WorkThe story, in brief
AI vendors have found someone to pay their infrastructure bills: You
Forrester just issued a warning: AI vendors are shifting infrastructure costs directly to your software budget through hidden price hikes and usage charges.
The KeyNews take
Why it matters
As AI infrastructure costs remain stubbornly high, vendors are passing expenses to enterprise customers through opaque pricing models and usage-based billing—forcing CTOs and CFOs to rethink their AI software spend for 2026-2027.
The key facts
5 to knowForrester warning on price hikes and usage charges in 2026
AI vendors shifting infrastructure cost burden to customers
Enterprise software budgets under pressure from AI pricing models
Usage-based billing emerging as standard AI vendor practice
Strategic implication: CFO/CTO decision-making on AI vendor selection and cost forecasting
Go to the source
The Register AI/MLtheregister.com
Publisher excerpt: Forrester warns price hikes and usage charges will pump up software budgets next year