Channel Brief: SMB AI gap is the next MSP opportunity

Pax8 is on a roll. At Beyond 2026, the company made a clear push to help MSPs turn growing SMB interest in AI into services they can actually sell and manage. And they also came out with all the data to back that push. Pax8’s new research report, released during the event, The Agentic Workforce Economy: How Digital Labor Is Reshaping SMB Growth and Redefining the Role of IT Providers, lays it out straight: most SMBs haven't adopted an agentic model yet, and they'll rely on their IT provider/MSP to lead that AI transformation for them. That's the MSP opportunity, right there. SMBs remain stuck between AI adoption and AI integration, and that gap is the opportunity.

The report says, AI services in managed services are growing 59% a year, compared with 13% for traditional managed services. This makes it very clear where the growth is moving for MSPs. The bigger opportunity will be when SMBs move beyond basic AI use. The report highlights that moving from basic to intermediate adoption can lift profitability by about 45%. Moving from intermediate to fully integrated AI can deliver an uplift of around 111%. The problem is that many SMBs get stuck before they reach that point.

That is where MSPs come in. The report says 84% of SMBs would trust an outside technology advisor to guide their AI implementation, and 70% agree that outside partnerships are necessary to fully benefit from AI. Another 62% believe they will struggle to stay competitive over the next three years without it.

Pax8 sees three near-term opportunities: AI governance audits, industry-specific agent workflows, and back-office agent deployments. Governance may be the easiest place to start. Nearly half of SMBs have no AI-specific security policies, even though 83% say AI has increased their security risk. For MSPs and MSSPs, it means that the opportunity is already sitting inside the existing customer base. Clients are using AI. They just need help figuring out what is running, putting the right controls around it, and scaling it safely.

This Week's Tech, Channel, and MSP News

Kaseya launches MSP Success: Kaseya has launched MSP Success, a business growth ecosystem that brings its digital marketing, peer networking and community programs into one offering for MSPs. The centerpiece is MSP Success Digital Marketing, which provides websites, search optimization, content and email tools, reputation management, lead capture, appointment booking and dedicated marketing support. Kaseya is also combining the TruMethods Peer and Technology Marketing Toolkit communities under MSP Success Peer, with programs organized around provider size and quarterly meetings across North America, EMEA and APAC. The launch targets a persistent growth problem for service providers, with Kaseya reporting that 71% of MSPs identify new customer acquisition as their biggest challenge.

Cato Networks launches Integration Hub and Technology Partner Program: Cato Networks has launched a Platform Integration Hub and Technology Partner Program to expand the ecosystem around its SASE platform. The hub brings together more than 100 integrations across 20 categories, including identity, endpoint security, AI, SaaS and security operations, giving customers a central place to review supported technologies and deployment use cases. The partner program gives technology vendors a structured path to build and validate integrations using Cato’s APIs and platform architecture, with certified integrations promoted through the hub. The move gives Cato a broader role in enterprise security workflows while making it easier for partners to connect their products with Cato’s network, user, application and security telemetry.

ConnectWise introduces a new AI-driven platform: ConnectWise has introduced a new AI-driven platform that brings PSA, RMM, cybersecurity, automation, orchestration and agentic AI into one system for MSPs. The company says the platform is designed to help providers move from reactive support toward more automated and predictive operations. Its modeling of a typical MSP with about $3 million in annual managed services revenue found that AI and workflow automation could cut ticket handling time by 45%, reduce ticket volume by 30% to 40%, prevent 80% to 90% of repeat issues and improve margins by five to 12 points. The platform will be generally available at the end of June.

Pax8 expands its partnership with Google: Pax8 has expanded its partnership with Google globally, giving MSPs access to Chrome Enterprise Premium and Cameyo through the Pax8 Marketplace following an initial launch in Australia and New Zealand. Chrome Enterprise Premium adds browser-based security, context-aware access and AI-powered threat protection, while Cameyo lets businesses run legacy and client-based applications securely through the browser. For MSPs, the partnership offers secure end-user computing without relying on traditional virtual desktops or VPNs, while helping SMB customers modernize their applications, browsers and device management at their own pace.