Payments company says AI lets it build tools it planned to buy

A payments company expected to buy more outside technology this year and ended up building some of it itself. Boost Payment Solutions founder and CEO Dean M. Leavitt says AI made the difference. He wrote about it in a PYMNTS eBook called "Payments Leaders Rethink What Works in 2026."

What changed

Boost had budgeted for third-party tools to support its growth, especially in data and security. During the year, AI improved quickly and the company added targeted technical hires. Leavitt says some capabilities it planned to buy became things it could build and manage on its own. He adds that building in-house often made more economic sense and gave the company more control and speed.

He gives people as much credit as software. Boost already had deep expertise in B2B (business-to-business) payments, its own data and a strong grasp of its customers. AI in skilled hands, he writes, widened what the team could build.

What is not known

This is a CEO's own account. It does not name the tools Boost built, the vendors it skipped or how much money it saved. Leavitt also says outside vendors still matter for specialized needs. In his words, the shift is not about AI replacing vendors. Going into Q4, Boost is looking at where building in-house offers more speed, control and value.