Cost overruns, quotes, ROI, build/buy/API trade-offs. What the market leaves out of its pitches.
Building your own model, buying a vertical solution, or using an API: three strategies with radically different risk, cost, and sovereignty profiles. The sovereignty angle often changes the decision.
The AI integration quote only shows the surface. Underneath: token costs in production, infrastructure, data preparation, prompt maintenance, human review, and technical debt. The real TCO is often 3 to 5 times the initial budget.