AI isn't replacing people in GTM. But it is reshaping our mindset.
The big shift I see is two things. Focus moving toward two edges.
System building on one side.
Taste and brand building on the other.
I think this is an exciting chapter in our industry.
In the SaaS era, GTM got bogged down with funnel busywork. A bunch of roles became vendor managers, process managers, human middleware. None of it made the system compound or the brand stronger. Now AI is taking that average work. So people get to focus on more interesting things.
To thrive in this AI world, I think GTM leaders need to fight against the average middle and lean into both edges.
Here are the patterns showing up on each.
1.) Systems
Builders are taking over the GTM org. I see it in the hiring data: GTM Engineers, Marketing Engineers, Applied AI. These are hot roles in 2026.
Meanwhile, we've grown tired of the old GTM tech paradigm. "Stacks" of SaaS UIs, connected by human middleware, never really doing what you need. AI tools have allowed us to create custom agents and skills that work how we want. It doesn't mean we are replacing all SaaS. But it means we're shifting from clicking 14 browser tabs to using agents and skills for leverage.
Claude Code, Codex, Clay, n8n, Dust, and dozens of disruptive GTM Developer Tools are hot because they serve this new class of builders.
And now traditional SaaS platforms are shipping "headless" and agent-friendly surfaces to stay in the picture. Salesforce was the first to name this.
"Salesforce Headless 360 is here—no browser required. … The entire Salesforce, Agentforce, and Slack platforms are now fully exposed as APIs, MCP, and CLI. Our API is the UI."
But they aren't alone. HubSpot's Dharmesh Shah is making the same move on the CRM side. Every SaaS product will be agent-friendly or headless in the next 18 months.
"Agents can run on HubSpot. And agents can RUN HubSpot. … agents can operate the platform end-to-end through our APIs, MCP server, CLI (and whatever access methods come next)."
I expect the fastest-growing companies to keep leaning into systems, AI builder roles, and rethinking the tech stack. As I monitor their job boards, the examples keep showing up:
Figma — Marketing Engineer, AI Deployment — owns a "GitHub-managed marketing AI cortex."
Ramp — Agentic Operator, Growth Marketing — hired to build the growth team's marketing agents.
Toast — Senior GTM Engineer, AI Innovation — a Marketing Ops role hired to "ship the systems that transform how Toast's go-to-market teams operate," staying "hands-on as a builder."
The first wave was individual builders. Now the leadership roles are coming.
Ashby — Director, GTM Engineering & Systems ($240–265K) — manages "a team of systems administrators, architects and GTM developers… you don't just 'add fields,' you build scalable systems." Ashby, the ATS half these reqs are posted on, needs the role too.
Airwallex — Director, GTM Engineering ($300–330K) — "a hands-on architect who ships… comfortable with APIs, data models, workflow engines, and code."
Algolia — VP, AI-Native Ops & Automation, GTM (reports to the CEO) — "This is not a traditional RevOps role."
In Kyle Poyar's H1 2026 State of GTM Hiring Report (120K+ job posts via Sumble), GTM engineering headcount has doubled, with 400+ GTM engineers now at US digital natives. Clay named the movement in 2024. It's a real discipline now.
2.) Taste
This is not really new, but there's new urgency and focus because buyer behavior has changed. Buyers don't need to fill your forms anymore (or even visit your website). The have a higher bar and agents filtering vendor noise.
So the MQL machine is losing leverage, and competition is shifting to brand, community, the human stuff that beats the slop. This also shows up in the hiring trends: Mercury's Head of Brand JD at $258-335K, LangChain's Head of Narratives. Software companies acquiring media operators.
It's the dynamic Elena Verna calls out in "Growth is Now a Trust Problem." When execution commoditizes, the value migrates to what AI can't fake.
We feel it as buyers too. Flooded with AI slop, we notice the brands who "get it" standing out from the noise. My friend Dave said it well:
"We will place more value on the real. The authentic. The imperfect. To know it was made by a human."
I went deeper on this pattern in Brand is back in B2B. Some of my favorite examples:
Mercury — Head of Brand Marketing ($258–335K) — "Build the story for what it means for a tech company to own a bank." (My most-viewed role post yet.)
Vanta — VP of Brand ($275–315K) — "This is not a brand stewardship role. It is a brand creation role."
Cohere — Head of Brand Marketing — "The product is technical. The buyer is technical. The category is loud. None of that exempts us from being a brand people actually want to be near."
LangChain — Head of Narratives (~$210–230K) — a "media company operator" to define what LangChain should be known for.
Anthropic — Head of Copy & Content, Creative Studio ($320–400K).
Harvey — Head of Content & Strategy ($208–282K).
These aren't junior social/content hires. They're senior strategic creative roles.
What I'm watching
These are opposite muscles. Systems is a RevOps and technology mindset. Taste is the creative, brand, and community side B2B has always struggled with.
How will leaders drive focus and re-shape their approach? Will they continue to get bogged down in the old world?
I try to be a student of this game. That's my best current take, and the one thing I know is it's hard to predict.
Do you see it barbelling this way? Curious how others read the mid-2026 situation.
I'd love to hear from you.