Stock Markets June 30, 2026 02:30 AM

Goldman Sachs Starts Coverage on Three Software Names It Sees as AI-Era Infrastructure Winners

Bank awards Buy ratings to Twilio, Braze and Klaviyo, citing competitive moats and pathways to margin improvement as enterprises adopt AI-enabled stacks

By Caleb Monroe
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Goldman Sachs began coverage of three software businesses with Buy ratings, identifying the firms as infrastructure and marketing-technology providers poised to benefit from enterprise adoption of artificial intelligence and modernization of technology stacks. The bank highlighted differentiated infrastructure, strong competitive moats, and visible opportunities for margin expansion. Twilio, Braze and Klaviyo each reported recent quarterly results or trends that Goldman says support growth and margin improvement prospects.

Goldman Sachs Starts Coverage on Three Software Names It Sees as AI-Era Infrastructure Winners
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Key Points

  • Goldman Sachs initiated coverage on Twilio, Braze and Klaviyo, assigning Buy ratings and citing their positions as infrastructure and marketing-technology providers poised to benefit from AI integration.
  • The bank highlighted differentiated infrastructure and clear paths to operating margin expansion as central reasons for favorable ratings; each company reported recent results or milestones that Goldman used to support its thesis.
  • Sectors impacted include enterprise technology, customer engagement platforms, marketing technology and e-commerce integrations.

Goldman Sachs has initiated coverage on three software companies, assigning Buy ratings to each and arguing that the trio - Twilio, Braze and Klaviyo - occupy favorable positions as enterprises evolve their technology footprints to incorporate artificial intelligence.

The investment bank framed its call around two central themes: companies with defensible infrastructure advantages and those with credible routes to expanding operating margins as customers modernize their systems. Goldman emphasized that these providers supply differentiated technical capabilities that, in the bank's view, make them attractive beneficiaries of the transition to AI-native enterprise applications.

Twilio

Goldman Sachs commenced coverage of Twilio with a Buy rating and described the communications infrastructure provider as particularly well-suited to the agentic AI era. The bank pointed to AI-driven shifts in customer service environments as creating a meaningful and durable tailwind for Twilio's voice business. While Goldman acknowledged that Twilio has experienced gross margin pressure stemming from messaging carrier fees, the analysts expressed confidence that margins will stabilize as higher-margin voice offerings and software add-ons gain traction. The bank also highlighted Twilio's deep communications infrastructure moat, saying it remains difficult for competitors to replicate.

Goldman further noted Twilio's own reporting of its first-quarter 2026 results, which the company said featured record growth and margin expansion, and underscored Twilio's positioning as a customer engagement platform designed for AI-native conversations.

Braze

Goldman Sachs also initiated coverage of Braze with a Buy rating. The bank described Braze as well-placed to capture market share from legacy marketing clouds amid a broader enterprise move toward modern, more flexible technology stacks as AI becomes more widely integrated. Goldman cited recent improvements in Braze's business model - including more flexible pricing and broader product capabilities - as creating a clear pathway to substantial operating margin expansion.

Analysts at Goldman viewed Braze's real-time, stream-processing infrastructure as a meaningful differentiator, enabling sophisticated cross-channel marketing automation that the bank said can exceed client expectations. The firm noted Braze's most recent quarterly results beat revenue expectations and that Braze subsequently raised full-year top-line guidance following its fourth consecutive quarter of organic acceleration.

Klaviyo

Goldman Sachs began coverage of Klaviyo with a Buy rating as well, and framed Klaviyo's close integration with Shopify as a strategic distribution advantage rather than merely a concentration risk. The bank pointed to Klaviyo's expanding roadmap - including product development in customer service and marketing analytics - as critical to growing customer wallet share and expanding the platform's use cases.

Despite noting recent market pressure on Klaviyo, Goldman maintained confidence in the company's fundamental health. The analysts said Klaviyo's ability to move upmarket and to expand into new verticals underpins prospects for sustained revenue growth and retention. Klaviyo reported first-quarter 2026 financial results that surpassed analyst forecasts for both revenue and earnings, prompting the company to raise guidance for the upcoming period.

Implications for markets and enterprise technology

Goldman's coverage signals the bank's view that certain software companies providing core infrastructure for customer engagement and marketing automation stand to benefit as enterprises incorporate AI. The analyst emphasis on margin expansion and differentiated infrastructure suggests a focus on unit economics, pricing flexibility and the ability to extend product suites - areas that will matter for investors evaluating software names in the AI transition.

Each company cited by Goldman reported near-term results or operational milestones that the bank referenced as evidence supporting its thesis: Twilio's record growth and margin expansion in Q1 2026; Braze's revenue beat and raised guidance following consecutive quarters of organic acceleration; and Klaviyo's Q1 2026 results that exceeded revenue and earnings expectations and a subsequent guidance raise.

Goldman Sachs' initiation of coverage with Buy ratings highlights an investor view that these three providers possess both market positioning and financial levers to benefit from the ongoing enterprise shift toward AI-enabled technology stacks.

Risks

  • Twilio faces gross margin pressure from messaging carrier fees, which Goldman Sachs explicitly noted as a headwind.
  • Braze operates in a market with legacy marketing clouds as competitors; capturing market share from incumbents is part of Goldman's case but also underscores competitive uncertainty.
  • Klaviyo has experienced recent market pressure and maintains close integration with Shopify, which Goldman framed as a distribution advantage but which could be viewed as a concentration risk.

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