Revenue addiction kills companies.

Revenue addiction — optimizing everything for short-term revenue at the expense of innovation, culture, and customer value — has always been a slow killer for companies. In the current AI disruption era, it has become fatal. Companies fixated on quarterly revenue targets kill risk-taking, suppress long-term bets, poison culture, and lose sight of customers. The alternative is treating revenue as an output of delivering customer value, not the primary objective. Using Lovable as an example, the author advocates for North Star metrics tied to product engagement and qualitative customer satisfaction scores. Revenue addiction is nearly impossible to cure from within; employees should plan their exit if they see the signs, while founders and execs must make structural changes at the leadership level before it's too late.