HUBS
Founder energy, not panic energy
HubSpot has been getting treated like the kid who showed up to the wrong class: software investors have spent the past year worrying AI could make its products less essential. Meanwhile, co-founder and CTO Dharmesh Shah decided to buy 10,000 shares for about $1.8 million and basically tell the market, nah, I’m good.
The AI anxiety is real — but so is the counterargument
Shah’s pitch is pretty simple: AI agents still need a platform to work inside, pull context from, and take action on. In other words, the robots may be getting smarter, but they still need software infrastructure to do anything useful. His line that “completely humanless is not a good idea” is classic founder confidence, but it also hints at HubSpot’s bet: AI won’t kill CRM, it’ll make the best platforms even more valuable.
Insiders are voting with their wallets
Shah wasn’t alone. The company’s CEO Yamini Rangan and board chair Lorrie Norrington also reportedly bought shares, which makes this feel less like one billionaire founder’s hobby and more like a coordinated “we think the market is overreacting” moment.
At the same time, analysts have been busy cutting ratings and price targets, so you’ve got the usual Wall Street tug-of-war: insiders saying the long-term story is intact, and skeptics saying the near-term setup is still ugly.
Big picture
HubSpot is still fighting through a brutal drawdown, but insider buying after a weak stretch can matter. It doesn’t guarantee a rebound, sure — but it does tell you the people closest to the business aren’t exactly running for the exits.