This playbook offers AWS cost optimization strategies—like right-sizing, serverless adoption, and AI inference control—to reduce cloud and AI expenses without slowing product delivery, featuring quick wins, decision frameworks, and key metrics.

In 2026, AWS startups should prioritize integrating Agentic AI into real workflows with event-driven orchestration, focus on data quality over new models, ensure continuous evaluation, control AI costs, enforce security standards, and make strategic build vs buy decisions.