Appian Corporation

Q2 2026 cloud subscription revenue was $131.7 million, up 23% year over year, or up 22% on a constant-currency basis. Total subscription revenue was $157.7 million, up 19%; professional services revenue was $45.6 million, up 20%; and total revenue was $203.3 million, up 19% year over year, or 18% constant currency. Gross margin was 72%, flat year over year; subscription gross margin was 84% versus 85% a year ago; professional services gross margin was 31% versus 29% a year ago. Adjusted EBITDA was $16.2 million versus $8.1 million last year, and EPS was $0.13 versus breakeven last year. For Q3, Appian guided cloud subscription revenue to $133 million-$135 million, total revenue to $214 million-$218 million, adjusted EBITDA to $30 million-$33 million, and non-GAAP EPS to $0.31-$0.35. For full-year 2026, it guided cloud subscription revenue to $525 million-$529 million, total revenue to $845 million-$853 million, adjusted EBITDA to $104 million-$110 million, and non-GAAP EPS to $1.04-$1.12.

Matt Calkins framed Appian as part of the AI stack, arguing that enterprise AI needs a deterministic layer, secure access to enterprise data, governance, and work allocation, all of which Appian provides. His tone was confident and upbeat, emphasizing that AI is validating Appian’s positioning and helping it win and expand deals faster. He highlighted examples of customers using Appian AI for document processing, onboarding, modernization, and mission-critical workflows in regulated industries and government.

Srdjan Tanjga said Q2 exceeded guidance on cloud revenue, total revenue and adjusted EBITDA, with outperformance driven by stronger revenue and expense timing. He noted gross margin of 72%, operating expenses of $133.1 million, free cash flow improvement to $12.1 million of cash from operations, and a refinancing that should lower annual interest expense by about $4 million. He also said Appian repurchased about 1.8 million shares for $43.9 million, bringing total buybacks to $65.7 million under the $100 million authorization, and raised full-year EBITDA margin outlook by about 2 percentage points to roughly 13%.

Analysts pressed on whether there was a bookings deceleration, but management said AI is an accelerant rather than a headwind and that deal cycles have not changed. They also said pipeline is unusually strong and that some hiring was pulled forward because they have work ready for new sales capacity. On modernization and public sector, management said there is growing momentum but it is still early and a multiyear journey, while on pricing and AI monetization they said the focus remains on selling value first, with 85% of new customers already buying AI-enabled tiers.