If the less dynamic areas of an application are automation tested, then by definition, the more dynamic areas remain to be tested. More complicated exploratory testing can be applied to the dynamic areas. The expected result is that a smaller, yet more technically adept testing staff will be required in this environment. This should result in a more loyal and interested staff. It is hard to put a price on this, but the benefit is very real.
Turnaround time is much faster.
The initial development time needed to create a test system is substantial. Once the test system is created, though, the results of each new build can be determined much faster. If a test system takes half a day to run all the way through, then it might take days to run through all these tests by hand. Defects can be reported more quickly, which significantly speeds up the development process. A company may be first to market simply because they use test automation.