Small and midsized businesses (SMBs) are at a turning point. AI’s becoming part of how they operate every single day. And they’re not asking for moonshots. They’re asking for technology, partners and platforms that help them work better right now.
At Microsoft Ignite 2025, that message was everywhere. The era of “AI as a sidekick” is done. We’re now entering a world where agents take action, workflows react in real time and intelligence is woven directly into the tools people use.
As Scott Chasin said on stage, the question has officially shifted: “How do we make this intelligence work today?”
And alongside that shift came another big theme: Frontier Firms: businesses that combine human intuition with autonomous agents, responsive workflows and actionable intelligence. That’s where SMBs are heading next. They want tools that feel like teammates, not science projects. And they’re turning to their MSPs and MIPs to help make that leap.
So, let’s get into the eight signals from Ignite that managed service providers (MSPs) should be building on today.
1. From Tools to Workflows
Ignite made one thing clear: the future isn’t about standalone copilots; it’s about connected workflows that automate real business processes from end to end.
What this means for you:
- You deliver more value by building repeatable, intelligent workflows, not just installing tools.
- Platforms that offer one experience, one bill and full visibility win.
- Your role evolves from installer to orchestrator of intelligent business operations.
2. Scale over Experimentation
Pilots and proofs of concept aren’t the goal anymore. Teams want AI that’s ready to run. Capabilities like embedded copilots, data intelligence and secure agent frameworks are powerful, but for SMBs, power doesn’t matter unless it’s easy, fast and aligned to outcomes.
What this means for you:
- Your differentiation becomes speed + simplicity.
- Build offerings that deploy once and scale repeatedly.
- Clients want results today, not in six months.
3. Agents Becoming Teammates
We’ve crossed into a reality where agents are part of how businesses operate, not just an add-on.
For SMBs, agents mean:
- automated support
- autonomous back-office execution
- workflows that run themselves
- digital teammates for every department
They want this capability — they just need a partner to run it.
That’s the next decade of managed services: managed intelligence.
We’re building that ecosystem already through Pax8 Academy, Marketplace and the frameworks to make agent-driven operations real.
4. Developer Enablement and the Agent Factory
One of the louder signals at Ignite: building your own agents is about to become mainstream.
Opportunity for MSPs:
- Shift from being a reseller to an MIP: help clients identify outcomes, design or integrate agents, sell, buy, build and manage them. Pax8 offers the definitive MIP Playbook to help you learn where to start.
- Partner with platforms that enable you to deliver branded or vertical-specific solutions you own.
5. Democratization of Intelligence
Intelligence is showing up everywhere: in apps, workflows, devices and the tools SMBs already use.
Your focus:
- Embed intelligence into daily operations, not just pitch it.
- Work with vendors building agentic capability directly into existing workflows.
- Highlight the outcomes, not the tech.
Inside Pax8, we’re already doing this. We use agents to forecast, run internal processes, resolve tickets and streamline operations. When humans and AI work together, you get scale you couldn’t get before.
And that’s exactly what the Agent Store unlocks: AI teammates deployed as easily as software licenses…secure, governed and partner-led.
6. Platform Convergence
Ignite showcased a big consolidation moment: cloud, data, AI, productivity and devices are collapsing into unified platforms.
Implications for you:
Your portfolio needs integration, not fragmentation.
Solutions that tie infrastructure + productivity + intelligence together are the ones that deliver real value.
7. Growth Requires Governance
A major Ignite theme: governance is no longer optional.
Identity, permissions, observability, risk: they’re built directly into the new wave of intelligent systems, and SMBs need help navigating all of it.
This is where you win:
- By guiding customers toward safe, sustainable deployment.
- By owning the question: “Can we manage this system responsibly over time?”
- By building trust early in the adoption cycle.
8. Human + Machine Collaboration
Ignite said it best: The future isn’t AI replacing people; it’s AI working with people.
For partners, that means:
- building frameworks that explain how teams operate alongside agents
- helping clients navigate trust, control and clarity
- positioning agents as tools for acceleration, not disruption
Where Pax8 Fits In
There’s a growing expectation across the industry: If you’re going to deploy AI, you should be using it yourself. That’s why we built the Pax8 Labs as a place to test, harden and operationalize the agentic workflows we bring to partners.
And the momentum is real. Since late summer, more than 700 partners have come to our headquarters in Denver to see how Pax8 is using AI internally to run the business faster, smarter and more efficiently.
Partners want to follow leaders who demonstrate the future in their own operations. Pax8 shows the work.
Scott’s line from the Ignite stage captured where we’re heading: “The Marketplace isn’t a catalog anymore; it’s the operating system for the intelligent SMB economy.”
This is the next era of SMB work: a blend of human teams and digital teammates collaborating to drive results. And Pax8 is designing the operating system to power it.
The moment is here. And the Pax8 community is ready.
AI is reshaping every part of the SMB: sales, service, security, operations, support and decision-making. Partners are the ones who will turn that shift into practical, measurable value.
Pax8 is building the ecosystem, the intelligence, the enablement, and the Marketplace to help them lead.
AI as a teammate. Agents as the new workforce. Partners as the catalyst. Pax8 as the operating system behind it all.
At Pax8 we’re committed to helping MSPs evolve into Managed Intelligence Providers (MIPs), those who deliver the intelligence layer SMBs need.
Here’s how we align:
- Playbooks and enablement that map your path from MSP to MIP
- A unified Marketplace built for cloud, AI, productivity and security, all under one roof
- Operational simplicity baked in: automated provisioning, consolidated billing, in one place
- A people-first mindset: tech matters, but relationships, guidance and trust drive real impact
With the signals from Ignite and this agentic shift in motion, MSPs who lean into the change now will lead the next wave — not follow it.
This is the frontier. And we’re ready to help partners win it.
