Are there risks from a customer perspective in charging for API consumption, given other software companies offer more open access, and what other MCP servers are planned?

Nicholas clarified that API consumption is for indirect usage of engineering applications, not monetizing access to data in Bentley Infrastructure Cloud, which belongs to users. He noted that current user-based pricing doesn't capture the full value of AI optimization, and they are exploring token-based API consumption pricing for engineering applications. Greg added that they are open-minded about monetization and are currently focused on exploring potential. “When we're talking about API consumption, we're talking about an indirect usage to our engineering applications. So as opposed to having a user directly interacting with the applications, we have an AI agent that is directly interacting with the application.”

How AI will expand TAM and uplift ARPU, and what are the margin and cost implications for building AI products over the next 12-18 months.

Nicholas explained that AI's indirect usage of applications removes the natural cap of engineers, expanding TAM. He noted that monetization is currently through Bentley Asset Analytics, and they are exploring API consumption for engineering apps. Werner added that AI's impact on gross margins is currently immaterial but will be considered in future monetization. “The TAM that we shared at the moment of our IPO when we became public was all based on the number of engineers. And effectively, if we're talking about indirect usage of our applications through APIs, we are somewhat removing that natural cap of how many engineers are out there and how much can they consume within a given day in terms of applications for Bentley.”

BSY

Bentley Systems (BSY) Q1 FY26 earnings call: guidance and Q&A

Q: What are the 1-2 most important factors that could push constant currency ARR towards the higher end of the guidance range and potentially accelerate growth this year.

Nicholas Cumins stated that achieving the higher end of the range would require continued strong performance in resources and mining, strong growth from Bentley Asset Analytics, continued core infrastructure business strength, and potentially another programmatic acquisition. “So for us to get to the, let's say, higher part of the range, we would need both resources and mining, in particular, to continue to go strong throughout the year. And right now, everything is signaling that this is trending well. We need Bentley Asset Analytics to continue to grow strongly throughout the year. We need, of course, the core business infrastructure to continue to go well. And then probably another programmatic acquisition, yes.”

Earnings call· Mar 2026 (Q1 FY26)· Information Technology· May 7, 2026

Source: earnings call transcript

Executive summary

Bentley Systems Q1 FY26 — Strong Start Driven by AI Initiatives and Resources Sector Growth

Bentley Systems delivered a strong Q1 FY26, driven by robust performance in its core subscription business and accelerated growth in the resources sector. The company is actively pursuing AI monetization strategies, focusing on API consumption for its engineering applications and Bentley Asset Analytics, while maintaining a principled approach to data ownership. Management reiterated its full-year financial outlook, confident in continued durable recurring revenue growth and strategic capital allocation.

Highlights

Year-over-year ARR growth was 11.5% in constant currency, in line with expectations.
Net revenue retention rate remained strong at 109%, consistent with previous quarters.
The Resources sector was the fastest-growing, now accounting for over 20% of sector attributable ARR.
Last 12 months free cash flow was $492 million, up 13% year-over-year.
Net debt leverage reduced from 2.1x to 1.9x adjusted EBITDA during the quarter.

Concerns

Perpetual license revenues decreased 18% in constant currency, remaining a small and less predictable part of the revenue mix.
Q1 free cash flow faced a tougher year-over-year comparison due to strong collections in Q4 2025 and operating expenses weighted to the first half of 2026.
Persistent headwinds in China, which represents approximately 2% of ARR, continue to be navigated.

Guidance & targets

Category	Target	Timeline	Confidence
Full year free cash flow outlook	$500 million to $570 million high materiality	FY26	High
2026 financial outlook range	comfortable with our 2026 financial outlook range high materiality	FY26	High
Q2-Q4 GAAP revenues FX impact	negatively impacted by approximately $3 million medium materiality	Q2-Q4 FY26	High
Organic year-over-year ARR growth rates	relatively stable during the year high materiality	FY26	High
Seequent growth	assume the same level of growth that we've seen towards the end of 2025 medium materiality	FY26	High

Segment performance

Segment	Revenue	YoY	QoQ	Margin
Resources Expected another strong year for Seequent, bolstered by improving mining fundamentals. Seequent's subsurface ARR in civil infrastructure grew by a factor of 4 since acquisition. Technology pivotal for new energy sources (geothermal) and water management. Accounted for >20% of sector attributable ARR	—	fastest-growing sector	—	—
Public Works Utilities Driven by robust global infrastructure investments. Power Line System benefited from increasing demand for grid resiliency and new power generation. Adoption of Seequent applications also supported growth.	—	solid quarter	—	—
Industrial Growth continued to be solid.	—	solid	—	—
Commercial Facilities Remained relatively flat.	—	relatively flat	—	—
EMEA Strong performance despite conflict in Middle East (project delays, consumption shift), offset by strength elsewhere. U.K. growth accelerated. Robust growth in Africa driven by increased mining spending.	—	fastest-growing region	—	—
Asia Pacific India leading the way, Australia showing improved momentum. Persistent headwinds in China (approx. 2% of ARR) compensated by strength elsewhere.	—	solid growth	—	—

BSY operating KPIs by quarter

BSY operating KPIs stated on its earnings calls, by fiscal quarter
KPI	Dec 2025 Q4 FY25	This call Mar 2026 Q1 FY26	Jun 2026 Q2 FY26	Change vs prior quarter
Net revenue retention rate	109% Net revenue retention was stable at 109%. Source: earnings call transcript	109% Our net revenue retention rate remained strong at 109%, consistent with previous quarters and highlighting the stability and growth within our existing accounts. Source: earnings call transcript	109% Our last 12 months constant currency account retention rate remained consistent at 99%, and our constant currency net revenue retention rate remained at 109%, consistent with recent quarters. Source: earnings call transcript	0 pt
Annual recurring revenue (ARR)	$1.462B We ended Q4 with ARR of $1.462 billion at quarter end spot rates. Source: earnings call transcript	$1.495B We ended the first quarter with ARR of $1.495 billion at quarter end spot rates. Source: earnings call transcript	$1.536B We ended the second quarter with ARR of $1.536 billion at quarter end spot rates. Source: earnings call transcript	+2.7%

Operating figures the company stated on at least two of the calls shown, checked against each call's transcript. Click a figure to read the sentence. A dash means it was not stated that quarter.

Orderbook & backlog

ARR $1.495 billion Q1 FY26 quarter end

11.5% YoY constant currency; 2.5% sequential quarterly organic

At quarter end spot rates. Sequential growth was all organic and in line with expectations.

Product announcements

Product	Type	Timeline	Details
MCP server for STAAD	launch	just released
New large-scale User Conference	launch	April of 2027

Risks & headwinds

Geopolitical tensions inhibiting access to Chinese organizations currently

25% of 2025 global design billings ($280 billion) generated by 25 Chinese organizations are currently inaccessible.

Mitigation:Strength across other regions more than compensates for headwinds in China (which is ~2% of ARR).

Conflict in the Middle East Q1 FY26

Saw some project delays and a shift in consumption to other regions.

Mitigation:More than offset by strength elsewhere, particularly EMEA's overall growth.

Perpetual license revenue unpredictability ongoing

Decreased 18% in constant currency in Q1.

Mitigation:Remains a very small part of the business and less controllable/predictable.

Churn in Virtuoso SMB base each period

The sheer scale of the Virtuoso base creates a natural churn dollar amount to overcome each period.

Mitigation:Combination of new logos and existing account expansion continues to deliver strong net growth; overall retention rate remains stable at high double digits.

What to watch in Q2 FY26

Resources and mining sector growth

throughout 2026

Current Fastest-growing sector, strong Q1

Target Continue strong throughout the year

Why it matters

Key driver for achieving the higher end of the full-year ARR growth guidance.

So for us to get to the, let's say, higher part of the range, we would need both resources and mining, in particular, to continue to go strong throughout the year.

Find out whether BSY delivers this. Inve re-checks your case every morning.

Q&A highlights

How Bentley's product efforts will bring the proposition of supporting more revenue by spending on software closer to reality, and what deliverables are needed for customer buy-in.

Greg Bentley emphasized that API consumption, allowing AI agents to perform more iterations, will lead to better quality designs and enable engineering firms to substantiate fixed-price models to owner-operators. He noted that the more excited firms are about this transformation, the better for Bentley's prospects, as it's a win-win scenario.

“Well, I think the path to that foreseeably is the API consumption. The notion that agents spun up by the engineers can do more iterations in the same time. It not only will deliver a better quality of design, but the engineering firms will be able to substantiate that to the owner operators to accelerate this transformation to fixed pricing.”

asked by Joe Vruwink · answered by Gregory Bentley

2 min read 5 chapters

Detailed narrative

AI Strategy and Monetization

Bentley Systems is positioning itself as a leader in infrastructure AI, leveraging its established incumbency and data stewardship in Bentley Infrastructure Cloud. The company sees AI as a seminal opportunity, focusing on agentic API consumption of its modeling and simulation functionality for design optimization and improved constructability.

Bentley Asset Analytics, already exceeding $50 million in annual revenue run rate, is leading the way for instant-on digital twins, commercialized through subscriptions denominated in consumption per asset.

Customer Engagement and Value Proposition

The company's business is anchored by stalwart enterprise accounts, with 45% of revenue from 220 accounts spending over $1 million annually. Bentley emphasizes aligned interests with its accounts, particularly top design firms, where software is a necessary factor of production.

AI is expected to enable significant productivity gains, potentially transforming commercial models towards fixed pricing and higher profit margins (up to 24%) for engineering firms, while providing better assured and more timely quality of designs for owner-operators.

Seequent and Resources Sector Expansion

The resources sector has become Bentley's second-largest, accounting for over 20% of sector-attributable ARR and is its fastest-growing. Seequent, acquired nearly 5 years ago, has grown its subsurface ARR in civil infrastructure by a factor of four and continues strong growth in mining, bolstered by improving fundamentals and increased focus on critical minerals.

Its technology is also pivotal for new energy sources like geothermal electricity generation and critical water resource management, mapping aquifers and designing recharge facilities.

Event Strategy Evolution

Bentley is decoupling its Year in Infrastructure (YII) Awards from its User Conference to create two distinct world-class events. The YII Awards will now be exclusively focused on the global competition, maintaining its intimate format, and will be held in Singapore from October 6-7.

Separately, a new large-scale User Conference dedicated to product learning, best practices, and community networking will be launched in Toronto in April 2027, aiming to allow both events to thrive.

Data Ownership Principle

Bentley maintains a principled approach to data ownership, stating that user data in Bentley Infrastructure Cloud is their data and is not used to train Bentley's AI unless explicitly directed by the infrastructure organization. This commitment to data stewardship is highlighted as a differentiator, fostering trust with customers who are increasingly sensitive about how their intellectual property is used, and is seen as a net advantage for the company.

Summary of the company's earnings call; see how call summaries are prepared. Not investment advice.