https://markrichman.com/blog Cloud economics, technical due diligence, and technology leadership for private equity. en-us Sun, 16 Aug 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/model-tiering-portfolio-ai-costs https://markrichman.com/blog/model-tiering-portfolio-ai-costs Most AI workloads route every request to the most capable model. Segmenting traffic by difficulty typically cuts inference costs 60-80%. Sun, 16 Aug 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/ai-unit-economics-gross-margin https://markrichman.com/blog/ai-unit-economics-gross-margin AI inference costs scale with usage while SaaS pricing stays fixed. Why that breaks unit economics, and how to model it during diligence. Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/ai-whitewashing-pe-diligence https://markrichman.com/blog/ai-whitewashing-pe-diligence How to distinguish genuine AI capability from a thin wrapper around someone else's model during technical due diligence, and what each is worth. Tue, 04 Aug 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/reserved-instances-vs-on-demand-pe https://markrichman.com/blog/reserved-instances-vs-on-demand-pe A non-technical guide to AWS commitment pricing for PE investors: Reserved Instances, Savings Plans, EDPs, coverage ratios and diligence red flags. Tue, 17 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/preparing-cloud-infrastructure-exit https://markrichman.com/blog/preparing-cloud-infrastructure-exit What buyers look for in cloud infrastructure during diligence, and how 6-12 months of preparation can materially improve exit multiples. Fri, 13 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/saas-companies-overspend-cloud https://markrichman.com/blog/saas-companies-overspend-cloud Why SaaS companies routinely overspend on cloud by 30-50%, the patterns behind the waste, and the direct impact on gross margins and valuation. Tue, 10 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/post-acquisition-cloud-optimization-90-days https://markrichman.com/blog/post-acquisition-cloud-optimization-90-days A 90-day cloud optimization playbook for PE operating teams: phased milestones, expected savings timelines, and practical implementation guidance. Sat, 07 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-infrastructure-valuation-multiples https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-infrastructure-valuation-multiples How cloud infrastructure efficiency moves valuation, with a Technology Risk Assessment framework for scoring maturity against EBITDA multiples. Thu, 05 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/finops-private-equity https://markrichman.com/blog/finops-private-equity What FinOps is, why PE-backed companies need it, and how its three phases — Inform, Optimize, Operate — drive EBITDA and higher exit multiples. Tue, 03 Feb 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-due-diligence-checklist https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-due-diligence-checklist A comprehensive cloud due diligence framework for PE transactions covering cost management, architecture, security, operations, and vendor relationships. Tue, 27 Jan 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/true-cost-cloud-waste-portfolio-companies https://markrichman.com/blog/true-cost-cloud-waste-portfolio-companies Explore the four major categories of cloud waste in PE portfolio companies, with confidence levels and typical dollar impact for each category. Tue, 20 Jan 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-costs-ebitda-pe-guide https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-costs-ebitda-pe-guide Understand how cloud infrastructure costs flow through financial statements and directly impact EBITDA, with practical optimization examples for PE investors. Tue, 13 Jan 2026 09:00:00 GMT https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-red-flags-pe-diligence https://markrichman.com/blog/cloud-red-flags-pe-diligence Five cloud infrastructure warning signs PE firms overlook during due diligence, and why each one directly changes deal economics. Tue, 06 Jan 2026 09:00:00 GMT