Recent discussions highlight the cost implications for startups utilizing LLM bots for web scraping, particularly regarding pricing associated with Vercel’s Image API. Various users express concerns about financial burdens, suggesting that rather than blocking AI crawlers, websites could instead implement solutions that serve optimized content (like markdown) to manage bandwidth and prevent overages. Some commenters also advocate for alternative solutions, such as using imagemagick or BunnyCDN, to keep costs lower and avoid vendor lock-in. There's a growing sentiment that companies like Vercel may exploit their customers' lack of knowledge about pricing structures, further energizing discussions around how to establish spending caps on services.