In 2026, IT budgets are under intense scrutiny – yet one area that consistently stands out as an exception is AI investment. While CIOs are tightening spend elsewhere amid economic pressures, AI projects continue to attract funding and board-level sponsorship. This contrast sends a clear message for partners: traditional “keep-the-lights-on” IT spend is under pressure, but that pressure creates an opportunity to pivot and capture value by shifting customers into AI-driven services that deliver tangible business outcomes.
Resellers and MSPs who act now can help their customers rebalance budgets away from legacy costs (e.g. on-prem infrastructure, overlapping tools, manual processes) and into modern AI + security solutions that boost efficiency and growth potential. This isn’t a defensive move — it’s a commercial play to protect margins and build long-term, recurring services revenue around high-value outcomes.
Why legacy IT spend is losing ground
In most businesses, the majority of IT budget is still tied up in maintenance and operations. All those costs that “run the business”, such as support contracts, patching, server upkeep, license overlaps all absorb 60–80% of budget, leaving very little room for innovation or new initiatives. Historically, that was accepted as the cost of doing business. But times have changed.
Economic pressure is forcing CIOs and CFOs to scrutinise every pound. If a cost doesn’t show clear value or competitive edge, it’s on the chopping block. In fact, around 70% of IT leaders have been directed to find cost savings in their existing business this year. It’s become increasingly hard to justify spending millions on status-quo tools when AI and automation can often achieve the same outcomes at lower cost (or achieve more with the same budget).
Crucially, AI is now seen as exempt from broad budget cuts. While many projects are on hold, over 80% of senior tech decision-makers plan to increase AI spend in the next 12 months. That means money is actively being freed up from elsewhere to fund AI initiatives. The message is clear: innovate or risk being left behind.
For partners, it’s a call to action. If your customer has manual processes costing them £500k a year and you can replace that with an AI workflow at half the cost – that’s a powerful business case to lead with. You save them money (helping them hit budget targets) and free up funds they can reinvest in more transformative projects (ideally with you as the guide).
AI adoption is already happening – with or without you
One thing is certain: AI has arrived inside customer businesses, whether their incumbent partners are involved in it or not. This is a trend no partner can ignore.
- Rapid uptake: According to recent industry surveys, the share of workers using AI tools at work jumped by 50% in one year, with roughly 60% of employees now having access to some form of AI. In small and mid-sized businesses, usage is even higher – well over three-quarters of staff actively use AI at work in some capacity. These numbers show how quickly AI is permeating daily operations.
- C-suite urgency: 25% of companies say AI is already transforming their business (twice as many as last year). Imagine if it doubles again, that would be half of all companies saying they’re seeing transformational impact within a couple of years. This momentum is largely driven by business leadership, not just IT. If you’re a partner, you need to ensure you’re the one guiding that transformation, not a competitor or a third-party SaaS vendor.
- Shadow AI projects: Many customers start experimenting with AI (like ChatGPT, Google Gemini or Microsoft Copilot) without formal partner engagement. They do pilots in one department, or employees bring in AI tools on their own because they’re trying to cope with workload. This “BYOAI” trend is huge – nearly 80% of employees at SMBs admit to bringing their own AI tools to work when official solutions aren’t provided. If a partner isn’t yet having AI conversations with a client, odds are someone else is – even if that “someone” is an internal team or another provider quietly stepping in.
For partners, this should feel like a motivational jolt rather than a threat. It means there’s pent-up demand waiting for you. Your customers want guidance on AI. If you can position yourself as their AI and security advisor – with credible insights and a practical roadmap, they’ll welcome the help.
It’s essential to frame the AI conversation right. Customers don’t want hype. They want clarity on why AI matters to their business now, where it can drive value, and how to implement it safely. Bring them facts and use cases (“e.g. 66% of early AI adopters report improved productivity within months”), and speak to outcomes, not just technology.
AI and Security: Two sides of the same coin
We cannot talk about AI in a vacuum. Every AI project must address security, compliance, and trust from day one. Otherwise, it will face roadblocks.
The stakes are high:
- A recent partner survey revealed that over 80% of business leaders cite data leakage as their #1 concern with AI adoption. When generative AI can potentially expose sensitive data, customers get very nervous – as they should.
- 73% of IT and security leaders worry about receiving inaccurate or even biased outputs from AI (the dreaded “hallucinations”), and over half are concerned about harmful content or decisions that a rogue AI might produce.
- On top of that, 55% of executives are anxious about new AI regulations coming down the line – they know the rules are evolving and they don’t want to get caught out of compliance.
These concerns might seem technical, but they’re fundamentally about business risk. That’s why coupling AI with robust security and governance is critical in every proposal and project.
For partners, this is a chance to differentiate:
- Lead with an integrated story: Don’t just pitch an AI solution; pitch an AI solution that’s secure by design and comes with governance best practices. For example, instead of selling “Chatbot X” on its own, position “Chatbot X with integrated data protection, identity management, and compliance guardrails”. The latter is far more reassuring for a customer making a big bet.
- Bundle services for trust: Partners who bundle AI with security services (like readiness assessments, data classification and protection, identity hardening, etc.) are seeing 2–3 times larger deal sizes versus selling either alone. Why? Because you’re solving the full problem: delivering productivity gains and addressing risk. This approach also leads to stickier relationships – customers are unlikely to swap you out when you’re managing something as critical as their security posture alongside new AI capabilities.
In essence, security is the seatbelt for the AI car. It’s not an optional add-on; it’s what allows you to go faster safely. The more confidently you can address the security question, the more quickly your customers will move forward with AI initiatives (and the larger those projects can grow).
Outcome-focused services: where partner margins grow
Ultimately, to capitalise on this shift, partners must transition from selling products to selling outcomes.
Customers today aren’t just buying technology, they’re buying results. They want to know: will this investment save me money, make my people more productive, grow my revenue, reduce my risk? Especially with AI (still new to many), they rely on partners to bridge that gap from technology to outcome.
This is where services become key:
- Address the “monetisation gap”: As noted in the latest Microsoft Work Index Trend Report May 2026, only ~20% of customers are currently achieving their expected AI outcomes (despite ~74% having the goal of revenue growth or efficiency gains). That gap between what they hope to get and what they’re actually getting is where partners add value. By building structured services (assessments, pilots, training, optimisation, governance frameworks), you help customers realise the promised value of AI, which they likely can’t do alone.
- Emphasise recurring and managed services: Instead of a one-off AI deployment, shape it into an ongoing engagement. For example, an AI + security managed service might include continuous model tuning, monthly security posture assessments, quarterly AI strategy reviews, etc. This turns a project into a subscription – feeding your recurring revenue and deepening customer loyalty.
- Protect the socket: Security is still seen as the biggest blocker to AI, with CISO’s in customers nervous about what the capability of AI will show employees. AI isn’t risk here; poor security structure is. If AI can get access to data, you don’t want employees to see then employees can gain access to the data now, AI is just the window. 85% of MSPs now view security services as their biggest growth area - combining that with AI doubles the differentiation.
One often overlooked piece is AI governance and responsible AI consulting. Only 21% of firms have a formal AI governance model today, yet nearly half of businesses worry they lack adequate AI oversight. So, offering services like “AI usage policy creation” or “Responsible AI framework setup” is not just good practice, it’s a high-value consulting opportunity few others are providing. It elevates you from IT supplier to strategic advisor, which is where the best client relationships (and margins) live.
Right platforms, right partnerships
When guiding customers through this transformation, the platforms you choose and the partnerships you leverage will greatly influence your success.
Platform: Doubling down on a cohesive platform like Microsoft’s AI and Security ecosystem can simplify your delivery. It means you’re not stitching together disparate tools; you have an integrated base (Azure, Microsoft 365, Copilot, Defender, Entra, Purview, etc.) that you can extend with your services. Many customers are already invested in Microsoft, and they trust its enterprise readiness. By aligning with that, you spend less time “selling the tech” and more time selling your value on top. (This doesn’t mean you ignore other vendors; it means you lead with a clear focus.)
Partnership: Remember, as you pivot, you don’t have to go it alone. This is where working with a value-add distributor like Infinigate can accelerate your moves:
- Pre-sales and enablement support: If you need help crafting the perfect AI+security pitch or demo, our team can assist directly in your partner opportunities, from shaping the messaging to providing technical experts for joint calls.
- AI & Copilot readiness services: We have assessment services (for things like Copilot readiness, AI risk assessments, security posture checks) that you can take to your customers immediately, under your brand, to open doors and establish credibility. We call this tool SCOUT which you can develop a manage service offering with. These are often the first paid engagements that lead to bigger projects.
- Infinigate Services: Got a big opportunity but missing certain skills or capacity? We offer cloud and security professional services, so you can deliver end-to-end solutions without having to hire a dozen specialists first. Think of it as your instant services bench - use it as much or as little as you need. You get expert professionals to deliver the service for you while you collect a profit. Delivering your customers needs without having to build the practice.
The bottom line: Traditional IT spending may be flat or declining, but by proactively helping customers redirect that spend into AI-powered outcomes (with security and trust included), partners can unlock new growth. The winners in the next phase will be those who lead with data and insight, reposition around AI + security outcomes, and build the services to support them. The shift is happening now. The partners who embrace it will own the next decade of success, and we at Infinigate are here to support you every step of the way.
Ready to seize the opportunity?
Let’s talk – whether it’s pre-sales help, AI & security readiness assessments, or Infinigate delivery services, we’ve got you covered to make 2026 your year of AI-powered growth.
If you would like to learn more about AI investments or how Infinigate Cloud can support you and your customers, please get in touch with us at microsoft@infinigate.cloud