilings, why bespoke delivery and unicorn talent limit growth, and how AI, automation, and productization let firms bend the revenue-cost curve. They map AI use cases across the client lifecycle and outline two scaling strategies.
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Redlining Growth Felt Like Blowing The Engine
- Pete Buer describes the sensation of redlining growth while adding products, people, and geographies.
- He compares the experience to ‘trees just don't grow to the sky’ after pushing custom research, advisory, and acquisitions hard.
It Is Lonely At The Top Of Services Market
- Very few services firms reach the top revenue tiers; the market distribution is heavily skewed to small firms.
- David DeWolf notes small firms (0–$5M) make up ~65% and 250+ firms are so few they needed a ‘long, skinny rectangle’ on the chart.
Unicorn Talent Plus Bespoke Delivery Breaks Economics
- Two core growth drains: expensive specialized 'unicorn' talent and bespoke delivery that multiplies complexity.
- Pete explains unicorns are costly to find, keep, and support while bespoke work adds layers of overhead with each new market or product.